Seriously, what's all this hate with Francis? He's an amazing player. Don't tell me none of you guys were jumping up down and thanking god through his rookie season. We wanted a good point guard for so many years, remeber how much we drooled over the posibilities of getting Kevin Johnson and Damon Stoudamire ? Remember how we hated the inside out game with Hakeem and wanted an electrifying guard? As far as I remember, Steve rookie season made all of us real happy and after his sophmore season (the one where we missed by one and had the best record of any non playoff team ever) we were feeling really good about this team and its future. What the f*ck happened? Come on guys, this our best player (currently) on the Rox, show some support for an change. This is a player who wears his heart on his sleeve and gives his all every night. While you can CONSTRUCTIVELY critcize his game (no intelligence, iso, etc) but saying something that is just spiteful like is uncalled for.
It's only natural that there will be a lot of 'hate' for Steve Francis. He's our best player. When things go well, it's 'thank God for Stevie'. When things screw up, it's 'Get your act together, Franchise!' That's how it should be, regardless of whether or not he's responsible for things going well or badly. The "Yao-only" Fans (which I'm proud to say I am. Or at least was.) screw up the equation, making it so that when things go well, it's 'thank God for Yao,' but when things screw up, it's 'TRADE MOBLEY AND FRANCIS!!!! FIRE RUDY T!! THROW MOOCHIE INTO A MEAT GRINDER!!!' It's messed up, but I guess that's basketball.
I agree - for the foreseeable future getting out of the West is going to mean getting past Duncan and San Antonio. We are going to need a center to do that, and Yao will be the deciding factor there. Francis will not take us past anyone on flash and isolation. When he becomes a better playmaker and less of an egomaniac, we will then see the Rockets improve to contender status. (That, and a few more veteran players).
Exactly. I have no problem with people blaming Steve when the team loses, in fact he'll probably blame himself just as quick as anyone else would. But give the guy credit. He IS our team leader. I like Yao a lot, and I want nothing but the best for him and the team in the future, but to say it's Yao's team now is just crazy. What did Yao do last year to make it his team? I'm not bashing Yao. I don't think any player deserves to be bashed by their fans, but Francis did lead us! Yao admits it, the coaches know it, and if you'd open your eyes you'd see it too!
Fegwu, Excellent post and thanks for the informative read. From what you are telling me it appears that my worst fears about SF are true. It just kills me to see so many people here equate talent to greatness. People, Francis has been in the league 4 seasons without any trips to the playoffs. The way some of you talk about him makes me believe that the Rockets have been contenders every season he has been here. Label me a Francis hata, if you must, but I am tired of a team that has talent that also has no basketball sense or maturity.
First, I did agree with you. I did say Yao would be a hero. You're just wrong if you think this city will think only one player is a hero if we win another title. That's not the way the majority in Houston would react. Did you even celebrate the previous titles. Secondly, your first post in this thread was your report of Steve Francis on 610. You proceeded to editorialize Francis's comments. If you editorialize other people's words, you are open for comments on your editorial. If I editorialize something, have at it. Butt in all you want. But Fegwu, that was a bad example of when to tell someone to butt out of a one-on-one conversation. You were not having a one-on-one conversation. Your editorial was open to criticism...that's why you got so many responses. poor Fegwu, doesn't quite understand the difference between butting-in versus challenging someone's editorials.
Francis has actually led this team to two seasons better than a couple of Hakeem's playoff seasons of only 41 wins. One year he did this while only having Mobley and Mo Taylor as quality starters and Hakeem for a decent stretch. Yes you are a hater. Yes that team was soooooooooooooo talented. Us Francis supporters don't talk like he has been a contender, but to expect a 6'3" point guard to lead his team to the playoffs when he has played with only one other all star in one season is ridiculous. You people have been spoiled. You need to look up some of the Rockets records during the lean years of the late 80's. Our franchise center had some pretty dissappointing years himself.
This really cracks me up. Heypartner has been more critical than most about Francis, and before Yao came on the scene... which you would know if you read very many of his posts. He's suggested more than once that Francis may be the odd man out and might need to be traded if he doesn't improve his decision making on the court. And this BS about "heros"... the history of the Rockets is littered with heros. Every run at a championship, successful or not, was made due to "heroic" moments from players as diverse as Robert Reid, Vernon Maxwell, Kenny Smith, Lew Lloyd, Mitchell Wiggins, Billy Paultz and yes, Mario Elie... role players who stepped up and hit crucial shots, grabbed crucial rebounds, made crucial passes... the guys you have to have to get the chance to even play for a championship, much less win one. Not every player is a Moses Malone, a Ralph Sampson, a Clyde Drexler or an Hakeem Olajuwon. But you need the others to win. You need a team that plays like a team. When this group of Rockets figure that out we might have something to celebrate. Right now, we're still waiting.
