The bench no place for Francis By FRAN BLINEBURY Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle SAN ANTONIO -- Against the Lakers he was The Franchise. Against the Spurs he was The Bench. Three nights earlier, Steve Francis could seemingly do no wrong, pulling up and firing in 3-pointers like daggers, dancing through traffic in the lane for difficult drives, zipping passes to places that most people didn't even know were places. He laughed and he grinned and he pumped his fist and he practically leaped through the roof with a sense of a elation and accomplishment. This is how it feels to carry the load. Now it was the fourth quarter and instead of a smile, all Francis wore was his warmup jacket and a towel over his head. The Rockets had come all the way back from a 13-point deficit at the start of the final period, but Francis wasn't coming back into the game. Not during a timeout with 5 1/2 minutes to play. Not even with the clock stopped at just under a minute and the Rockets needing a 3-pointer to tie the game. The Spurs eventually used a couple of classic low-post moves by MVP Tim Duncan to wrap up an 87-82 victory, and that's not news. The Spurs, after all, have one of the best home-court records in the league. What screams out loud is that the player in whom the Rockets have entrusted their future did not have a hand in the outcome. "It's part of the game," said Francis, trying to shrug. "These things happen." Oh, really? When was the last time Stevie Franchise didn't play the entire final quarter of any basketball game? "I was 10 years old," he said. "And that was because they had one of those rules where each kid can only play a certain number of minutes." This is not pee-wee basketball, and it's not about going out for Cokes and pizza after the game. Friday night against Shaq, Kobe and the Lakers, Francis exploded for a career-high 44 points and also dealt 11 assists. On Monday afternoon, he shot 1-for-12 with four turnovers. It was Francis' lowest point total since Feb. 24, 2000 against Denver, and he didn't see the end of that game because he was ejected. This one he saw all too well. From the best seat in the house on the front row. "I don't want to make a big thing about it," he said. "I don't know if I would have put me back in." There was more resignation in his voice than anger. But still. ... Head coach Rudy Tomjanovich is of the Darrell Royal school of thought: You dance with who brung ya. The Rockets had come all the way back with Moochie Norris in the place of Francis and with Mo Taylor directing a lot of the offense from a point-forward position. If the game had been one of those televised back to an audience across the Pacific, there might also have been 1.3 billion Chinese wondering if Yao Ming had gone out for a driving lesson and gotten lost on the freeways. Yao's vanishing act was even longer. He came out of the game with 3:21 left in the third quarter and watched an energized Kelvin Cato do a more-than-adequate job coming down the stretch. Maybe the Rockets could have used Yao as a better defensive option against Duncan with the game on the line than the 6-9, overmatched Taylor. But Yao looked tired, not quite into it, from the start. Francis, on the other hand, was wound up, one of those days when you thought he might have to be peeled off the ceiling. Against the Lakers, he started slowly, gliding beneath the radar, making passes to set up Yao and letting the game come to him. Here he was bouncing all over the floor, trying to grab the game by the throat and strangle it. A time, perhaps, to rein him in. "No, it was just the way things were going," said Tomjanovich. "I didn't really think about it and make a conscious decision about what to do. I just went with the guys who pulled us even, got us to that point. "I mean, if I don't let them try to finish the game, it's almost unfair." One has a difficult time imagining Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon or Clyde Drexler accepting that. Yes, we are talking about the greatest of the great. But that is exactly the way the Rockets talk about Francis. Rudy T has said on more than one occasion that he has the potential to be the best player ever at his position. Over the course of the past two seasons, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has sat David Robinson for entire fourth quarters in favor of Malik Rose. But the Admiral is in his fading moments. Francis is a star on the rise. Yet here he was shackled, humbled. What if he had gone back in? Does he keep right on firing blanks? Or find a way to make the right plays -- if not the shots -- to get the Rockets a win? "I don't ever ask the coach to go back into the game," Francis said. "Usually, I don't even go into the huddle. I try to stay up emotionally. I try to stay supportive of my teammates." Jordan, in his prime, was known to get up off the bench, walk past coach Phil Jackson and go straight to the scorer's table. Rudy T, of course, will never publicly criticize one of his players, even obliquely. Yet if there is anybody in the NBA with the right kind of image as a players' coach to send a message and get away with it, he's the one. When you're The Franchise, you carry the heaviest burden.
I was surprised as ever. I am definitely a Rudy lover, but what the hell was he thinking?? How can you not put in your star player when it counts most.
