Tag: Steve Francis

Rockets organize basketball campaign to celebrate ‘713 Day’ in Houston

“Anytime I see 713, I think of Houston,” said native Houstonian and former #Rockets player Gerald Green, who teamed up with Steve Francis to lead #713Day basketball activites for children.

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To the average person living outside of Houston, July 13 is just another hot summer day.

To residents of Houston and surrounding areas, it is recognized as “713 Day”; the numbers are the initial area code created in 1947 for the city.

On Thursday, the Rockets partnered with Houston Parks and Recreation Department and launched a campaign called “713 Day of Basketball.” Former players hosted seven free youth basketball clinics at community centers around the city.

“Anytime I see 713, I think of Houston,” said native Houstonian and former Rockets player Gerald Green, who, along with Steve Francis and NBA shooting coach Chris Matthews, led basketball-related activities for children at the Moody Community Center.

“It is a great day to go out and play basketball,” Green added. “The Houston Rockets are very big in the community, so why not go out on ‘713 Day,’ play some basketball and enjoy yourself.”

Also in attendance was the president of basketball operations for the Rockets, Gretchen Sheirr, who made the Moody Community Center her final stop of the “713 Day of Basketball” activities.

“I came to this location because two years ago, in partnership with Memorial Herman Hospital, it was one of the first courts we refurbished,” Sheirr told reporters. “We want to make sure that kids will have the resources to develop the skills they need to play the game of basketball.”

The Rockets also gave each child who participated at all seven locations a “713 Day of Basketball” T-shirt and a voucher for a special $7.13 ticket to select Rockets games during the season.

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Where Rockets rank among the greatest nicknames in NBA history

“Hakeem the Dream” and “Clyde the Glide” are among Houston’s best contributions to elite NBA nicknames, but they’re far from alone. Here’s a comprehensive list through Rockets history.

The best sports nicknames are colorful accents that effortlessly add a dash of flavor to the games we watch and play.

Some originate as terms of endearment, while others are bestowed as labels of ineptitude. That got us wondering about where some of the greatest players in basketball history — such as Michael Jordan (Air), LeBron James (King James) and Earvin Johnson (Magic) — rank in the pantheon of great NBA nicknames.

Baseball, with its long and rich history, once generated vivid monikers such as the Sultan of Swat (Babe Ruth) and the Splendid Splinter (Ted Williams). But basketball, with its playground roots and hip-hop culture, arguably is the sport with the most imaginative sports nicknames today.

With that in mind, Thomas Neumann of Rookie Wire took a shot at ranking the 101 greatest nicknames in NBA history. See below for where players with ties to the Houston Rockets were ranked in that list.

All nickname commentary and history is from Neumann.

NBA 75: Our all-time roster for the Houston Rockets

As the NBA honors its 75th anniversary with a list of its historical greats, we look back at the top players in Houston Rockets history.

As part of a celebration of its 75th anniversary, the NBA is releasing what it calls the NBA 75 — a list of the greatest players in league history.

With that in mind, we’re looking back at the greats over that same time period who played for the Rockets. Founded in 1967 in San Diego before moving to Houston in 1971, the Rockets are clearly one of the league’s flagship clubs. With 2,286 wins and 2,074 losses, the .529 winning clip by the Rockets ranks eighth among the league’s 30 active franchises, and they are one of only 11 teams with multiple championships (1994, 1995).

Some ground rules: Since this exercise is to determine an overall roster, this list contains position biases. For example, even though the Rockets have a long history of elite centers, a team wouldn’t be likely to carry six centers on a 15-man roster. Thus, some greats did not make the cut.

Also, this roster defers to each player’s specific contributions in Houston. In other words, even though Scottie Pippen is a Hall of Famer and an all-time NBA legend, he played just one season with the Rockets and was past his prime at that time — which makes him not a fit for an all-time Houston list. Similar logic holds true with Russell Westbrook.