HAHAHA... OOPS.. i guess i accidently hit the O.. .but no need for excuses.. I look like an idiot now.. i think ill just go under my desk and hide.
He was responding to a different question when he said that. This is pretty much the interview. I missed the first part about Isoh. Sorry. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Radio guy - What else did you do with your summer? Steve - Well basically basketball. Just trying to get acquainted with coach VG and T. I went out to Phoenix to this fitness camp and coach came with me for a couple of days. Just trying to further my knowledge of the game of basketball and I think that is what you need to do. R- all work and no play on your summer vacation. S - Basically. Basketball is what I do and that is what I really want to concentrate must of my time on. R - What single element of your game do you want to most develop on court this season? S - Longevity. Being able to be consistent night in and and night out. Being a better leader. you can't talk being a leader you have to display it on the court. R - Well the way the rockets handled the off season and this is an issue that would come up certainly regularly during the year that this could be 27,30 per game scoring playing the 2 guard. How weary of that , and did you feel that you have been maligned(sp?) as a point guard? Are their criticism of your game and the team performance that you think has been unfair to this point. S - Of course, people got to have something to talk about. What other player to talk about but the guy who they say is the franchise player. For me that is something that I'm not to worried about.( and something I didn't quite understand) The way you get all the notoriety and things like that is if you win. I think that is the point of my career and my team future is at. R - Is Marbury your model from that stand point. He heard that for a while and then suddenly his team made the playoffs and wow suddenly Marbury is third team all NBA. S - Yes and its good for him. He took a lot of hits with the New J. and the Minn. thing. For me I just want to be Steve Francis and wether I play 1 or 2 it doesn't make a difference to me. R - Steve, you in touch Yao Ming at all during the off season? S - I talked to him a couple of times. When I heard about his eye I had to call to check on him. He's diffidently looking forward to coming back here and improving him self. R - Did he surpass your expectations of what you thought he might be able to contribute in his first season? S - He was a rookie. Rookies are going to make rookie mistakes at times but I thought he did a good job of making up for some of the things he lacked as far as experience in the American way of playing basketball. I thought he progressed with all the pressure put on his shoulders as far as being the number one pick and being from China. I thought that was a lot of maturity coming from him as the season progressed. R - What do you think gets him to the next step. Is it the obvious, the upper body strength, the ability to mix it up night in and night out in the paint? S - Over here in the states we watch NBA all the time. He can get some tapes to watch. He played a full season so I think he knows what it feels like to be on the road for a week, to get cut on the back as people are consistently banging on him.
Thanks for posting the actual Q and A's so people can stop misquoting Steve and making him seem like he's not focused on basketball. See, he's been working all summer on improving his basketball game, and keeping in touch with his coaches and teammates. Sounds like a pretty damn good leader to me.
pgabriel: So, are you telling me that you think Francis has grown in maturity level, both emotionally and basketball-wise? Yea, it sucks to be me, actually wanting a winning team that has responsible and mature players who are focused on making the team better as well as themselves instead of wanting to see a team that only wants to see how many highlight-reel plays they can make and focus on ISOh and have no clue about team ball.
It's a free country. People are allowed to do what they like. Steve is a capitalist just like the rest of us and he is playing that role well. I thought differently up till last weekend then some of the guys help me see things more clearly. IsoH. It's just a name but it does have a nice ring to it; Though fiveman productions or motion entertainment may of sounded just as well. ; )
I didn't hear every thing he said about Isoh so I didn't put it in my post above, but I did hear him say that while it does have some to do with basketball it also means that he does not want any help from some of the big boys in the music industry.
so is it steves team or is it yao's team now. And if it is yao's team now, do yall think steve might be a little jealous or something to that degree?
See, Steve and Yao are more mature than that. They're not like Kobe and Shaq, where they argue over who's team it is. It seems like the people here are the only ones who argue over that. But in all reality I guess it DOESN'T MATTER WHOSE TEAM IT IS!! Yao is important, and Steve is important. We need both of them to win, no matter what you want to think. If Yao's not doing good, we won't win. If Steve isn't doing good, we won't win. I think we should just end the debate of "whose team is it" and just realize that they're a TEAM! We need everyone on the team, from the role-players to the franchise playerS (notice it's plural). Read my sig and you'll understand.
Alright man, chill out. Im just askin......... You dont have to get so crunk on me. And im not sayin whose team it is either...cuz stevie could be thinkin bout like how maybe yao is takin it all from him. But yea, he does have to understand he aint the only superstar on the team now.