Didn't Francis sit out the entire 4th quarter of another game this season because we were blowing them out? Was it the Milwaukee game?
Regardless of the outcome, At least Rudy finally showed he has some balls after all. When was the last time he ever benched a star for poor shooting? I am more shocked, then anything else?
That was a good article. Im not sure one way or the other if it was the right thing to do though. Ming did look tired today though. I guess it was good that he got a rest today.
Those 5 earned the right to finish the game. The only thing I didn't like was when they stopped going to MoT. The Spurs weren't close to stopping that set. As far as the last shot goes, it wouldn't of been fair to Steve to bring him in for a last second 3pt shot after he had sat for a quarter. I think Rudy made a good choice!!
I agree with barbourdg. Rudy showed some guts today. I wish Mobley had passed to T-Mo but I can't blame him for trying to make a shot. Francis is our best player and he will be back into the swing of things soon including the crucial minutes of a game.
I don't believe we would've won anyway, so I think last night was a brilliant job from Rudy T. It just takes one benching to humble Francis into not taking his minutes for granted. I expect a win against Dallas. Posey, T-Mo, MoT and Cato are clicking on all cylinders, and Francis and Ming seem to LOVE to torch the Mavs. As long as Griffin can keep a hand in Nowitzki's face, this game is ours. I can't see Finley and Nash outdoing Francis and Mobley, at least not enough to compensate for Yao Ming's game.
Benching star players to show some ball? The 2nd unit did well, partly because the spurs was flat in the 4th. Then they bounced back, and hot headed Mobely failed to deliver. I thought that was the time to put both Francis and Ming in to clutch the game. Didnt we need a three? Where was Steve and Ming, that screen and shoot which worked many times? Rudy oh Rudy, try to be cute. How about some trust in your star player. Was that a statement? He'd better have some excuse.
I thought we would win if both Ming and Steve were in. At least T.D wouldnt have that 3pt play if Ming's there. Francis proved to be a big time player... This bad loss is not good for Rox going into Dallas...
The first thing I want Steve to think about when he takes a seat on the bench, is getting his ass back to the scorer's table.
Interesting article from SAS's perspective. Buck Harvey: No Francis, no Yao, no heat for Rudy San Antonio Express-News Web Posted : 01/21/2003 12:00 AM Monday's matinee wasn't televised in Asia, and that's a good thing for Rudy Tomjanovich. Given worldwide exposure, Rudy T. would have had to follow Shaq to the podium to issue his own apology. After all, Tomjanovich opted for the global greatness that is Kelvin Cato, as well as a grown man named Moochie. Several cultures already wonder about Tomjanovich's decision today, including the Los Angeles one that wasn't as lucky last Friday. But Tomjanovich will go to Dallas for the next game with only the usual amount of second guessing, continuing one of the league's longest coaching runs, protected by his personality and his image. The contrast? Imagine the reaction if Gregg Popovich had benched Tim Duncan for an entire fourth quarter. Last season Popovich sat David Robinson and his stiff back, and he still hears about it. Monday was different. Tomjanovich benched his best players, and one who was making his regular-season debut in San Antonio. Yao Ming didn't have the flu or a sore knee. He also wasn't tired. When a member of the media, searching for an answer, asked if he had a hangover from his Friday meeting with Shaquille O'Neal, Yao's expression didn't need the interpreter. The look said it: Even rookies from another continent know that Friday nights do not carry over to Monday afternoons. Yao didn't play with notable energy. But he grabbed his eighth rebound with about four minutes left in the third quarter, respectable for 24 minutes of play. But then he sat down and didn't play another second. The reason? Cato threw in a few dunks while the Rockets rallied, and Tomjanovich felt the need to reward him. Tomjanovich actually rewarded the Spurs. Tim Duncan twice went inside at the end, once sealing an undersized backup named Maurice Taylor the way highway crews do asphalt. A 7-foot-5 man, with just a spread of his arms, might have changed the angles. "My gut told me," Tomjanovich said afterward, and that explains it. He should have listened to his brain. Benching Steve Francis, also for all of the fourth quarter, made as little sense. Just the game before, against the Lakers, Francis went for a career-high 44 points, threw in the tying 3-pointer at the end of regulation and slipped in the game-winning pass in overtime. Monday he was the one with a towel over his head. The last time he'd sat out a final period, he said, was "when I was 10 years old, and then there were rules on how long you could play." There are unwritten rules in this league, too, and one of them is that coaches return to their stars for crunch time