JVG backtracks a little on SF

found this article on Houston Chronicle. Looks like Van Gundy is backtracking a little on his critisism of Franchise. Do you think we really want him to soften up his stance on this issue? I think a bit of discipline and 'tough love' might help Steve take his game to the next level.


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Van Gundy wants results
Too much Francis, not enough hustle, Rockets' coach says
By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle
RESOURCES



A day after Jeff Van Gundy seemed to call out his team and specify Steve Francis, he said he was only pointing out the obvious failings and did not intend to single out his star guard.

Then he found another target. Himself.

"I'm just telling the truth," Van Gundy said. "What am I supposed to say? `Wow, we're busting our (butts) out there?' We're not. That doesn't mean we're doomed to repeat the same mistakes. It's an indictment on me. It's not an indictment on them. As a coach, your job is to have an organized, disciplined, hard-playing team. We don't have any of that right now. It's not about me indicting them. It's me indicting me -- and them.

"It's the hardest thing for a coach to say. It wrenches my gut to say, `Right now, we don't play hard.' "

With that, Van Gundy also made a promise.

"I can say this," he pledged. "We will play hard."

Van Gundy had no interest in "psychoanalysis" about why the Rockets' effort has been so lacking. But guard Jim Jackson, an expert on starting over in a career that has taken him to 10 teams, guessed the Rockets' adjustments to a new coach and system have made them cautious.

"It's being tentative (and asking), `When should I go or should I not? Should I throw this pass or should I not?' " Jackson said. "That's because you're not comfortable."

Center Yao Ming, playing for his fourth coach (including two Chinese national team coaches) in 14 months, described the struggles as no more than part of the usual process.

"It's frustrating," Yao said. "There's a lot of problems we need to fix, and we need to use these experiences to discover what our problems are."

Identifying the problems, however, has not taken much investigation.

"We don't play hard," Van Gundy said. "Who cares why? You don't have to be smart to watch us last night and say that was a disorganized, uninspired performance."

The Rockets are last in the NBA in preseason scoring, averaging just 78.8 points. They are tied for last with their average of 14 assists. Their field-goal shooting (40.1 percent) ranks 23rd.

But as much as adjustments to a new system might be hurting the team's performance, Van Gundy and his players have cited parts of the game that are universal to any system. Getting back defensively, closing out on shooters and boxing out are not uniquely Rockets' goals.

More troubling might be that they have made little progress in the most basic of areas. After two games against the SuperSonics, the Rockets never did seem to figure out that Rashard Lewis is a pretty good shooter. On Sunday, they didn't seem to mind that George Lynch was taking target practice.

When the Rockets took outside shots, Hornets players took off for fast breaks all night Sunday, only seeming to generate interest from the Rockets when Van Gundy played point guards Moochie Norris, Mike Wilks and Francis together.

Van Gundy has no intention of relying on that rotation. But he said he would sift through his 19-man roster until he finds five players willing to play hard.

"I go into the year thinking eight or nine in a rotation," Van Gundy said. "I'm searching for those guys. If it has to be six, it will be six. If it has to be five, it will be five. You can't have guys make mental mistakes on the floor, and you can't have guys on the floor who won't play all out.

"Right now I don't have anything in my mind except I have to find guys who are going to play all out and not make mental mistakes. Smart players make smart plays. Players that play hard make effort plays. Those are the kinds of guys I need on the floor."

He did make a point to say that his criticism of the Rockets offense was not pointed at Francis. Instead, he said Francis has been forced to go for "home run" plays because of the problems offensively, rather than Francis has caused the problems by swinging for home runs.

"The first thing is last night -- and I shared this with Steve -- I said we're trying to hit too many home runs," Van Gundy said. "That wasn't on Steve. That was poor team offense that led to our best player having the ball in his hands trying to create something from nothing, which a great player can do occasionally. But you're not a very good team if that's what you rely on."

Francis insisted he understood Van Gundy all along and was not offended.

"Whatever. I know he's not going anywhere, and I'm not going anywhere," Francis said. "We just as a team have to get on the same page. We're straight. We're cool."

But neither Van Gundy nor Francis is happy. Halfway through the preseason schedule, the Rockets seem no closer to being ready for the regular season than when they left training camp in Galveston.

Asked if there had been any progress on Sunday, Van Gundy said there was none.

"You can't say it's good when it's bad," he said. "When it's good, I'll probably still say it's bad. That's my nature. But when there is nothing good to say, you can't make something up. It is a lack of effort. We don't play hard. That's it. We don't play hard. Until we do -- and that's the foundation for every good team: giving an honest day's effort every night and being unselfish -- we're going to struggle."

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oops, sorry........missed that one