Without any further delay, here’s our all-time Rockets roster, and be sure to check out our other NBA Wire sites for rival comparisons.

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Former Rockets Steve Francis, Moochie Norris launching minor league hoops team in Houston

Steve Francis and Moochie Norris, who played for the Rockets in the early 2000s, are now leading The Basketball League’s Houston Push.

Former Rockets star Steve Francis is now owner of the Houston Push, a new minor league hoops organization within The Basketball League. The team’s debut season will begin on April 8, 2021.

The Push will be led by Moochie Norris as GM and head coach. Norris played alongside Francis with the Rockets in the early 2000s.

“This is something that we started from the ground up, and we want to see it progress,” said Francis, who noted that he wants to leave a legacy in Houston. “A lot of players don’t get an opportunity to play now, especially with overseas basketball being jammed up [due to COVID-19].”

The league is currently scheduled to have 35 teams, with the Push competing in the Southwest Division of the Central Conference.

“It’s an opportunity for guys to pursue their pro careers, because unfortunately there’s not enough opportunities out there for them, and this league is a great vehicle to give them an opportunity to grow and get involved with the community,” Norris said.

Tryouts for the Push will take place Saturday, Jan. 23 in Houston, with other events scheduled for the weeks ahead in Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. Further tryout details are available here.

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History on this Day: Brand, Francis each named co-Rookies of the Year

The voting results marked just the third time in NBA history two players each received Rookie of the Year honors.

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After each receiving 58 out of a possible 121 votes, Elton Brand and Steve Francis were named co-winners of the 1999-2000 NBA Rookie of the Year on May 11, 2000.

The voting results marked just the third time in NBA history two players each received Rookie of the Year honors. The other two times occurred with Grant Hill and Jason Kidd during the 1994-95 season and Geoff Petrie and Dave Cowens in the 1970-71 season.

As the No. 1 overall pick, Brand averaged 20.1 points, 10 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.6 blocks in 81 games with the Chicago Bulls. He took home MVP honors in the Rookie Challenge at All-Star Weekend and was eventually named to the All-Rookie First Team.

Francis, the second overall pick, was originally drafted by the Vancouver Grizzlies but openly stated he didn’t want to play for them and was eventually traded to the Houston Rockets. He also earned All-Rookie First Team honors after averaging 18 points, 6.6 assists and 5.3 rebounds.

Brand went on to become a two-time All-Star over his 17 seasons in the NBA and currently serves as the general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers. Francis was a three-time All-Star in nine seasons in the NBA.

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VOTE: What was the best individual season in Houston Rockets history?

Houston’s three MVPs in James Harden, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Moses Malone are among the top candidates. Which season is best, though?

First round: ’15 Harden vs. ’05 McGrady / ’93 Olajuwon vs. ’01 Francis / ’18 Harden vs. ’89 Olajuwon / ’82 Malone vs. ’74 Tomjanovich / ’19 Harden vs. ’13 Harden / ’17 Harden vs. ’14 Harden / ’94 Olajuwon vs. ’16 Harden / ’79 Malone vs. ’81 Malone

Over their 53 years in existence, the Rockets are among the NBA’s most successful franchises by nearly any metric.

Houston ranks in the league’s all-time Top 10 in wins and winning percentage by franchise. They’ve won the NBA Finals on multiple occasions (1994, 1995) and the Western Conference four different times, along with seven division titles and 33 total playoff appearances.

Individual greatness has largely driven their team success. The Rockets have had three players win MVP in a Houston uniform (Moses Malone, Hakeem Olajuwon, James Harden), and they’ve had 62 total All-Star selections. They have six retired numbers, with Olajuwon and Malone joined by Calvin Murphy, Rudy Tomjanovich, Clyde Drexler, and Yao Ming.

All are among the 12 Hall of Famers to have played for the Rockets, and recent stars such as Harden, Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul, and Dwight Howard will further add to that list in the years ahead. But of all those NBA legends, who has had the greatest individual season of all? Rockets Wire aims to answer that question, with your help.

