Francis may very well take some PT away from Rafer. But we need James on the second unit. He's got a good shot, but he doesnt execute the offense as well as Rafer right now. Several times he had open players to get the ball to but he forced a bad position....
I don't wish an injury on anyone, but I think the Rockets need about 2 weeks of time off for Rafer, for whatever reason. I think that would reinforce or put to bed the belief that he's needed for T-Mac, Yao, Battier, Bonzi, etc. to perform at peak efficiency. I also think that the only contenders to replace Rafer are Francis and Brooks ... I may be wrong, but looks to me like Adelman only wants to use Mike James as a combo scoring guard and places his value as the scoring spark. I can't stand that he usually plays Luther with James, but hopefully there's a method to that madness. Personally I'd like to see a lineup of James-McGrady-Battier-Scola-Yao, or James-Bonzi-McGrady-Scola-Yao.
<br> As proven by Steve tonight, he creates for others 100x better than Rafer. This of course is only in his first game with any PT. Imagine the possibilities later on <br> I also don't understand the luther, Mike James combo. MJ can't pass and neither can Luther it's a disaster waiting to happen. But, I will trust Adleman. <br> The Rafer thing also needs to happen. I fail to understand the ignorance of some posters who worship the idea that without Rafer starting T-Mac, and Yao will not play well. I think we need more psychiatric clinics
That is the best lineup right there. No one is a handicap on offense and we end up with 4 guys who can create offense. Bonzi seems to have remembered his contract situation. He seems to be sulking again. He seemed to be going theu motions today. Not a good sign.
Rafer did start and Yao still didnt play well. Rafer starts until Francis/Brooks beats him out. Francis and Rafer played the same amount of minutes tonight. Rafer shot better, and had more assists. Francis was very controlled and didnt turn it over(neither did Rafer) so thats good for Steve. Of course, nobody knows how that would look if some guys could hit their layups....sheesh. Actually, show me some posters who think that Rafer is this be all end all. I think most of your supposed Rafer supporters feel he has been the lesser of 3 evils which is why he is starting. And once he is replaced they will support whoever is running the show then. I know thats my stance. I support Rafer because Adelman feels he gives the team teh best chance to win. Did that change in the 2nd half tonight?? Not sure, Steve came in midway thru the 3rd quarter and never left the game. Or was this all about fresh legs and Wednesday we go back to Rafer/James/Head seeing all the time at the guard spots.
I know JVG was the coach last year, but if defense come first, then Mike James should start. He'll put pressure on the ball of the opposing point guard, setting the tone for the rest of the game, and at the same time the team definitely doesn't give up any offense. Also, just looking at how he came out of the gates tonight shooting the lights out, maybe he is better suited playing in the game at tip-off.
Steve in the House!!!!! Overweight and out of shape, He did not look. He's fast and can still jump high as hell. A little rusty on the shots, but he's still in preseason form. He didn't hog the ball and over dribble as some would believe and looked like a leader out there. I didn't want to commit to the outing of Rafer Alston yet, as he seems to run the office well, low turnovers and throws bricks. But, Steve had a sub par shooting night that we come to expect from Rafer. Steve dissed the ball well, while getting teammates the ball where they needed them. He had a pass to Yao that he couldn't even see Yao, but spun the ball right into his hands. It's official, I hope Rafer gets traded tomorrow, along with Kirk Syder for someone who fits a big role in the C/PF, to back up Scola, Hayes and Yao in case of foul trouble. Fast break, Yea Steve! To the Hoop, Yea Steve! I hope this opened Rick Aldeman's eyes. Go Rockets!! It's Time!!
Francis played his way into the lineup and got himself into shape. Seems pretty simple to me. Lets see if he can build on this in practice over the next couple of days.
Exactly. Francis does deserve minutes with Tmac out, and our guards struggling. Francis did a good job not dominating the ball or turning it over. Still the stat lines for Rafer and Francis are: Francis: 3-11, 8 points, 2 assists, 0 turnovers, 1 steal, 1 rebound Alston: 3-8, 7 points, 4 assists, 0 turnovers, 1 steal, 3 rebounds One game means little, but Francis certainly didn't out play Rafer, nor did Rafer play so well that Steve shouldn't be given more play time. Of course Yao's 4-17 and Bonzi's 0-6, along with letting the Sun's shoot 62% was a bigger factor than either of them. Defensively we let the Sun's shoot such a high % that you really can't say anyone played particularly well.
Steve's quick first step was there and he handled the ball intelligently, but he DID look out of shape and winded in between possessions. I loved Brooks' minutes. Welcome to the big show buddy.
That only proves the notion that getting some "run" is the only way to get into NBA game shape. This message endorsed by the NBA
It's just funny that Rafer shoots 3-8 or 4-9 and the next day there are 10 threads about how his shooting is killing us... Francis shoots 3-11 and he looked good out there tonight
I didnt see steve over dribble tonight n he created shots for himself n others. mike james does dribble alot n rafer is only good for bringin the ball to mid court. i say james come off the bench when tmac needs a break.steve starts n rafer sits at the very end of the bench.
steve francis did penetrate unlike the other PG's but cmon ppl, hes shooting like crazy!!! ev1 is excited about him b/c he got to play that's what all the hype is about the only thing that's changed about the franchise is that he's not a ballhog my props to SCOLA!!
it was good to see steve in the game. too bad that's the only time we will see steve because mcgrady will be back. Rafer and MJ are still having trouble making shots. Bonzi is also having trouble making shots. we need a whole new roster of guards.
