If Francis signs for 3yrs or even less: Good or Bad

Comparing Duncan's decision to sign a short-term contract to the current situation with Francis is like comparing a six month stretch of the economy in '99 to a six month stretch of the economy today. Sure the length of time is the same but the situation is completely different. San Antonio had recently won a championship. They brought the team back for another attempt to win it all. Our situation is totally different. The team is very young. The future is bright. The key members of the Rockets have yet to reach their prime. In San Antonio's case, the window of opportunity was immediate. Robinson, Elliot, Johnson, Elie and the rest of the team were getting older. Duncan's best chance to win a championship was in San Antonio. Not anywhere else and definitely not Orlando.(one of only (I think) two teams that had enough cap space to sign him).

Also, times have changed. The owners have more control now. Teams are not inclined to build through free agency like the recent past. Because of this reason, Francis would be taking more of a risk.

Finally, Francis is coming off of a injury plagued season. He would be taking a risk that he should not take. If I was advising him, I would tell him to sign the max and if things do not go along as planned then he could always demand a trade. Do you think his agent is saying the same thing? I wonder if his agent has calculated the commision on that deal.

 

Man, I missed that part.

That is exactly why he will sign the deal. Lewis is having a hard time in the open market. But still, a max deal for Francis is entirely different than the deal offered to Lewis back then.

 

I think that if we sing Steve for a 3yrs its going to be a mistake b/c for one he is the star of this team and 3yrs is going to probably be the time when our roockies right now start to develop and actually show us in every game what they can do and when they are led by a All-Star point guard its going to make it easier for them to get shots and earn a name for them selfs!

 

A short term deal is definitely not good. This guy is the most dynamic point guard out their and is young enough to recover from injuries. As far as migraines, didn't he have a good enough season this year for all of you come on. What do you people expect he is our best player for the nest 5 years at least if he stays and what player do you know that never gets injured other that a Karl Malone and Kevin Garnett? Be real people how is not having Franchise a good thing. I say thumbs up to long term and by the way what kind of off season does he expect on the flip side the organization did everything possible the last few seasons with him as the corner stone. Granted not everything has worked out, this is the perfect long-term relationship if he stays here.

 

I'm probably in the minority on this one, but actually i thnk its good for the Rockets and Francis. If I'm a so called franchise type player, i would rather have an extension/long term deal before i turn 30 , rather than at the age of 25 , see shawn Kemp. Its a win win situation like the Tim Duncan deal he has now. He gets to see if the franchise is committed to winning and the team doesn't get bogged down in case of a injury or lack of success of the team. On top of that, the market ,cap,revenues may change and then you went from being paid market value to being under paid, see Scottie Pippen. Pippen signed a long term deal much to the disapproval of his agent because of the cba. When he signed his long term deal it was pretty good, but when the cba was adjusted, he was grossly underpaid and couldn't do anything about it. Then when he signed his rich contract, it didn't match his performance. Shawn Kemp did the same thing like going from underpaid to overpaid in a span of a yr or 2.

I really hope he does sign a 3 or 4 yr deal with a clause that after yr 3 the Rockets have exclusive bargaining rights. That way if Francis proves to have the constant migraines and is not improving, the Rockets will not be stuck with a long term contract to move and if the rockets aren't making the playoffs nd improving then he can jet too.I'm pretty sure a lot of team wish they had signed some of their so called budding stars to shorter contracts instead of the long drawn out ones. Glen Robinson signed a 10yr 68 mill contract in 94, seeing his production and the salaries now, what would his worth be if his contarct expired the same yr Grant Hill's did? I think its win win.

 

That is the most confusing thread that I think I've ever come across.

 

it depends on the "tone" of the negotiations. A lot more is said via indirect communication than straight words.

If CD/RT/Les think Steve just wants a bigger payday in 3 years, and to ensure we are "in the mix" re playoffs, then it's no problem. I like a player who wants their team playing at the same level as their salary (ie. towards the top of the table).

The other case, where our management trinity to think he would bolt after the said 3 years, trade him now for baron davis plus change (would be intereseting to see the team then!).

The injury issue definetly plays into the mind of steve's agent (not steve himself... he seems to think he's indestructable/invincible) and the Rox.

I actually like the idea of a three year deal. We'll offer the larger max to him then provided his health is in order & he has grown up a little (which should actually happen naturally, as all people stop being "young & stupid", but who knows with "superstars")