You've already admitted that assist statistics don't prove you make your teamates better and now you admitt that this team is better with Steve, what is your exact point?
Steve Francis does not make his teammates better because he cannot consistently create easy opportunities for his teammates. How's that Sam.
Leaders in turnovers/game in NBA 1. Allen Iverson 2. Paul Pierce 3. Lebron 4. Steve Francis Leader in turnovers/game in Western Conference 1. Steve Francis
I should apologize for this. I am biased and have my own opinions and so do you. I called you a "Steve Francis groupie" and although it doesnt sound like a prima facie insult, it wasn't meant to be complimentary either.
you guys get a room... I wasted alot of time reading all this.. im still not sure an exact point has been made. J
Calling a guy a groupie of another guy is usually an insult since there are certain acts we all associate with groupies, but its no big deal. Anyway, can anyone give of an example of any Rockets player whose stats are suffering because of Steve? I here this "doesn't make his teamates better" criticism a lot, but which Rockets players' stats are suffering because of Steve since stats is really the only thing we have to go by.
This is what should have been said in the first place......----> "Steve Francis does not consistently make his teammates better because he cannot consistently create easy opportunities for his teammates." That's something that should be a strong suit for a PG. As far as a center? Well, it's a bonus if your center can pass efficiently. Does Yao do that now? No. He's still not a "Divac" yet. But I think he doesn't extend himself as much as SF does due to their roles. So, his "turnovers" are not as often as SF. But neither are his assist. That's something we should keep an eye on; Yao's assist and turnover rates. What should be his goal? Divac! What does Divac get this year in asisst/turnovers? = 5.5 assist per game, with only 2.2 turnover per game. WOW!!!
The problem with Francis is he's not a good passer and decisionmaker on the court which are essential to the PG role. His best skills are as a SG. He can hit the short range jumpshot and is great at penetrating. A major reason the Rockets aren't a high FG% shooting team is because of Francis' inability to find teammates and/or make accurate passes. One of the biggest mistakes a coach can make is forcing players to do something he's not comfortable doing and expecting good results. Making Yao Ming play with his back to the basket the entire game is a good example. Yao needs some face up jumpshots which also improves his low post play. Another example was Allen Iverson as a PG. Larry Brown realized that Iverson wasn't a good PG for some of the same reasons. His best attributes were to beat people off the dribble and score. Instead of frocing Iverson to play the point, they moved him to SG and brought in Eric Snow. The ultimate result of this is Francis is nowhere near as good or as consistent because he's trying to become the player everybody wants him to be - which he's not. A good coach utlilizes his players' strengths and hides their weaknesses. By forcing Francis into a role he is neither comfortable in nor excels at, imo, Van Gundy is doing exactly the wrong thing. Van Gundy should tell Francis to forget trying to be a PG and just let him play the way he has been playing and bring in a PG in the offseason. I suspect Francis has been innundated with criticism and he's constantly doubting himself in a game that relies on quick reflexes and instant decisions.
