I've read plenty of times on this BBS about people wanting to move Francis to the 2, more recently BryceDrewFan. Why? I'm really interested as to why anyone think Francis would be such a better 2 than 1. Yeah he played 2 in college, but so what? He played point in college too. And college ball is a whole different game, just ask Jamison. Iverson has flourished well in such a system, but so what. He is not Iverson, and he does not have Iverson's team around him. Francis is too short to be a 2. 6'3". Francis is our future star pg. How is he gonna learn if he doesn't get a majority of pg minutes. We don't have the personell. We already have 2 awesome sg, and only 1 backup pg. We have a nice balance right now, why screw it up? Francis is making his share of mistakes right now, but learning the pg position takes time, and Francis all the time Francis gets at the pg position right now is valuable. Moving him to the 2 won't solve anything. Francis has been turning over the ball quite frequently, but we have to put up with that for now if we want a flourishing future with a star pg.
Yeah, but Iverson is the exception, not the rule. Most starting 2 guards are 6'5" and over. Not saying Francis couldn't handle being at the 2, but it would be moer advantageous, at least height-wise to have him play pg. ------------------ now -WE- are the underdogs
The question we should be asking is do the Rockets want a PG that distributes the ball and also shoots quitre a bit or whether we want the prototype PG? ------------------ There is no offense without a good defense.
Francis is too good with the ball to move him to the two. I am not saying he can't play the two but he fact is when he is running the show his whole game flows, because the ball is always in his hands to pass the ball or shoot it, and this is exactly what i think the Steve "the future" Francis needs. Plus it tires out the other teams PG who is trying to guard him EG) Jason Kidd. ------------------ "Lamar Odom, Elton Brand, Wally Szczerbiak and Shawn Marion are guys who are going out to score. That's not my job on this team right now. But if I needed to, if my coach asked me to go out and score 30, I can get it in one quarter" -- Steve Francis.
Is Drew a prototype PG? I have heard several times that he is more of a shooting guard. I personally would like to see us keep him as a backup at both the one and two positions, while shifting Shandon over to the three. I've been in Austin, so I have not really seen Drew much. I did see that he has a real pretty shot and with his work ethic, I don't want us to to just throw him away. Still, he is not going to start here for the long term. [This message has been edited by oakdogg (edited December 14, 1999).]
Im really confused by all this talk of moving Francis to the 2? As Crisco put it, WHY? At the beginning of the year I remember some of your aspectations from Francis this year and it was typically 15 points 5 assists and a few boards. The guy is averaging 17 points 7 assists, and 5 freaking boards. How are you guys assuming he's not getting others involved? He doesn't really shoot all that much. Hes on the verge of putting up the most assists per game since what, Sleepy Floyd? And I bet he's one of the top if not the top rebounding point guards in the NBA.
Some of you guys are overlooking one small point. Francis does not want to play the 2. He is a natural 1. That is where he started in jr college and that is where he wants to play. I think it was at Maryland that they moved him to the 2. That was one of his excuses for not wanting to go to Vancouver(sp?). They had Bibby at the point and wanted Francis to play the 2. He didn't want to play the 2. I know that was a weak excuse, but it was an excuse nonetheless. Francis should stay at the 1. I think he still has a lot to learn and after time will just blow everyone else away! Its going to be fun to watch (and a little frustrating), have a little patience. [This message has been edited by mc mark (edited December 14, 1999).]
Guys I would at least give it a look. We are rebuilding, it gives us a chance to experiment. Being too shart is not an excuse for Francis. He has excellent leaps and he is a good athlete. He could stay with any guard in the league, when he wants to. My point is try him at the 2. 1. This could give him more chances to get open looks. He can move just as well w/o the ball as he can w/o it. 2. This could also elimanate someof the double teams he is encountering at the point, by getting him the ball where he wants it, not him trying to take the ball where it needs to be. 3. He can still lead the team on the break from the #2. 4. If we need a play with 8 seconds on the shot clock the ball can still go to him. 5. The kid is young, give him a chance to try both positions in NBA game situations to see what he prefers and where he can flourish. What do we have to lose?