no matter how well the backups have played. Francis had gone 1 of 12 over the first three quarters, but Tony Parker wasn't doing much better. Popovich knew Parker gave him his best chance. Besides, Tomjanovich has said out loud that Francis could become as good as anyone at his position. And here Tomjanovich was, giving up on his Magic and his Isiah. "Sometimes it works," said Tomjanovich, "sometimes it doesn't." Sometimes these games change the standings, too. A win against a junior varsity is still a win, and in the tight West, one game can mean the difference between the third seed and the sixth. But Tomjanovich talked about the options afterward. Never became defensive. And acted as if, well, he could have been wrong. It's a posture that has served him well. Tomjanovich doesn't just get by on personality. He's won championships, and he was respected enough by his peers to coach the Olympic team. Still, there have been reasons to wonder about his strategies, and his Olympic moment in Sydney was one. His peers saw him, then, as not much more than a cheerleader. Eventually Houston might have seen him the same way. Had Yao not arrived this season, creating a fresh start for everyone, wouldn't the Rockets and their fans have likely lost patience with Tomjanovich? But that's just it. They didn't lose patience even while Tomjanovich was in the lottery three straight seasons with mindless, one-on-one teams, in front of a half-empty building. No one has ever wanted to go after Rudy T., an affable guy, a onetime player, a victim of "The Punch." So when Tomjanovich guessed wrong, lost a game and continued on? Popovich should learn how he does it.
<b>Still, there have been reasons to wonder about his strategies, and his Olympic moment in Sydney was one. His peers saw him, then, as not much more than a cheerleader.</b> Just curious, which "peer" said this?
Very interesting article by SAS. I don't think Rudy T bench Francis and Yao to make a statement . I think he truly went with his gut feelings. And like anything else sometime it's right and sometime it's wrong. I don't think Yao did anything to warrant benching if Rudy sit him to make a statement. He collect 5 rebounds and 5 points in the third before he was pulled at 3:19 marks. He contribute in other ways out there. He is not the type of coach that will bench his stars player to make a statement. He was just want to ride the guys who he think is hot. So i guess it depend on what you like in a coach. The one who go strictly with the stats and analyze every situation to gain all possible advantage or the one that went with how he feel. Either way you are alway a genius when you win.
It is not like Yao, Francis and Posey were benched because of attitude and lack of hustle! If this were the case, you do leave them out of the entire game. They were sat to give someone else a chance to score. But, once SA grabbed hold of the game and MOT became out matched against Duncan (especially allowing Duncan to get 2 and the foul down the stretch with the ridiculous hands in the air shuffle against him), that is the time for a change. Bring in the starters to change the pace and flow. The shock troops did their jobs and now it was time for a change. It was so obvious that Duncan was grabbing control and dominating Mot that something should have changed to give SA a different look and also some fresh legs! I am shocked as most. This was definitely a poor decision. But, let's remember how many times the players cost us games too and move on.
Bad decision period. Now let see how they do tonight. They need to make up this lost with a win tonight. I want to see how this decision plays with Steve's mind the next 5 games.
Bah. I don't care how well Cato/Moochie played (Mo is different, since I see him and Griffin as 1 and 1A). Expecting a hot streak to last for 15 minutes for two bench players is absurd. Letting them continue even after they're obviously cold is bizarre. Rudy is a fantastic motivator, but on his best day has weird sub patterns (Rudy, you have two real stars... it's a good idea not to sit both of them for the first 5 minutes of most 2nd quarters)... but this was something special, even for him. Often, subs will bring a team back that's playing lethargically. It's happened before in other situations. But it's not like Francis had tanked it. He just wasn't playing well. And he was still more likely to win the game in the last 4 minutes than Mobley or Norris. Incidentally, my wife (a jazz fan) tells me that Jerry Sloan has been known to do this, too. Ack. He's a good strategist... but says it's because he doesn't care about "winning games" before April. I'm not sure we need that attitude in the West this year, when one good team is going to get left out.
Seriously??? Ask your wife how many times Sloan has left Malone and Stockton sitting on the bench in the closing minutes of close games over the past 15 years. I'm guessing zero.
How many times do Stockton and Malonego 1 for 12,not run the right plays, and play stupid? My problem with Rudy T is not the substitutions, it's the X's and O's.
