Did you know?...... That Steve Francis' 9 assists in the 2003 Alstar Game was the most dishes any Rocket has ever handed out in an ASG. Hopefully this is a sign for the future....9 asissts and 3 TO...I like....I like it alot!
Yes. Maybe he gets it after having that meeting with the old good guy....yes...the old good guy whose name I forgot. BUT... HE WAS HOT. SO WAS KOBE. SO WAS SHAQ. SO WAS DUNCAN. AND......so was KEVIN GARNETT!!! And man...Kobe is a ballhog. He was pretty much the point guard. And took thousands of shots. But I don't blame him. He scored so...yeah.
Don't forget that Francis's relatively new to the ASG. KG, Duncan and Kobe all had more All-Star appearances than him. So why the complaint that they got more mins than Francis? And of course in the crunch time in the ASG, the ball would go to the more experienced players. And who said Francis got less credit than Baron Davis and Andre Miller? Francis's the starter in the ASG. Where were Davis and Miller?
Also...Kobe played most of the time because there was no other shooting guard. They played two point guards when Kobe went out. Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan played most of the time. Their replacements were Dirk Nowitzki and Peja Stojakovic. They got reasonable playing time. I'm sure Rick Adelman either didn't want to look unjust by giving a lot of playing time for Peja or he wanted him to rest. Yao and Shaq did fine. SO STEVE...I don't think he got dissed. He was treated fairly and got to play the end of the game. I'm sure he will become MVP in 3 or 4 years of the All Star Game when Rudy is the coach.
I think everyone was content with Yao playing limited minutes because we all know that he needs the rest. Not to mention he is the all-time leading FG% leader in All-Star history (1 for 1). I was actually suprised that Francis got to play the entire OT, especially with the plethora of talent at PG. I think Adelman showed Francis alot of respect with that move.
Francis was shown a whole lot of respect. He was the only guard that got to play with the MONSTER lineup(prob because they knew Kobe would still take all the shots). He got ALL the clutch minutes in overtime over Payton and Marbury. Ming needed rest. Ming's style is a lot like Olajuwon's. Not good for ASG anyway. I don't think Hakeem ever impressed. Before you think any West all star got dissed by our coach...look at the minutes he played his own player(can't spell his name ) Everyone was treated fairly IMHO
Isn't it amazing how many assists Francis can get when he is surrounded by good finishers and good shooters... just something to think about next time you bash Francis.
HAHAHAHA, are you talking about the same Kobe Bryant who put up 47 shots.... in ONE game? HAHAHAHA...... please...... And as for the all-star game, you watch the second half (not sure of the first) Kobe only passed the ball when he was about to be rejected and threw it out to save face. If you have the game on tape, re-watch and keep this in mind.
S FRANCIS 32 K BRYANT 36 S MARBURY 15 S NASH 16 G PAYTON 15 Francis played at least twice as much as the other point guards. I'd be more upset as a Payton fan that he played as little as he did (except that I'd be happy he got some rest for the playoff push).
IMO G.Payton was 'dissed' he is supposed to be the best pg in the WC and the pg you need down the strech. (maybe nash too)
