I saw that and I find that surprising since the other Rockets were saying Francis was working pretty hard to get back.. Could this just be rhetoric to rationalize the trade?
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/O2uxM0_8Ax8&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/O2uxM0_8Ax8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> This is kinda a bummer, but i know he cant add much to this team anymore. I still think he would be better than luther head though. But i guess luther has more "potential".
Yeah, even the new shooting coach raved about Francis's shooting but then the season began... and all we heard about was Francis's expiring contract.
man i wanted to see stevie return in rockets red. ive always been a fan of his. i wish him the best. get healthy man. i wanna see you back on the court.
He goes back where he should have started his career. Why Xmas!? Tread is already harmfull enough. What will this Xmas eve be to him, me, everyone loves him!? **** the business. We do want Deke back, why can't alexandaer pay a bit Luxury tax? WTF dese him want that much of money for!?
I'm bummed out about the trade. Shocking, I thought they'd at least give him a chance to play. Well if anything good should come out of this is at Francis possibly getting PT to show his stuff on an expiring contract then sign with a better team next season..(which I hope will be the Rockets) The trade should be slap in the face to Francis, a wake up call for him to get his act together. As Mark Johnson says on ESPN, "You're better than that!". Bash me all you will but whatever flaws he has and all, he is BETTER than Alston/Head/Brooks when he plays like his normal self, 21/7/7 at best. Yes age is a factor and the injury but since his said he's painfree I'm not counting that anymore and he said so himself that he needs to work on conditioning, which I'm assuming he wanted to get conditioning down in-game instead of in practice due to reports of his work ethic. So basically Francis needs to show he still has game in Memphis, show the league and the Rockets that he still has skills to be successful in the league. Contract year so if he impresses and wins Memphis some games and causes some buzz enough for the Rockets to reconsider signing him again in the offseason, this time with the knowledge of his capabilities.
Yeah, even if that magically happens, something tells me Steve won't be so eager to come back to the Rockets again. I'd honestly be surprised if Deke signs with us, given that the team has jerked him around the last couple of months.
This sucks. Steve could have signed with a bunch of other teams for more money than he took to come back to the rockets a 2nd time. We didn't give him a chance to play. What all the idiot haters on this board forget is that Steve was the one guy who always showed heart on the floor. That's why he's loved so much by so many long time fans. He played the game with as much passion as the rest of us feel sitting at home watching the game, yelling at the refs on tv, and cheering for our team. I don't know what the story is about his comeback, but on the court I never saw Steve play with anything less than 100% commitment. Steve, I'm sorry you're gone but you won't be forgotten. Like Bobby Sura, Robert Reid, Rudy T, Mike Newlin, Vernon Maxwell, Chucky Brown, and Hakeem, you will always be remembered as one of the all time favorites by real fans. Thanks for all the great memories and good luck in Memphis.
yup. well this sure puts all the francis talk to rest. hope he is in shape and shows he can still play in this league. i wouldn't have thought that he'd given up on working hard in practices (not showing up?!?). either he just gave up or he did work his butt off and just couldn't make it. i heard ron artest said something bout francis in last night's game or last night's pre-game? anyone wanna fill me in?
Another LOL post... Francis didn't work hard enough. Dude USED to be cut. You're naive if you think Steve Francis gave 100% commitment. Its not even close to that. He didnt hit the gym enough and thats why even Luther Head was always ahead of him. He got his contract and that was it for Stevie. We all loved him back in the days but its time to move on.
Somewhat surprised that so many are making this move out to be meaningful in one way or another! Steve was never going to play for us. We took a low risk gamble like we had with Bonzi, it didn't amount to anything, so we're downgrading a 2nd rd pick to dump salary. I'm stunned that anyone would actually suggest we just got jobbed. Francis really isn't going to make us pay. I'd expect him to be waived and out of the league in fairly short order. If this moves opens things up for bringing back Deke or making some other move, I'm happy with it. I liked Steve his first go round, but it's clear he wasn't going to contribute. Evan
logic and this board doesn't compute. thanks for trying. also not to mention the fact that the upcoming draft currently looks thin and the second rounder would net nothing but a project.
I'm wondering if there was more to this such as the Rockets felt it would be better to frame this in terms of Francis showing a poor work effort to soften any potential fan backlash. I expect we will hear Francis' side of the story soon.
Now all the Francis haters can stfu. On one leg he was better than luther head. He never gotta fair chance his 2nd time here. Also I never understood how supposed fans of this team could spew so much hatred towards the franchise but I guess haters are gonna hate. Good luck stevie and thanks for all the awesome memories especially that win against phoenix last year on a torn quad. Francis loved houston and was 100% heart - something I wish more of our players had. A truly unique talent and gifted player who always gave it his all. You'll be missed.
A really sad Christmas .... for a Steve Francis lover (and yes, I will be forever!)[/QUOTE] same feeling exactly. whatever you other guys will say, i will be missing him and pray for him. a sorry christmas indeed.
He got a few fair chances, not showing up to practice isn't gonna help you out any. I was a Francis lover, but if you're not gonna try then we don't need you on the team. For all the hate McGrady gets, at least he shows up to practice. That being said, that Phoenix game had me really excited, I was hoping he'd come back. Good luck, Francis!