chron: Let's hope Francis gets the Big O's message

lets hope SF keeps it up with the Rockets in the 2nd half.

 

Not to sound cynical because I've always been a Steve fan, but I felt that a lot of his patience came from being surrounded by so many elite players. Being in an all-star game with guys like Garnet and Shaq around, he probably felt obligated to get the ball to them and didn't feel the pressure to do everything last thing by himself like he does with the Rockets. But if he can take that patience back home with him and trust his teammates, and if they can live up to that trust, I think that would be great

 

And BTW, I also had a lot of doubts about this article from the moment I finished it and was able to absorb what I just read. All of it's just too good to be true, but it's probably at least based on a fair amount of truth, and that alone is pretty encouraging.

But for those of you making fun of the tape thing, yeah, Oscar's response was worded funny (maybe he actually said something a little different), but I don't think that that's the kind of thing that every player would just know by common sense at all. I've never thought of that for when I play (and I might need to try it, hehe), and I've never heard about any other player doing it regularly when their ankle wasn't already sore.

 

Well I understand that, but last year, he didn't show any of those signs. Yes, I know, he had a migraine, it sucked, but despite that, he was jacking up J's and trying to AND1 his defenders despite being ice-cold (normally I don't mind the "and1-ish" stuff during the AS game though). Much smarter play this year. I know it's not as significant as if he played like this in the regular season... consistently... but still. He impressed me among the best in the league.

 

I'm not sure if anyone have brought it up, but Rudy should have had this talk and should keep having this type of talk until he gets it.

 

Great article. Hats off to O.

 

The more I think about it, the more I feel that this conversation is a fake. Hope not though.

 

No way they have a conversation that frank in front of a reporter. At most, they'd start the conversation, see Fran there and find somewhere else to talk. They wouldn't sit there in front of a reporter who's obviously taping or taking notes and have that conversation.

Unless, of course, Fran agreed that the conversation was "off the record" and then he stabbed them in the back by reporting it.

But my money's on the conversation being a fake.

 

For what it's worth, I didn't realize there was a picture of Francis and Oscar to accompany the article, until I returned to Houston last night.

I don't know where you are going with this one, but Yes, I hope that is not exact quotes of Francis. I would rather believe that Francis had more knowledge of Oscar and how he and Jabbar won a title, and more importantly, how Oscar consistently lost titles to big centers before that. I would rather Francis already knew how Kenny Smith and Magic Johnson felt about being responsible for their big men. I would rather believe that Francis already realized that he needs to get Yao involved and it is Steve responsibility to do so, not only for Yao's development, but for his own. I would rather Steve not try to rate Yao's performance in the 1st quarter (the 1-6, 1-5 remarks), but would rather leave Yao and Rudy to determine (based on fatigue) when they are going to use Yao as a decoy and go with other primary options.

If the quotes are accurate, then that means just abotu every worry I've had concerning Francis's thinking is true, and Francis needs a HOF PG to tell him he's wrong (rather than teammates--Rice, Barkley, Dream--and the coaches). If the quotes are accurate, then I'm left agreeing with Fran's closing sentence, because he must not have listened much before about using a 7'5" center, "We'll see if he heard" this time, and I'm not much one for hollywood drama where one conversation can cause an epiphany.

Fegwu, I think we agree on this more than you might think. The difference might be that I believe the quotes made Francis sound like a naive High Schooler who didn't really know much, and I don't want to believe Francis could possibly be that naive.

 

I think Oscar's comments already had an impact on Steve. He had one of the most well-rounded games of any All-Star this year. And, he definitely was balanced between looking to create for himself vs. looking to create for others.

If he brings that attitude and approach back with him, he will be at the beginning of his true arrival as an NBA superstar.

It does concern me though that he's been in the league as long as he has and things such as this are still a revelation to him... Then again, look at some of the other players (like Jason Kidd) who took many years to finally bloom into true MVP-type players. Francis will grow with time.

 

One thing really stood out:

Steve obviously needs guidance, isn't getting guidance, and feels lost.

I feel a little differently about Steve after reading this article: I feel that the Rockets coaches should be providing that guidance for their young players, and if they're not adequately providing it for Steve, they're probably not providing for other members of the team.

I sure would love it if Steve found success in applying what he learned from Oscar.

-- droxford

 

Well at least the guy's trying. That article definitely stuck out to me also. It seems that it could really help Francis learn about how he should run a team.
I liked that Oscar said that if Yao starts out a game 1-6 it is likely Steve's fault.
PLEASE understand Francis. It's are only hope to keep the Lakers off our asses.

