Games like this really piss me off. Steve was really on going into the 4th quarter, and he hardly got any touches in the final period. The one basket he did get tide the game late, but I feel Francis should have gotten more touches. The way he was going, he could have pulled the Rockets through to a win. Instead, he was hardly involved and ended up fouling out. This game really set the Rockets playoff hopes back. ------------------
Why the hell did he keep fouling? That is what I want to know. ------------------ "Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning how to put food on their family while being put to death."
He probably was getting frustrated by not getting the ball. I noticed he keep urging his team mates to pass him the ball and they wouldn't. I could tell he was kind of frustrated with that. He probably tried to overcompensate on the defensive end, and ended up fouling a lot down the stretch. ------------------
Overcompensate my behind he has been getting burned on defense since he got in the league! And again, Francis is the PG, HE should be able to create his own shot! ------------------ Rocket fans UNITE to bring Pig Miller back home! WE NEED PIG! OINK! OINK! OINK!
A better question is why didn't Steve take over in the 4th? This is one of the few things that Steve needs to work on, realizing that as the most gifted player on the Rockets there will be times when he needs to be a little more selfish and carry the team offensively. He has done a good job, as he did tonight, of leading a rally and comeback. But I want him to lead the comeback all the way to the end and show his toughness as a competitor and leader. ------------------ "ON-BEE-TAH-BULL!!", Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon, alumnus, University of Houston
How can Steve take control of the game when Cuttino brings the ball up, go into dribble ISO mode and takes a terrible shot! ------------------ Respect Hakeem's legacy. A championship in the hand is worth two in the bush!!
If Mobes had just had a decent shooting night, we woulda had this game in the bag. Few Things I Noticed: Was the 4th quarter really nearly 95% ISO's? I mean I can understand going into ISo mode in the last few minutes, but the entire quarter? But at least they were attacking a weak defender, but it got ridiculous once they started goin against Posey (though The Mooch did get him once or twice). MoTay never got the ball in the 4th on an Iso? I'm wondering why... he was schoolin everyone he was guarding in the first half. I see so much potential here to Taylor, but we're not exploiting it. It's the same old story: MoTAy is on fire in the 1st, then we stop going to him. He ends up with around 20 points, but only scores like 5 of them in the 2nd half. Same story today. And he also COOLED DOWN, causing him to miss those 3 key jumpers late in the game. And, everyone knows this, once you miss one or two, your confidence lowers dramatically, especially in pressure moments. I'm sure Rudy was tryin to get Cat going & get him some free throws/drives to the hoop to bolster his confidence. But, Cat's outside jumper, a big part of his arsenal just was not there tonight... therefore he's much less effective. More Francis plz. ------------------ PrEsident of The Danforth Langhford FAN CLUB... He IS our future All-Star Small Forward
I agree, he needs to be more selfish. But when Moochie is out there with Steve, he's usually running the point and I've noticed that when Moochie's at the point, Steve hardly gets the ball. Steve needs to demand the ball, but I guess he doesn't want to step on anybody's toes. ------------------
That foul on the three was a good call. Francis practically ripped his hand off. He really hurt the team with the fouling. So, to sum up why the Rockets lost: Mobley shot like crap, as usual. Francis failed to take over. Francis committed some of the dumbest fouls I have ever seen. Mo was taken out of the flow of the game. Rudy was at his worst, lineup wise tonight. Bullard should not have played, at all. The Rockets played defense like it was 1982. The stiff made a big shot. Denver was unstoppable from behind the arc. The Rockets missed crucial free throws. Worst of all, the Rockets will have no time to review tape. They really could use a session of tape review to fix the monstrous amounts of mistakes played tonight. They will play a defensive nightmare tomorrow. ------------------ "Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning how to put food on their family while being put to death."
By bringing the ball up and telling Cuttino to get into position. By telling Rudy "I'm hot, run the game through me", or something to that effect. And before you respond, I remember that there was a thread on this board trying to compare Steve and Cuttion to Isiah and Dumars. Well, I remember there were times when Isiah would say similar things to Daly when he had it going, as would Magic, Bird, Jordan, Dream, basically every great player. When Steve is ready to take on this responsibility, he will truly go from being a very good player to one of the game's best, and the Rockets will TRULY be his team. ------------------ "ON-BEE-TAH-BULL!!", Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon, alumnus, University of Houston
ZRB, Francis didnt fail to take over, he didnt have the CHANCE to take over! He was demanding for the ball but nobody gave it to him. He's just taking orders from Rudy T, and those orders were to give Mobley the ball and run away, or watch Mooch dribble for 20 seconds and hope for the best. ------------------
Steve actually is very hesitant to shoot if he makes even one mistake. He lacks the confidence and the shooters mentality right now. One missed shot makes him think he still isnt hot. You can see this by the fact that Matt Bullard shot the tech instead of him. ------------------
Yeah, Rudy won't let Francis take over. I don't know why he loves Cuttino so much. It is so very frustrating. ------------------ "Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning how to put food on their family while being put to death."
