I know many will read the title and jump to wrong conclusions about this thread, but in truth, last Mondays game is why Francis irritates me and many others on this board and probably JVG also. When JVG was hired and it was a supposed clash between him and Francis, he clearly stated he wanted Francis to take the same shots, but with less dribbles. Monday was a clear example of what he was talking about. Francis did what Marbury,Cassell,Davis Nash and Kidd does. He broke down the defense quickly and either got the ball inside for scores or dished. If you look at the Rockets , they didn't have a great shooting night, but he had 11 asst and only 2 to's. I think this is really why he paints the Rockets in a corner this summer because they might want to trade him, but you don't want to trade him when he's capable of playing like that more and more. We don't need Francis to triple double every night, in fact i wish he stayed above the foul line more, but the display of decisiveness he showed that he had, makes it really frustrating. Ming being on the blk shouldn't take away from what he can do with a high pick and the ability to get to the rim. If he keeps putting the pressure on fisher and Payton in the middle of the cup, Shaq will slide over more and leave Ming and the other player low for easy dunks and layups. Avery Johnson and Rod Strickland used to set Robinson and Duncan up alot. A player like Francis can do the same and don't to audition for AND1 mixtape volume xxx. If he repeat his agressive beeline to the rim, the series can change for the Rockets. I think he did exactly what JVG wanted and has wanted all season long.
He played well on offense, and if he played like that more often I would be more inclined to keep him. On defense, he peeks too much and let's his man sneak out to hit open shots at critical moments. Fisher...Rush.....all Francis' man...and he was busy peeking at the ball, and they floated to the open spot. Steve is an enigma fo sure. DD
Hilarious . . . .SF cannot even get credit when he plays well he plays well . . it is JVG he plays bad. . it is all him How Funny Rocket River
I'm giving him credit and its goes in the face of those who says he has the chains on. He doesn't. The coach wants him to be decisive, make his move and either shoot or pass. When Francis used his pick, he got to the cup. When Francis had Kobe and Mailman iso'd and yo-yo'd the ball, the offense stopped and he shot a $..t shot.
They were, Dada was wrong. BTW.....Stevie Franchise was just phenomenal last night. So far his Playoff career aint too shaby.
Personally, I think that the board should be thrilled, Steve Lovers and Steve Haters. For the SOFs, Steve is proving them right and playing will in the playoffs. For the haters, Steve is playing well, and dropping triple doubles in the playoffs can only increase his trade value. It's a win-win situation guys - why all the fighting? Oh yeah - because we're losing.
I'm not saying the Rush and Fisher's shots were made over Francis, but how does Fisher and Rush being on the court at the same time exclude Francis from guarding either one of them on two or three separate offensive sequences? There is such a thing as switching off on a screen and also picking up different players in transition D. You may well be right, but your logic is bogus.
SF is what he is and seems bound and determined not to change. It's clear that he and JVG are not on the same page however and that conflict will have to be resolved in the offseason. With his contract, it'll be difficult to move him for equal value so it's my guess that the Rockets will be stuck with him for years to come. That poses interesting ramifications for the future. On occasion, SF has shown that he can play under control and manage the offense while involving his teammates. Monday night in the first half gave us a glimpse of what he's capable of doing. While he played the game the right way on Monday, such exhibitions of good, smart PG play are few and far between. History tells us that he'll come out on Friday and revert back to the old "Stevie Franchise" and once again, the Rockets' offense will suffer. The question that has yet to be answered is whether or not this team can progress with him at the point. Their won-loss record suggests that while they are making some progress, it is painfully slow and lags behind the progress shown by other teams in their division. I feel that this lack of improvement is a direct result of the lack of improvement in SF's overall game because as goes SF so goes the Rockets.
He was supposed to help out on Kobe. One thing that steve does that gets on my nerves is that he is looking for the defensive rebound more that just guarding his man.
He picked them up in transition, then turned his head to watch the ball and they moved to an open spot and hit the 3. DD
Are you sure it is the case that "as goes SF so goes the Rockets"? Who is more consistent - Yao or Steve? If the answer is Yao wouldn't it be more fair to say as goes Yao so go the Rockets? Let me pose a further question - should Steve be force feeding Yao or should Yao be demanding the ball?
I think Luke Walton also made a 3-pointer, maybe your forgot stevie left him open also?? Now we blame Francis for Lakers' 3-pointers. Got something more creative???? Man, it is hard to be a stevie basher after game two, isn't it?
Its more of that wall almost like what Kobe had to deal with, except Kobe understands quicker. When Ming is the game feed him and set him up to get the other guy in foul truoble which will open the lane, when he goes out for the rest, break down the defense and get in the lane and get it going for you and the other perimeter players.Do what you were doing at the end of game 1 and 2.
they just need to move Yao out of the lane and let Steve drive more. Until Yao stops playing scared and starts taking it to Shaq.