 

There is a picture of Francis and Robertson sitting together in Saturday's Chronicle, the actual paper, I don't know about the on line version. I know that doesn't mean the entire convo was real, but those are serious allegations, for a reputible publication like the Chronicle.

Also, I wasn't around when the Big O was playing, but I know that guys didn't make that much money in those days. I remember Deacon Jones on the Jim Rome show saying he used to sale cars during the off season. But at the same time, 250K was a lot of money, still is, when the Big O was playing, I'm sure he wasn't struggling to make ends meet then. I mean, what is a $1MM in 1965, about $25M now, so Steve should have known that just by using that large noggin of his.

 

DavidS, you made some great points.

Just one thing: In your sig, the last name is Robertson.

 

For everyone wondering whether it was really from the chronicle...here is the link to it, if CLutch will let me post it. http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/printstory.hts/sports/bk/bkn/rox/1771092

 

We knew it was from the Chron...just not sure if Blinebury himself made the conversation up.

As mentioned, there is a photo of the two together in the paper. I've been searching but haven't found one online just yet.

 

we will know if he got the message. if he sticks to his one-on-one, show-off, me-first basketball style, then forget it.

until he learn to maximize Yao, or any one of his teammates for that matter, they will never get in the play-offs. he should learn to be a smart player. he got way more talent the Larry Bird. But Bird won championships by playing smart considering his limited skills. Bird might not be athletic but he got fundamentals and brain.

 

This is a sad article in a way
It made me so emotional.

 

I, too was impressed with the "conversation" between Oscar Robertson and Steve Francis as reported in the blinebury column.

I didn't think too deeply about it at first, because it addressed so many of the things I would have wanted Steve to hear. I was, however, surprised that blinebury could author such a positive article. His commentary is usually anything but positive.

After, reading the posts here at CC.net on Monday afternoon, I have to conclude that the article was not as positive as it seemed on the surface. (By the way, before going on with my comments, I would like to applaud Heypartner, for, being brave enough to "swim against the current" and voice his misgivings about the article. That is what stimulated me to voice my own opinion.)

On re-visiting the article and all of the comments here at CC.net, I feel that blinebury has only writtn an article which "tells us what we want to hear."

Why do I feel this way? Perhaps it is because he (blinebury) has rarely been a positive force in his writings about the Rockets. Usually, he seems to take the easy path by inciting controversy, being a doomsayer, pointing out faults of players and rarely balances his reports with mention of those same players strengths. Most of his articles that contain quotes from players look as if those quotes have been lifted from pooled interview sessions and even some interviews i have heard on radio or tv. I can't really recall the last time (if ever)that he published a true question and answer type of interview that allows the reader some insight into the players statements. It may be factual to report that Steve Francis said "such and such" , but can be misleading if the question steered the player into just that particular answer.

I have doubts about the actual conversation, because I don't believe blinebury has the reputation or the connections to come up with a "scoop" such as a personal interview between Steve and Oscar Robertson. if this conversation really happenened, most likely it would also have been reported in other venues, besides the Houston Chronicle.

The article portays Steve Francis as someone who doesn't even have a clue as to what a point guard does. If he didn't have a clue why would he be entrusted with the responsibility? That would imply that,not only Rudy, but the entire Rockets organization is also "without a clue." Are we as fans so naive as to believe that our coaches take Les Alexanders money and don't do their job??

If the conversation, took place, would Steve entrust his reputation to a willing hatchet-man? If you recall most of blinebury's past commentary he seems as commited to a philosophy of "accentuating the negative" as Rudy is commited to looking for "the positives" in a situation.

For the record, I too, long for the day that Stevie "gets it". but if he doesn't I don't think it will be for lack of effort on his part or the Rockets coaches. As a fan, and especially as a rockets fan, ya gotta believe!

If this article is a "fiction" it can be clarified by writing to blinebury or the Houston Chronicle and asking the question directly. If you get no direct response or no answer at all you can assume that it was a case of "literary license". A responsible writer, not to mention a responsible newspaper will even go so far as to print retractions and clarifications. I am not sure that will happen here in Houston where the Chronicle, as the only major player in town, doesn't really have to do much to sell their newspaper.

If I am wrong in my assumptions, I will grudgingly re-think my position on blinebury's abilities as a responsible sportswriter and perhaps I will even capitalize the first letter of his name.

 

See...Steve will be a great player and will be just as great as the greats before him. The reason is he wants to learn to be better and greater. This is something that not too many people have. They are consumed in there own pride that they cant learn to grow. Steve's character is different, he is constantly growing and learning. He has that mentality of a learner, and thats all it takes to grow. This is how those greats before steve learned, they were great listeners and they had the the same mentality. from this steve will be a legend.