McGrady To Houston Thread (Update: Francis will visit Orlando)

Gotta get my frustrations out somehow...

 

5:20 on Sports Center

Francis just said on Sports Center that he will visit with the Magic on tuesday to make sure that they want to build around him...

Weisass just said that he hopes a deal is done soon

also that they would like to keep Francis but that they are in serious talks with other teams. Not sure if he was talking abuot a secound trade of SF3 or just a different trade for T-Mac

 

he was referring to Tmac.

 

Really? They are in serious talks with other teams? Give me a friggin' break. They aren't talking to ANYONE seriously. They are very likely not talking to anyone AT ALL. That is such bull****.

 

Hilarity. Pure hilarity.

Yesterday: "Yeah, we have no problem waiting till August 10 or so."

Today: "I hope we can get it done soon."

 

It just kills me that our franchise is being held hostage by this boob.

 

I said this in Doc's thread, just need to vent it here also,

Sickening, I just watched Weisbrod on ESPN news,
I can't stomach what he said.

It's time for Les Alexander to make a personal call to the owner of the Magic.

Owner to Owner

This isn't right, there is not a GM that would do this to a team.

1. First of all you don't talk to another team's player under contract unless the deal is done and you have permission to explain or sell the trade to your new player. To talk with Steve without making the deal is tampering.
That's first class tampering. No way you can tamper with another team's player under contract, teams could just start recruiting players if you don't have tampering protection.
2. If the deal is done, fine meet with Steve and try to sell him on it, but don't lie and say nothing is done, we are exploring options.
3. The Rockets thought the deal was done, both Les and JVG said they were making the trade to try to improve the team. So why did Les think the deal was done?
4. This is a bad game Weisbrod is playing because he obviously is exploring options. It's not about fan support or #1 draft picks. He is shrewd enough to know that fan reaction changes over time especially by the start of the season. And the timing of the drafting of Howard was the perfect time to anounce the trade and deflect criticism. This is about Weisbrod trying to get more.
But he is doing it in a deceptive, manipulative, under handed way.
5. Underhanded, because he obviously has made a fool of the Rockets and anyone else that he has given info to privately.

Les, please call their owner and try to go over this guys head.

 

That could be JVG missing the ball but Charlie Brown has more hair.

 

I'd be quite surprised if LA has anything les (sic) than a full involvement in this 'deal' (sic, again).

 

Jeff, don't jump to conclusions.


They may be talking to some European team. Yeah, and the translators are slowing things down.

 

ESPN.com news services
Steve Francis, the principal Houston Rocket in a proposed multi-player trade that involves Tracy McGrady, will travel to Orlando on Tuesday to meet with Magic management and its coaching staff, his agent said Monday.




Francis will be in Orlando for two days to visit the entire organization, look at the team's practice facility and to make sure that the Magic are committed to building a team with him as a focal point.


Francis skipped a Nick Van Exel charity golf event in Houston on Monday to make his visit to Florida.


The Rockets and Magic have discussed a trade that would send Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato to Orlando for McGrady, Juwan Howard, Reece Gaines and Tyronn Lue.


The trade was nearly completed early last week, but the Magic balked at the last minute. If a deal is not completed by Wednesday, the league's July moratorium on trades would kick in, forcing the teams to wait until July 14.


Meanwhile, Francis' base-year status would expire, forcing Houston and Orlando to revise the deal to make it work under NBA rules for teams over the salary cap. By then, the Houston Chronicle reported, Lue likely would have exercised his option to terminate his contract, making him ineligible for the trade unless via a sign-and-trade deal.


Francis spoke by phone with Magic general manager John Weisbrod last week. Asked how he felt about the trade now, Francis told the Houston Chronicle: "You know I was mad, but now I'm cool. I'm cool about everything."


Also Monday, the Magic introduced new point guard Jameer Nelson, whom they selected with the 20th pick in last week's NBA draft.


Nelson, the 5-foot-11 point guard from Saint Joseph's, won virtually every college player of the year award last season. That he went late in the first round put a chip on his shoulder, "and it's not going away."


"I have always been overlooked because people say I'm too small, but what they don't understand is that I'm getting the job done," Nelson said. "Don't tell me somebody is better than me just because the guy is 6-2. If I can do the same things he can or a guy that's 6-4, 6-5, what is the difference?"


Nelson was drafted by Denver, which shipped his rights to Orlando for a future first-round pick.


Some had projected Nelson to be a lottery pick, and the snub is going to serve as fuel, Nelson said.


"It will be with me throughout my career," Nelson said. "But it's going to be a blessing in disguise because obviously I'm wanted down here in Orlando. I'm needed and they want me here."


The Magic don't seem to mind that Nelson arrived a little angry.


"He definitely has a hatchet to bury," Weisbrod said. "I think he certainly relishes the challenge. It would be exciting to see him [eager] to stick it to people.''


Weisbrod said the Magic started working on the deal that eventually landed Nelson shortly after they selected high schooler Dwight Howard with the No. 1 overall pick.


Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

 

I don't think you can think of Wisey as being shrewd. All he has done is focus more attention on the alternatives to a trade that is most likely to go down. That means that fans will be able to point to the deal and say - we could have gotten x instead of y - if the team sucks wind. Realistically, none of the other deals are worth a crap. Phoenix was not willing to give up a real top caliber player (Marion does not count). But, you still have lots of people that don't like Steve, so it may look like a better deal. The fact is that in Steve and Cat, they are getting a solid backcourt (which they did not have last year). Cat is a steal. He's a solid player who is not stuck in a bad contract. Rare these days. Why trade him?

Also, there is no doubt that Wisey's credibility has been called into question. Forget a second job if this one doesn't work for him. Also, forget ever having another GM do a straight deal with the guy.

I'm not saying there is not room to negotiate and to even play hardball. But, there is no more room to negotiate this deal and this timing charade will cost Wisey and probably further dishearten the Majic fans. Why get their hopes up that something bigger is in the works?

 

This is a GM?

 

I am proud to announce that I registered the 100,000th page view of this thread.

And it looked great!

 

I tell you people, this guy is on a power trip! He likes the "macho attitude" & likes being in control.

 

man is dhis trade ever gonna happen

 

This trade in its current form can only last till July 14. The Magic might be holding out to till the 1st of July for a better deal concerning Steve's contract but more importantly for them they might be waiting to see who can get from free agency (this Thursday) to change T-Mac's opinion about leaving. This will be drawn out as long as possible by Weiselbrod

 

Some report I read in the San Jose Mercury News said the Magic were attempting to use the delay to force the Rockets to give up future draft picks in addition to the players. I guess this is our reward for letting Francis know where he was headed early.

 

CD should tell them to stick it up their arse.

Fine. Take Francis off the table and go with the enigmatic Harrington and Artest (can you imagine coaching those two) or Joe Johnson and Marion (the Magic screwed themselves out of the #7 pick) or whatever package they can get.

Assuming McGrady only wants to play for 3 or 4 teams, the Magic have limited choices too.


F**** Orlando.