Francis back to Rockets

[Rab]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4982185.html

Three seasons and three teams removed from the Rockets, Steve Francis will return to the team for which three times he was an All-Star.
Once known as "Franchise" as the cornerstone of the Rockets' planned post Hakeem Olajuwon rebuilding, Francis chose to return the Rockets on Thursday, passing on more lucrative offers from the Heat, Mavericks and Clippers.
"I think he sees this as a rebirth, as a restart of his career," Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said.
"Steve has a sense we're real close. We think he can be a big part of getting us there. I always thought it was a long shot. Credit to Steve, he chose what he thought was the best chance to win over options that were better financially.
"There was always a chance that Steve would choose Houston, until Steve told me today himself he was coming it felt like a long shot. Jeff Fried was doing a great job as an agent creating options. It came down to Steve focusing on what was the most important to him and that was winning."
The Rockets were limited to the portion of the mid-level exception remaining after acquiring forward Luis Scola last weeks, worth $2.4 million the first year. He will sign a two-year contract with the option to opt out after one season.
Francis played five seasons for the Rockets, averaging 19.3 points, 6.4 assists and 6.1 rebounds. He was traded in June, 2004 to the Orlando Magic along with Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato in the deal to acquire Tracy McGrady. After one strong season with the Magic, he was dealt to the Knicks the next season and generally struggled to regain the form of his first years in the league, usually coming off the bench in the Knicks' crowded backcourt and battling knee troubles last season.
Francis is scheduled for a physical this afternoon, but has reported no problems with the knee since last season.
"It's a combination of a variety of factors including the fit with the team, a comfortableness with the organization and a familiarity with the surroundings," Fried said. "He has a home in Houston. In so many ways, it has remained his home, despite some interim stops, Orlando and New York.
"For Steve, it's coming home."
Dealt the Portland Trail Blazers after the season, he accepted a buyout of the last two seasons of his contract, worth roughly $30 million.
He had considered offers to reunite with Mobley, a friend and former teammate, and Sam Cassell, a friend and business partner, with the Clippers, and to play with each of the 2006 NBA Finals teams, the Mavericks and Heat.
"It's a chance to win," Morey said. "Both Yao (Ming) and Tracy really helped with the recruiting process and are excited about our chance to win with the additions in the off-season," Morey said. "We're feeling good we've addressed a lot of our goals."
The addition of Francis will likely trigger more changes. He would give the Rockets five point guards. Morey has said he is seeking to move John Lucas III. Several teams, the New Orleans Hornets in particular, have indicated interest, but Morey said nothing is imminent. With Francis on the roster, he could also seek to deal last season's starter, Rafer Alston.
"When you have a chance to add a talent like Steve who really fits what coach (Rick Adelman) is trying to do, you do it," Morey said. "Now we have a lot of talent on the roster. Coach and I have to figure out the best way to make it work. What our plans are is still to be determined. Because this was a bit of a long shot, we haven't spent a lot of time on what was the right next step in the coming weeks."

 

[abomb]

Hopefully they will use three balls at a time in HOU.

 

[elindholm]

It's pretty funny that replacing Alston with Francis has to be considered a character upgrade.

 

[azirish]

Steve Francis
Rafer Alston
Luther Head
Mike James
John Lucas
Bob Sura (never healthy though)

Is there a record for the team with most undersized shooting guards in the NBA?

 

[Rab]

Hopefully they will use three balls at a time in HOU.

Seriously. Wasn't part of the reason for the Francis trade that he didn't mesh well with Yao?

Call me crazy, but a Mike James/Steve Francis combo at PG doesn't do much for me.

 

[azirish]

Seriously. Wasn't part of the reason for the Francis trade that he didn't mesh well with Yao?

Call me crazy, but a Mike James/Steve Francis combo at PG doesn't do much for me.

It does for me, but that's because I'm a Suns fan.

 

[Rab]

It does for me, but that's because I'm a Suns fan.

In that regard, it does a whole lot for me too.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Seriously. Wasn't part of the reason for the Francis trade that he didn't mesh well with Yao?

