IF - and again its a big IF - Steve can get back in playing shape and back to 80+ % of the physical capability he had a few years back then he would be a valuable spark plug type scorer for 10-15mins a game at least.
Remember that he's not a particularly good shooter, passer, or defender. The things he did do well in his first tour with the rockets were finish in traffic, rebound, and draw fouls, all of which he did well because of his freakish athleticism. An 80% Francis is less athletic than Aaron Brooks, and given a choice between the two i'll take Brooks. at least he can shoot. Francis' career has shown that he's only effective when he has the ball. The rockets have enough issues with the ball stopping already. somehow i don't think SF3 hammering the ball into the top of the key for 23 seconds fits with Adelman's offensive philosophy. Have you noticed that even the coaches forget that he's on the team? when was the last time you heard an unprovoked mention of Francis' potential future role for when he gets healthy? Deke gets more run, and he's not even on the team. . .
this guy will soon be cut and retire.he's lost his speed and skill.the key to this problem, he has abandoned himself to other things.no one can save him,but himself
Steve's the man! Wishing you the best buddy! ...and you would rather have a second year rookie who hasn't proven he can run this Rockets team effectively, or take control of the team, or even defend much bigger guards. It sounds to me like you'd rather roll the dice with a unknown hoping they come around,(Example: Luther Head) which they might not, (again Luther Head). Compared to taking a minor risk (money wise) in a former all-star, leader of the team, and a Houston favorite in Steve Francis. How many rookies have the Rockets had that we thought were going to be the greatest thing since sliced bread? Many, they don't always reach their expectations.
aaron still has room to develop. francis does not. if i'm going to get the same production out of each of them this year, then i play aaron to help him develop for the future (in addition to whatever current production i get). where on earth are you getting luther head from? all i'm saying is that francis has given zero indication of ever regaining form as a productive NBA caliber player, yet everyone here is already campaigning for him to get playing time. what francis could do eight years ago when he was a rocket is about as irrelevant as what tracy could do when he was in toronto. in case you missed it, steve has been somewhere between average and benched everywhere he's been since he left.
I was just using Luther Head as an example of a rookie that we thought was going to be better than he ended up being and not reaching his expectations. I would also say that Brooks last year and what we've seen of him this year is that he has "yet" lived up to the hype that our rookies get every year. If your just looking at production is like looking at something large threw a microscope. What about team play? Chemistry? Leadership? Experience? What about having been there and done that?, Brooks didn't even see much time in the playoffs last year, we brought in Bobby Jackson last year because Brooks couldn't get the jobs done. He hasn't shown that he could get it done this year either. And for getting the same production, if your man backs you down in the paint and scores over you, does that count against your production? I'd say yes.
Guys don't you know, Steve is actually ready to play RIGHT NOW, but is planning on making his grand reappearance on 3/3/08. Can't wait for his awe inspiring, backboard shattering, crowd energizing DUNKS!!!!
Pffffttt... Your argument against Brooks and blind nuthugging Francis is laughable. The one fallacy I wanted to bring up is the continuing notion that Brooks will be posted up on. You know how many PGs in the league actually have post up skills??? You really think Chris Paul or Tony Parker is gonna back down Brooks and bust the Dream Shake on him? It's just a stupid argument to bring up and tells me the people who bring it up don't really follow basketball. What about team play? Chemistry? Leadership? Experience? I hardly think Francis is the shining example for those virtues. What Steve Francis symbolizes in the Rockets world is the acceptance of dumb hyped basketball in lieu of winning basketball. His streetball ISO style that Rudy T tailored for him attracted the wrong kind of Rockets fans: the ones that favors flash over substance. The ones that go crazy for a clip of some And1 dribble move and dunk over a simple pick and roll. The ones who think "showing heart" is much better then bball IQ and basic fundamentals. That those fans actually thought Francis could bring the Rockets back to championship level is the sad part. Now they want to shoehorn him back into the current Rockets picture to get whatever little warm fuzzies they can get out if him. Francis fans, get over it.
How cool is that? He will not only win the comeback player of the year award, but will actually be responsible for the comeback of the comeback player of the year award itself. Now that is special. DD
So basically what your saying is "blah blah blah i'm a francis hater blah blah" Once again if FRANCIS does well it will be great for the rockets as a team. Rafer is forced to play too many minutes, I dont see how having a productive francis to cut down rafers minutes is a bad thing. And although most point guards wont take you down in the post its been proven year after year that bigger point guards such as deron williams give avg point guard tons of problems so what will they do to aaron brooks. At the very least we need to have options at the point position.
I'm just keeping it real. Wow, Deron Williams giving avg PGs problems??? Maybe because he's one of the best PGs in the NBA, ever thought that's why? But I forgot, Deron has the Skyhook and the Dreamshake in his repertoire... ...and Francis is more of a trade commodity then a PG option. If we are going back in time, at least make it back when he was actually good...
what you are missing is that not every player can fit every system. francis was only ever good when he was the focal point of the offense and got to do everything himself. he never showed that he was capable of playing effectively in any role besides a ball-dominant role. he will not be a ball dominant player coming off the bench here either. when you talk about "francis doing well" i think of francis playing like steve francis. do you remember what steve francis plays like? i dont recall hearing adelman talk about us wanting to work on our isolation offense, or our ball stopping/break your man down off the dribble offense, or our turnover prone offense, or our lets take an off balance fadeaway jumper with 1 second on the shot clock offense . . . do you? well, thats steve francis. and no, i don't think just because he's on the roster and technically plays the PG position, he's a good option. even if he does get healthy.
Looking at it now, the best I expected for Steve was to come back and have some speed and relentless attacking as a spark off the bench. Steve was never really a good shooter or passer. But now that I think about it, everything I would want off the bench from Francis, Brooks currently provides. I see no use for him anymore. At this point it seems like Brooks is now superior in every way to my expectations of Francis. (clarification: Old Steve > Brooks > New Steve)
Answer this! When was the last time Francis was productive? If Deron Williams gives average PG's tons of problems what makes you think Francis can guard him? Francis at his best was never good at D. Now that he has lost his athleticism he is a below average player. What does Francis bring to the PG position that even the little known Strawberry doesnt, besides bad knees and low BB IQ? Face it Francis is not an option. If he is kept it will be to trade his contract at the deadline for cap relief or packaged with other contracts to net us a needed player. And thats the only net Francis wil be responsible for the rest of his Rocket career.
wafer and strawberry have done more in tonight's preseason game than francis has his entire time with us
UH.....he was great the first few years....and injured this last year....let's see what he does when healthy. DD
Why don't we just stop arguing. and just pray that SF# can continue to be our other weapon. Anyway, this is probably the last season Stevie can proof himself and contribute. We will see very soon!
