I won't ever understand people talking about Rafer's passing when we all know the real PG for this team has been Tracy McGrady. That says alot for Rafer's passing skills which amounted to almost nothing at all when he couldn't run the offense to the degree that he could either A. Create a shot for his teammates B. Run the pick and roll All he did was bring the ball up court and pass it off to McGrady. He was no more of a point guard than Tyron Lue has been for the Hawks.
If Steve signed, I think he could possibly be the starter along with Mac, Battier, Scola and Yao. In that lineup, he could be the 3rd-4th option, depending on how well Scola can contribute offensively. James and Wells would come off the benchl
Man if Steve ran point vs Utah in game 7 we lose by 10 points. Other than the late to, Rafer played a flawless point and we just didn't get that late board. Francis lovers are hillarious, look sign him for cheap (low risk potential high reward) and get rid of Head a guy who is not gonna be in a playoff rotation anyway.
I like Rafer as a backup PG, especially if AB ends up being an impact rookie. The main problem we had at PG last year was the lack of a decent backup, which forced JVG to play Rafer heavy minutes even when he was playing awful. We won't have that problem this year and Rafer can sit when he stinks. My pipedream for a starting PG isn't Francis, it's Bibby. If we could get Bibby to push MJ into a backup role, this team would be ready to make a run. Then we could trade both Rafer and Luther. Bibby already knows Adelman's system inside out and fits it perfectly.
Well, any Alston trade would automatically mean we're getting a rotation player in return. So it's not the same as "losing" him. Since our center and swing positions seems fairly set, it's a toss-up just which position is weaker between PG and PF. If we can get an PF for Alston who can make a bigger impact than him, then why not trade him? That said, it seems unlikely that Alston will be traded. The demand for him doesn't seem high, and he does serve a role unless Brooks/Head can backup James at the position. But if there's any truth to the Haslem/Diago rumors, I'd gladly ship Alston, then try to find cheap backup for the LLE or rest of the MLE.
not true,but i do agree with the original poster do not trade rafer unless you get back a PG that is similar to him in style of play but hopefully a better shooter. James and brooks are too similar in terms of their styles of play and we need a guy like rafer who will run the offense first before looking for his own shot. I wouldnt mind rafer being the backup pg (prefer him to be starting as he will play better with yao,mac) but dont trade him just for the sake of trading him. And i dont think stevie would be a suitable replacement for him. Derek Fisher would probably be the ideal starting pg for this team if he was a bit taller someone in that mold. but we cant have the ideal/best player at every position i am more worried (still) about the front court than the backcourt
Rafer's pass is good compared with Yao, but not on a good PG's level, because he has no court vision. Take a look at TMAC's pass, or Brooks' pass, you will know the difference.
Francis creates too many TOs. That's always been RA's niche; he can bring the ball up, and he doesn't turn it over. With all of this firepower we suddenly have, someone is going to have to be the guy to pass the ball. Does anyone seriously see MJ or SF doing that? Looks like Rafer is here to stay...
As many times as Clutch has broken statements like this to sulfur dust, we still don't need Rafer's services. He can be as you call it "decent" elsewhere. Smush Parker shot better than he did last year and you can go ask Lakers fans how they feel about his shooting touch.
he created too many turnovers cuz he has trash like kelvin cato, mo taylor, and juaqin hawkins on his team....do you realize what rafer does??? he brings up the ball and gives it to mcgrady by the three point line. Then they run that stupid pick and roll..IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!! When is the last time you saw Rafer penetrate and dish...or even finish at the basket?
rafer played flawless point??? Yeah he brought up the ball and gave it to mcgrady...it's not that hard. he accidnetly BANKED IN a wide open three to give us the lead in game 7...rafer played flawless point??? are you kidding he jacked up way too many threes and almost averaged 3 TO's in that Jazz series...dont ever say Rafer played FLAWLESS POINT...
first, he is not a good 3pt shooter. He has to do that in clutch time. second, a starting PG for a contending team should do much more than 3pt shooting. example: You want PGs like Paul, Williams, Nash play a little bit defense on you other than having vacations on defensive end.
i rather have Alston who know how to pass but don't know how to shoot over Francis who don't know how to pass and shoot but know how to score
Well to be fair he just did too much, and assistant coach Gundy wore him out just like he wore Tracy Mcgrady out. Remember he had turnovers too. I'd say with the amount of guys on the team who could create their own shots, there would be no reason for Steve to play one on one ball, nor would he have to handle the ball as much.
Sign Francis and then trade Rafer and Sura's expiring/medical to Milwaukee for the rights to YI and bring him over next year. If you think Butler can actually play, then don't re-sign the aging marvel Mutombo. He played well when Yao was out but then looked really gassed the rest of the season. Trade Head for a decent draft pick or some cash. Yao/Butler Scola/Hayes/Butler Battier/Tmac/Novak Tmac/Bonzi/Snyder Francis/James/Brooks I'd be quite allright with that lineup....First five looks pretty strong. 2nd five has some firepower also.....
Hey...I hear Matt Maloney is available...and probably cheap since we're still paying on his 13 year guaranteed salary. Get it done Morey!!! Maloney >>>>> Rafer >>>>> The naked hairy guy in that crazy bank commercial playing b-ball
yeah...it's unfortunate that we cant find someone who is basically automatic when WIDE OPEN like Kenny Smith...we'd be unstoppable
YEAH i knwo he created turnovers. I know he dribbled off his foot....I totally agree with you. If Steve is playing one on one on THIS team, then he has to go...i couldnt blame him for some of the shots he took when we had absolute scrubs on our team...
Unreasonably harsh on Rafer. He is a decent backup and shouldn't be traded unless you can upgrade your team. A Steve Francis, Mike James rotation would be disastrous. I didn't see if DD was advocating Francis or not, but remember that Francis is a lousy shooter and turns the ball over a ton more than Alston.
