Roxran, I disagree, I have seen Steve change a lot, just not on a consistent basis. It may take a while, but I have hopes that he will get there. DaDakota
Steve CAN change. I know he can. In fact, he already has and is quite accomodating in all the lineup changes and personnel shifts. I'm also thankful that at least we don't have EGO BUMPING problems that surfaced btw Kobe and Shaq.
DaDa you have chanced. When i started to post here,you where one of the most negative members here. i remember i once even said that i had doubts you where even a rockets fan i would like to say i take every bad thing i said about you (that can't be alot) back. you are a real rocketfan. and i wil not always agree with you you are les pessimistic then you were. i like the new DaDakota, stil not completly happy with how the team plays,Neither am i. but not starting a Lets trade Steve for Miller thread
Dakota, Steve will never CONSISTENTLY become the player this team needs at the point guard. I had already resigned myself to that fact this past summer. Thats fine though, change the complexion of the role players and backcourt complements to Steve and let him do what he does best SCORE. Complement Steve and Yao with the appropriate talent and then unleash Francis on the league as a dynamite scorer. Cuttino and Moochie are bad complements for this team. There are just way too many players on this team that need the ball or need to score and not enough role players that do the little things.
This thread has again evolved into a "Stevie at the 2" thing. BLAH! Now more than ever, with Ming in the fold, I think the need for us to have a true point guard is BS. As Ming gets more and more comfortable in the low post, I truly think our offense will learn to adjust to that. I hope Cuttino especially can learn to be a "spot up guy/slasher with the defense out of position after a ball reversal" kind of player. Kind of like a Maxwell who doesn't hit people with dumbells. But if we are going to eventually start running the Hakeem Olajuwon booty butt play with Ming more often, why the hell do we need Steve to be a great point guard? Was Matt Maloney a great point guard? If all of you are saying we should let him be a scorer, can't he just be a scorer by setting him up on the weak side opposite Ming sometimes after it's already been dropped in the post and kicked back out? We don't need John Havlicek if our offense starts going through Ming.
I agree with Prempeh. You don't need a true point guard to set up Yao. You need a true point guard to set up Mutombo.
Premph, nope its not that simple. This team is not going to be the complete dump it in style that the one with Hakeem and Barkley was. It will be more like the first championship where there was a mix of screen and role type plays with the dump it in plays. Also, the two championship teams had very good fast break transition abilities b/c they had smart and savvy players that knew how to handle in transition. The 95 team was actually a lot better in transition than the 94 team after Drexler was acquired in 95. The 80 shots a game this team gets will not all come from Yao post ups. Even when Yao fully adjusts, there will still be importance for the guards to make proper decisions. The motion offense the Rockets run usually ends up in the PG finishing it off with a screen and roll play. (Yao or Cato usually catch at the top of key after the motion, pass it to Francis or Moochie on the side and go set a screen). The reason this works better than a straight pnr is b/c the defense is unstacked after the motion. There still is very much area where the PG can have an affect on the offense ie. transition game, some decision making etc that can really affect whether this team will be great or just mediocre. The Rockets have 3 guards that have poor assist to TO ratios and are simply poor decision makers. Championship level teams have guards that take care of the ball and make good decisions CONSISTENTLY. You can have one low IQ type player but not three. Moochie and Cuttino are simply bad complements for Steve. Even though Sacramento runs a lot of offense through Webber and Divac, it is still essential for them to have an intelligent PG like Mike Bibby that makes sure the right players get the ball at the right spots at the right time. It is important to make sure the transition game is humming along properly, and players are not getting frozen out of the offense. It is also important for the PG to be effective consistently on the defensive side of the ball by cutting off guard penetration. Steve's defense is still every bit as bad as it always was and defense at the point of attack is CRUCIAL.
I'm going to foregt about defense for a while, because it is beyond me how a guy with that much athletic ability can consistently let his man drive by him, to point out a major improvement that can be made offensively. Steve - You don't have to shoot the ball just because you've managed to drive all the way to the rim. Watch Steve Nash play some. While you are the superior player to him, he has mastered the not so difficult ability to decide if he has a good shot once he's driven all the way to the rim and keeps dribbling if he doesn't. You (and Mobley and Moochie, etc.) have amazing abilities to get to the rim, but this doesn't mean you have to either shoot or pass the second you get there. Keep the dribble if you must, and more passing lanes and shooting lanes will open up.
Please watch Nash alot, films, t.v., in person, at his house, everything he does. Nash doesn't have a fraction of Francis' athleticism, but he drives the Mavs like a well- oiled machine, he makes them hit on all cylinders. The Rocketmobile has been sputtering along for too long. One day it runs like a Rocket, the next day it is stuck in neutral. And who is at the wheel? Steve "I'm not really a point guard and I don't have to play defense and I don't really have to run the offence because I am the offense" Francis. Hey Steve, you may get to the All Star game by yourself, but you won't get to the playoffs by yourself.
Actually Sac has been humming along pretty well with a two guard gunner NO-J Bobby J playing the point. Nonetheless I do agree with some of the sentiment that SF needs to improve as a PG. In fact I think his PG play has more to improve than Mobley's SG play. It is Steve that isn't getting the ball to Yao enough, NOT Mobley. But maybe the answers to all the woes is a point forward--but I wonder how Steve will handle having the ball go through other players to set up the offense.
Just curious... Has anyone on this BBS played in a championship basketball game? junior high, highschool, college or pro.
Desert, The reason its working for Sacto is b/c they have a savvy and smart SG in Doug Christie who is averaging 5.1 APG to only 2.1 TO per game. Thats something like a 2.4 to 1 Ast to TO ratio. This has enabled them to play pretty well even with Bibby out. However, I can guarantee you that without Bibby, that team would not sustain this type of winning pct over an 82 game season. Also, Bobby Jackson is a very good defensive player and helps deny penetration. Like I said, a championship level team can accomodate one chucker with bonehead decision making (and Bobby's decision making is not nearly as bonhead as our guards btw) in the backcourt but not three. Steve Francis is fine as a scorer but complement him with his savvy, smart talent that is steady in the backcourt, not Mobley and Moochie. You will see many more performances like last night 12 ast, 18 TO with this current guard alignment. This team is going to be inconsistent unless a change is made in the backcourt.
"complement him with his savvy" Should read complement him with savvy not his savvy. Steve is not savvy by any means.