Call me crazy, but a Mike James/Steve Francis combo at PG doesn't do much for me.

it's better than the drek they had last year, but that ain't saying much.

 

[Rab]

it's better than the drek they had last year.

They may be more talented on paper, but it will be interesting to see how they do on the court. Francis couldn't even defer to Yao when it was just Yao. Now he'll have to defer to Yao, and T-Mac. And we all know Mike James loves to shoot the ball.

 

[playstation]

i think steve has been a bit humbled since his last visit to houston. the bigger problem is that they still didn't address the shooting issue. however, on paper francis, wells, tmac, scola, and yao seems like a good upgrade over last year.

 

[azirish]

i think steve has been a bit humbled since his last visit to houston. the bigger problem is that they still didn't address the shooting issue. however, on paper francis, wells, tmac, scola, and yao seems like a good upgrade over last year.

Actually this reminds me of the Knicks. It looks like a lot of mismatched parts. Rick Adelman clearly has his work cut out for him.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Actually this reminds me of the Knicks. It looks like a lot of mismatched parts. Rick Adelman clearly has his work cut out for him.

the Knicks have NO one the caliber of T-Mac, much less the caliber of Yao. How you look at the above and somehow see a similarity between the two rosters is beyond me.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

the Knicks have NO one the caliber of T-Mac, much less the caliber of Yao. How you look at the above and somehow see a similarity between the two rosters is beyond me.

i said PROCEDURAL, cheese, PROCEDURAL!

 

[Arizona's Finest]

I'm not saying its definitely going to work but i like the Adelman hire and i think Francis, Scola, and Mike James are all good pick ups. Plus Bonzi will be playing like he did two years ago in Sac. If they all fall in line with TMac and Yao then they have something. And Adelman has handled that much talent before too with lots of success (See SAC and POR)

I say Suns - Rockets in the WCF as we bounce the Spurs (with the trade deadline pick up of the year in KG) and the retooled Rockets bump the Mavs.

 

[cly2tw]

The Rockets have amassed quite some talent lately.

Yao/Scola/TMac/Bonzi/Francis with Hayes/James/Head/Alston, if they could learn how to mesh they'd be a force. I think Spurs will have particular problems with them.

It's gonna be interesting season.

PS: they still have Battier. Maybe they should get some big like Gazuric/Pryzbila for Alston/Head.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Steve Francis
Rafer Alston
Luther Head
Mike James
John Lucas
Bob Sura (never healthy though)

Is there a record for the team with most undersized shooting guards in the NBA?

I remember a New Orleans Jazz team with Slick Watts, Gail Goodrich and World B. Free.

 

[dodie53]

I say Suns - Rockets in the WCF as we bounce the Spurs (with the trade deadline pick up of the year in KG) and the retooled Rockets bump the Mavs.

i like the scenarios..

 

[ASUCHRIS]

They better pick up Cat Mobley again... I don't know how much longer he can live without Stevie Franchise. While they're at it, why not see if Matt Bullard is available to bring back the glory days.

 

[dodie53]

and mo taylor..

 

[Treesquid PhD]

while their at it why don't they pick up sarcoma and melanoma for the vet min.

 

[azirish]

while their at it why don't they pick up sarcoma and melanoma for the vet min.

Expensive buyouts from the Spanish league I'm sure.

 

[HooverDam]

Man, I had forgotten how good Francis once was, 19/6/6, thats pretty sick. If he can be good for 12/4/4 he'd be a great pick up for them.

They have a very good starting 5:
Francis
TMac
Battier
Scola
Yao

I think the Rockets (if healthy) are certainly cemented as the #4 team in the West after SA, Phx and Dallas. Houston, Utah and Denver are all very good teams, the west is so deep when those are your 4-6 teams.

 

[scotsman13]

well i think that houston has a chance to be a much improved team. they did the second best thing they could to improve their team in firing JVG and now if they would get rid of tmac they could make it out of the first round for a change.

 

[Louis]

If anybody has watched Year of Yao about Yao's rookie season, you could see a real connection between the two players.

A great p/u for the team. He was a very good player in Houston.

This relieves TMac of a lot of things, not to mention those other p/u and the contributions they'll bring.