Chron: Francis would "love" to play the 2... On the Rockets

Here, here.

But, if you noticed, Francis played the way he does in every Rocket game. Plenty of alley-oops, not looking at the big man on the PNR. From a Rox perspective, same story: offensively, he maxes out the Catos of the world... and doesn't scratch the surface of a Yao Ming's potential.

I know, it's an ASG and SF helped his team win. But if you compare/contrast this game with Rockets games, you see where our point guard's instincts lie.

 

Good points. Actually, we're pretty much on the same page. SF played smart, he played in control. He set up the offense and got every mobile position (the 2, 3 and 4) involved. He has done this in many Rockets games and then looked for his own shot in the flow. IMO, these qualify as his "best" games. The Big O would be proud... kinda.

My point is that he lacks the instincts (but not the capacity) to get interior players the ball in finishing position save the omnipresent oop. I had no problem with any of his own shots, but setting up the 5 for high % shots is clearly a learning process with him. Good example, Dallas collapse. 1st half: Rather than Dumping-It-In, Francis looks for Ming at the basket, off the drive and on the PNR. I nearly fell out of my chair. Ming goes off. We dominate and it looks so easy. 2nd half: Dallas defensive adjustments come, we can't figure it out, can't get Yao the ball, get frustrated, and get blown out.

In the ASG it was not exclusive to Yao (SF's "grass roots MVP") with 1 shot in 17 minutes. Shaq was on his own also, only a threat to oop and rebound when Francis had the ball - ie, a glorified Cato. The only way the 5 consistently gets the ball from Francis is when the whole arena knows it's going inside. Again, SF can do it. He just needs prodding.