I'm sorry... but when he admits after his last season in Orlando that he didn't give it all. That just tells you... he's a quitter when things aren't going his way. Supposedly he self addressed to himself that he needed 3 weeks. When we found out the reason... which was not enough strength... that questions his rehab motive this summer. Francis's athletic ability is supposedly in top notch right now. And Bullard has said that surgery he took... requires tons of motivation just to get back in shape. This is what I love about Francis. He didn't grow up in the best environment. (You can say that about lots of players... but when your dad leaves you and your mom dies... more likely than not... the kid won't have success) His heart for Houston. 100% effort through out the game. Now... T-Mac is the better player than Francis. But when you say to the public... it's on me... I'm going to expect a 2nd round for us. Fast forward to an interview the next season... "The injuries, it's on me. Our record, it's on me." You joke about your promise to the fans? Again, I question his actions. This also brings me up to last season's game against the Celtics. We just beat the Lakers for our 22nd straight win. Then he decided to be passive. Just passing the ball. Worked great for the 1st half... but then what happened? You let Ray Allen keep his promise who said our streak was going to end that night. Then the excuse for him is... oh he never had talent surrounding him. I'm just going to point out one of the reason why he never had talent... maybe his 20+ million dollar contract? Or how about the big man he has that is pretty talented? Both players never led their team to anything beyond the 1st round. Which player had better talent? The answer is obvious. Don't get me wrong... McGrady is a great player. I'm just impatiently waiting for his promise (Bringing a championship to Houston) to be fulfilled.
Well Tmac did expect Yao to show up at least. Yao was being neutralized on the offense end by Memet Okur, scored all over by Carlos Boozer on the defensive end, and couldn't grab a rebound to save his life. I don't know why everyone expects Tmac to be able to take the Rockets to the second round when the second best player on the team is getting outplayed.
The ceiling for McGrady is/was so high he was bound to disappoint people. Francis, on the other hand, was always nothing more than an athletic 'tweener guard. By his third season in the NBA it was very evident to anyone who paid attention that Francis wasn't going to take the next step and become a truly elite NBA player.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=250507006 He attempted to show, but Pulled off a Game 6 Finals Kobe act....
Because Francis did his little jolly skip steps when he brought the ball up court, and TMac has sleepy eyes?
Yao is like a double edge sword. His numbers will show that he's doing good but if you watch the game you'll know he's not. Memet Okurs quote after the game was something to the extent of "Guarding Yao was easy because he's predictable". He gave up a lot of points to Boozer and Memet caused him to turn the ball over many times. He also blocked Yao's fadeaway a couple of times.
So that's entirely his fault??? Sorry, but T-Mac even admitted in Game 7 he ran out of gas on the 4th quarter which made him cry.
Hmm I don't think it's entirely Yao's fault. Tmac could of finished stronger in game 7. The role players also didn't step up or maybe it's just simply the Jazz having better role players.
Not many rockets fans are t-mac supporters. we just deal with him and try to ignore the ridiculous comments he makes and his constant injuries.
Are you actually saying that Francis is not injury prone? He has missed all this year, and pretty much the last three or four years due to injury. Look at the facts. He wasnt that great in Houston (not as good as Tmac has been numbers wise) and had no playoff success at all just like Tmac. He has been an absolute non factor on every other team he has been on since then, so anyone who says Tmac is a p***y and Francis is full of heart is themselves full of s**t.
I was going to post that video of Steve getting into it with Amare, but someone already did it. That's one reason why I loved Stevie. It's the same reason I like Bobby Sura. Anyone remember when he tackled Josh Howard? They're both guys that'll take personally anything you do to a teammate of their's. Even if it's something minor, like dunking on Yao. That's the difference between that video and the T-Mac one. Amare didn't really do anything bad, while Collison obviously was flagrant. All Amare did was a little taunting. Stevie just seems like he loves playing the game, while Mcgrady seems like he's just there for the check at times. Maybe it's the years of losing and injuries, but I get the impression that T-Mac is just totally discouraged. I'm going to miss Stevie. The way he played the game may not be the best means to winning, but I admired his heart.
To: Steve Francis, Thanks for all the love, passion, memories and heart you've given to the city of Houston. Your time here was enjoyed by many and is much appreciated by most Houston Rockets fans. To us you will always will be remembered as "Stevie Franchise", SF3. We are sorry your time here was shorter than we expected, management doesn't always do whats in the best interest of, or want the fans want to see on the court. You were promised to be the face of the franchise and the sky was bright. We were promised by Les, a run at the title and you were never given the full chance to full fill that promise. Rudy T became ill and Les took the opportunity to bring in a JVG. A defensive minded, controlling, hard nose coach that put you in a box to run his robotic type system, and you two were different breeds of animals. JVG sent you out for a former scoring champ with the history of being soft and a quitter, but with the ability to score at will. The NY ties never sat well with many of us Rockets Fans and neither did the Orlando ties. We shortly over taken over by JVG, his former players form NY and Tracy. We were again promised and hopeful that reaching a championship still might be feasible. While life wasn't being so kind to you, and the NBA shuffled you around a bit, many of us never forgot you, and rooted for you,(and Cat) to do well. The years hadn't been so kind to us either and some of us quickly learned that Tracy was nothing more than a big lump of "Fools Gold". The rumors had been right, he was unmotivated and a passionless superstar on the down side of his career. The guy won't dig deep, he won't run, and he doesn't know how to carry a team on his back. Sure the guy can play, if he wants but he just seems to want everything to be so easy. Quiet honestly I'm embarrassed to call him a Houston Rocket. IMO, your years here were much more a joy to watch, knowing that you hated to lose just as much as we hated seeing you lose. The same can't be said for Tracy, he tends to take himself out of games, doesn't show up in the 4th qrt and on some of the biggest games of the year claims it's on him, but does a disappearing act. Your last stint here didn't go as well as we expected. I for one would have loved to see you hit the court again even for just a few minutes. We could not wait to see Yao and yourself back on the court at the same time, unfortunately it never happen. Management decided that payroll was too high and you receive slap in the face by sending you to the Grizzlies of all place. Now we are still stuck with Tracy "Fools Gold" Mcgrady again, I just wish you could have taken him with you at least. Just Remember, We Love you and wish you the best. Get healthy and enjoy life a bit. To us you will always be Stevie Franchise! Take care, A Rockets Fan
I believe steve will come to China next year,he appreciate that the love that Wells gets in China,almost everybody here who can play basketball knows and loves Steve. somedays ago,a chinese journalist asked he will he wants to play in CBA,he says,he will think about it, so I think he will come to China,we all so love him!
He was the first superstar after Hakeem, Barkley, and Drexler retired. He really sacrificed his body when he played.He reminded me of today's Dwyane Wade except not as balanced and talented as Wade is now. He also had a good connection with the city of Houston and really carried the team on his back even when there just wasn't enough good players to surround him with. At one point, out best center was Kelvin Cato, but we still played decently. he had a knack for poor basketball possessions , but he was really an electrifying player and often clutch when we needed him. Tracy McGrady lacks that explosiveness and the things he says makes it lok like he doesn't care (but I disagree on this point). He is also MIA in a lot of games when it really matters. I firmly believe that Francis would play with significant pain when McGrady would just not be able to handle it.
It is because of all of those things he always played with heart and effort and gave it his all night in and night out something tmac will never do
