I am the Owner of www.wink3.com and know alot about francis. One thing I know about francis is he strives to win. After missing 18 games, he felt as if he need to play his heart out and do real well to come back from the fall. He tried to pull a kobe and do it by himself a lil too much. i feel that was partly ok since he didn't have much of a go to guy. I dont see how you can be so mad about having one of the top all around gaurds and a prone super star on your team. sure he has had injuries... but don't all good players? yes... even Jordan. This is how I see it. The Rockets pick up a key player either from the draft or trading our pick(odom, rashard, ming, butler, woods.), and with this key player francis has now I believe this will be his stats. 17 pts, 5 boards, 10 asists. take away some pts, and add some asists to the key player. I feel thats all the Rockets need as of now. what are you thoughts about this?
I think he is fully capable of doing what you are saying. He just needs to do it. Francis' biggest problem is in his own head, he SAYS he is committed to winning then goes out and does not play on defense, waves off the high pick and throws the ball away far too often. Francis is an amazingly gifted athlete, but he is NOT a superstar player, he is a star player, but FAR..FAR from superstar level. If Francis matures, which is what you are saying, then I will be as happy as a clam. DaDakota
I like the thought alot. I think people get upset about how Francis and Cat think they know whats best for the Rockets. I think people get turned off by the buddy-buddy ball that they play a lot of instead of including everyone. Personally, i think he plays hard and is a good player, but i don't think about him in the same way as a lot of other rockets fans. I like the idea of him throwing 8 or more asst and he cant do that unless he has help which goes back to what i said earlier. I hope we draft Ming and he (Francis) see how much easier his job is. If that doesn't work and he tries to hold the franchise hostage, he can be traded and it really wouldn't be that big of a deal.
yes... Francis is definantly not yet a SUPER star or at his prime, but why give up on him now and give him up and watch him grow on another team? 1997, 5 years ago.... I bought a basketball card pack... went threw it... put em back in the bag and stored em in my closet. A week ago I looked threw all my cards.. found a steve nash rookie( in a suns jersey), I had treated with no care, carefully picked it up and put it in a case. its worth 100 dollers now. Nash grew on the Mavericks and is now at his prime. A POINT GOD! after my story... does everyone get the point? francis is not trash, so dont throw him away. Wink
Just because people on this board say he is getting trading or thinking about trading him does not mean he is getting traded. Francis is the Rockets and he is not getting traded. And that is the bottom line, because I said so.
Those people are called fairweather fans. Period. When some time passes and these fairweather fans sit back and see once again what Francis really can do, they will be back on the Francis bandwagon. But the sad part is, it's only until something else does not go their way once again and they will be the first to jump off again. Cycles....
The reason I believe in the Rockets is because they have clearly proven things to me in cycles(success). It normally just repeats itself. It just happen to be something positive. (Hopefully another Championship) I will never jump off this wagon!!!! Advantage Rockets
Fairweather fans....I think you need to get something straight. Being critical of the Rockets does not mean you are not a fan...in fact....I am a HOUSTON ROCKETS fan, not a Steve Francis fan. I want what is best for them, and if it means looking at something in a cold calculating manner, then so be it. An example would be that I did not want Dream on this Rocket team this year...not that I did not like him as a Rocket, but that I felt he was well beyond his time, and so wanted him gone. Just the facts .... Fair weather fan...sheesh...... Being a fan allows you to criticize your team...and besides I have been a fan when most of the people on this BBS were still getting their A$$ whiped by their mommies before they put on their diapers. I remember Billy Paultz, Kevin Kunnert etc....do you? DaDakota
haha that is true.... you do have to critize sometimes to be a fan. But DaDakota... I just think you need to respect francis alot more. I don't see what you have against a growing player. I know you want it to be for the rockets, and I dont think getting rid of francis would help... If you take Francis away, its like chopping mobley's right hand off. so those two need to stay together or leave together(hope not). BOTTOM LINE. Wink
Wink, I am not sure that them being together is that good a thing, they both seem to buy into the "We are the team" mentality, and that can hinder a team's development. I am actually hoping they keep them both and draft Ming and then let's see what happens. However, if the team does not improve a ton this next year, I would not be against breaking up the dynamic duo. DaDakota
The real irony is that the same arguments levelled against Francis early in his career (selfish, doesn't play smart) were spoken about Akeem Olajuwon early in his career. Remember that Olajuwon was 10 years into his career before he won a championship. Seven years after he was drafted, he was nearly traded to the Clippers for Stanley Roberts and Danny Manning! My point is that this isn't something that should surprise anyone. Players begin to hit their stride by year 3 but it isn't until 5, 6 or 7 years in that most players (particularly point guards) begin to impact the game on an MVP level. Look at these names: Garnett - began his legitimate dominance in his 5th year Kidd - now, an MVP candidate, in his 9th season Iverson - MVP candidate last couple of years - currently finished 6th season Bryant - MVP type numbers began in his 5th season Shaq - Team reached the finals in his 3rd season but didn't really become a force until his 5th season One of the few exceptions might be Tim Duncan who really became an MVP-type candidate consistently in only his second season, but that is the exception, not the rule. Generally, between year 4 and year 7 is when a player really starts to blossum. Francis still has time to grow and his numbers have constantly improved although his injury this year certainly slowed his growth. Bottom line is that he deserves a break considering how hard the guy plays on a day-in-day-out basis.
