Morey has said repeatedly that acquiring Francis was a mistake. Francis will NEVER be a Rocket again and as DD said, will probably never even play in the NBA again. Let it go.
Whatever Steve did in the distant past doesn't count for much at the moment in NBA circles. Steve is currently an <i>Outsider</i> and not on any NBA roster. I don't remember reading anything about a definite NBA Camp invite for him with any team either. The onus -- responsibility -- obligation -- burden is on Steve to show that he is <b>currently</b> a hard worker and that he <i>wants it bad enough</i>. There have been plenty of McGrady workout pictures and discussions this Summer. Where are the pictures of Steve working out this Summer?
mind you, tracy has a lifelong contract with adidas and can easily distribute those pictures through the web (with cameras following his workouts). b/c steve doesn't have that exposure, we don't know what the heck steve is doing. however, i share the same feelings as the OP. i kind of miss steve. he's still "relatively young" in NBA age. he COULD come back. but considering there is ZERO news on regards to him wanting to come back, i'm assuming he's happy with his life beyond basketball. an explanation, like sherlock says, is that steve doesn't have the pressure like tmac has right now.
this thread is a joke. it ain't tim grover that made the difference with tmac...it's tmac. if there is any differnce at all. and steve francis...who cares?
1. Steve was given a multi million dollar buyout from Portland, so he has adequate funds if he wanted to use them for a Summer workout publicity campaign to get a solid NBA Camp invite. 2. Steve could have hired a college student or teacher off for the Summer to follow him around and take pictures of his workout sessions. 3. Registering a domain name and leasing a web server is fairly straightforward and somebody from his entourage or his agent could have made an appeal for help on this BBS if they would have questions on how to do those things. 4. Once Steve had his workouts going with pictures & video clips, he or somebody from his entourage or his agent could have created an account on the BBS to provide links and breathless commentary on how Steve is doing so well in his workouts and comeback campaign. 5. Go to other NBA related BBS sites and spread the word that Steve is coming back. Code: Estimated costs of a Steve Francis publicity campaign: Laptop computer $1000 Camera & Video Equipment $5000 Server & Domain Registration $2000 Pay for the person taking pictures & shooting video clips $10,000 ------- $18,000 I will round up and estimate the total cost at $25,000 to allow for miscellaneous expenses that I missed. I have no idea what Tim Grover charges for his workouts, but Steve should have some previous shoe contract money that could be utilized for that purpose. If Steve wanted to come back and thought that he could do it, wouldn't a 25,000 investment for a publicity campaign be worth a NBA contract?
I guess I am living in the past. He used to be so good. At least he made millions, I am happy for him. The guy was very fun to watch.. I think he is the best PG Houston has ever had.
I think it comes down to desire, perserverance and support. Francis may be missing one or multiple of these elements. I'll always be a fan of his, and I don't think it's bad to have threads like this every so often. Most of us cherish the good Stevie/Cat years. I like to remember, at least.
Eddie Griffin has a better chance of suiting up with the Rockets again than Steve Francis. For the love of God, please STOP with the Francis adulation. He was a horrible point guard and YES Kyle Lowry is better than he is. YES Brent Barry is, too. Do you not remember the comments about how Steve refused to help the young guys out when we (stupidly) re-signed him? Do you not remember that he has been paid by two teams to NOT be there? Paid to go away and stay away! Why on Earth would you want him back? Are you having turnover withdrawals? Do you miss seeing the shotclock get down to "00"? Would you like the organization to sign some more of is weed buddies to ludicrous lucrative contracts? I just don't get it. I mean, when he was young, I was more understanding of his cult following. I always abhorred him, but I know that his flashy moves and arrogance were the shiny charms in young fans eyes. He still had the magical "P" word and there was hope in some people's eyes that one day he might fulfill it. Now though??? He's washed up, lost his athleticism, and never gained an iota of basketball intelligence...never learned how to run a team, nor (the best option for him) how to be a good 2 guard. Sure, he's not skipping out for Super Bowls anymore, but is he diligently working on his game? Did he ever? Guys like Brent Barry, Avery Jonson, Anthony Carter, etc. stick around cuz they're students of the game. Even when their talents recede like JVG's hairline, they have enough mentally to offer their team that GMs pay to have them onboard. Petulant talent-laden punks like Francis get paid to stay away from teams. Intellectual die-hard students like JVG, Brent Barry, Elie, and Hubie Brown get paid to stick around. I'd be shocked if he ever was even associated with any NBA team ever again. The next time you hear Francis news will probably be in association with a crime, a recording studio, or an And 1 mixtape. How I wish I could just forget the entire Francis debacle of an era....
He led our team in points, rebounds, and assists. He had NO help. He was, in fact, quite a dynamic PG...