Francis needs to learn how to play PG. What irks me the most, is the idea that some people say that Francis "doesn't want to" play SG. If that's the case, he needs to realize that his lack of true PG skills is one reason why our offense is so bad. Also, if Francis would leave, in the even that we do trade Mobley, then what respect I do have for him is gone down the drain. My main problem is the idea that Francis has to be pampered, when he hasn't paid his dues.
My sentiments exactly. I've pointed it out before but I'll do it again. Not only is Francis adjusting to the NBA he's adjusting to a NEW position. His basketball experience came as a SG, and not a PG. I think the fact that he really wanted to make that transition, only goes to show that his heart at least to some degree is in a position of wanting to distribute the ball. Reasons why he may not do that? 1.Coaches encourage him to shoot more. 2.Doesn't trust his teammates enough.(though I can understand it's hard to not trust Cato as a legit scoring option.) 3.Myriad of injuries to him and others hasn't allowed him to gel together and learn to play as a team with the other players. 4.Feels that he has the best chance of scoring much of the time. 5.Is still learning
The thing that irks me the most is this dynamic duo crap saying how picking J Williams would be stabbing Steve in the back. You're getting paid to play, not manage. Steve can be a great player however is not very mature. The general perception in the league is that Steve's a punk. That's why he gets so many technicals. That's probably why he wasn't chosen for the World Championships. That's why he's making comments about not drafting a PG or that they would like Lamar Odom or T Morris, or whoever the heck is from Maryland. The seeds were sown when he refused to play for Vancouver and cried like a baby forcing a trade. We of course were the beneficiaries of that trade. However, at the same time, we shouldn't ignore Steve's petulant ways.
I really don't see how you can just sit here on the clutchcity.net forum and say steve francis is a punk. Have you met the guy personally? that's just horrible to do. Some Rocket fans say Steve was the Rockets problem, but I just think thats a way to shake off the fact, that the rockets weren't playoff material this year. We all really know that the main reason the Rockets didn't do well is the Rockets. We Just aren't the Clyde Dream and Barkley team anymore, and now its our goal to rebuild and get another ring. it happens to everyteam. and the fact is... if you love the rockets you got to love the good and bad thing on the team. I unlike alot of fans, have faith in the current rockets and the player we pick up in the draft. Wink
It was a bad first impression but I think he's compensated for that since then. Steve's Techs were way down this past year too. After all John Elway did the same thing, and he wasn't generally percieved as a punk. I also don't look at it as Steve trying to manage the team. He's voicing his opinion. This may or may not be wise, but I don't think Steve or Cat spend their time looking at the payroll sheets, and the P&L margin and other things trying to manage the team. They are on a team they obviously care about, and have opinions about the direction that team moves. Someone asked Cat a question and he answered. Maybe he shouldn't have answered, but it's really not that big of deal(IMHO).
FranchiseBlade, Steve's technicals were down this year because he only played 57 games. If he played a 82 game schedule, he probably wouldve been in top 5. (In year 2000-2001 he was second in the league behind Rasheed Wallace). I'm not saying Steve won't mature but he hasn't shown it yet. Instead of John Elway, a better comparison would be Kobe Bryant. He refused to play with Charlotte and forced the trade to L.A. His ego refused to accept the fact that Shaq was just as important, if not more so, than he was. The best thing that happened to the Lakers was when Shaq was out and Kobe had to carry the entire team (which was a Herculean struggle). Afterwards, Kobe learned to appreciate his teammates much more.
Being a completely blinded Rocket fan, I have never thought that Steve's perceived attitude was that of a punk. But those bullet points are somewhat convincing, maybe circumstantial. You know he and Cat think when they have the ball there is a better chance of them scoring than anyone they would pass it to. Even if it is a crazy "what the hell was that" kind of shot. I'm the same way.