Methodology: In an effort to be as neutral as possible, the 16 seedings are ranked by Win Shares, as listed on Basketball Reference. These Win Shares are based on statistics during each regular season, rather than the playoffs. However, if you’d like to add playoff performance in that year to your criteria, that’s absolutely your prerogative! The suspended 2019-20 season is not included, as we hope it resumes at some point.

Without further delay, let the balloting begin. First-round voting will continue until Wednesday night. Vote early and often!

First round: 2014-15 James Harden vs. 2004-05 Tracy McGrady

No. 1 seed: 2014-15 James Harden: 27.4 points (44.0% FG, 37.5% 3-pointers), 7.0 assists, 5.7 rebounds, 1.9 steals per game

Harden’s 2014-15 season is perhaps best remembered for how he picked up the slack for issues around him. Co-star Dwight Howard missed 41 games in the regular season, and starters Pat Beverley and Donatas Motiejunas each had their seasons end early due to injury. Veteran castoffs like Pablo Prigioni and Jason Terry were thrust into key roles.

Nonetheless, largely due to Harden’s leadership, the often shorthanded Rockets still went 56-26 in the regular season and earned the No. 2 seed in the West. They won Houston’s first division title in 21 years, and then advanced in the playoffs to the franchise’s first Western Conference Finals in 18 years. Harden posted 4.2 defensive win shares that year, which remains the most of his career, and his 61.8% true shooting percentage is the second-highest of Harden’s eight seasons in Houston.

After the 2014-15 season concluded, “The Beard” was voted by fellow NBA players as the league’s MVP.

Photo by Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

No. 16 seed: 2004-05 Tracy McGrady: 25.7 points (43.1% FG, 32.6% 3-pointers), 6.2 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.7 steals per game

Considering that back and knee issues limited McGrady’s prime, it probably isn’t a surprise that McGrady’s best year in Houston was his first one. McGrady’s 78 games played were by far the most of any of his six seasons played in Houston, and his scoring average and efficiency marks were at or near the top of his Houston tenure, too.

Led by McGrady, the Rockets improved by six games (45-37 to 51-31) in the Western Conference standings and moved up from the No. 7 seed to No. 5. They lost in seven games in the first round to rival Dallas.

Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

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Snapshot: A look back at Steve Francis, the bouncy, shifty point guard

With his athleticism and shifty dribble, Steve Francis was one of the most talented guards of his era.

When Steve Francis elevated off the floor and hung in the air, he was prepared to posterize someone if necessary.

Francis, who played his first five NBA seasons with the Houston Rockets, was one of the bounciest and most athletic guards of his day. He had a shifty dribble that helped him regularly skirt past his opponents, ready to finish at the rim.

As the league’s 2000 Rookie of the Year, Francis made an immediate impact. He averaged 18.0 points per game, 6.6 assists and shot 34.5% from the 3-point line in his rookie season.

He made the 1999-00 All-Rookie first team, joining Elton Brand, Andre Miller, Lamar Odom and Wally Szczerbiak.

Francis’ scoring ability was the best attribute of his game. Francis had three seasons where he scored 20 or more points a game — two of those seasons were with Houston. The 2001-02 campaign marked the first of his three All-Star appearances, and it was also his best season scoring-wise.

During that season, Francis scored a career-high 21.6 points per game, grabbed a career-best 7.0 rebounds and dished 6.4 assists. According to NBA.com stats, Francis was fourth in rebounds per game among guards that season.

He played nine seasons, and the only time he didn’t average double figures in scoring was his last season in 2007-08, which was with the Rockets.

Though Francis had individual success, he didn’t go to the playoffs often. He made it to the postseason once in 2004, and the Rockets lost in five games against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first round.

Francis led the Rockets in scoring and assists during the series; he was second in rebounds behind Jim Jackson. Francis averaged 19.2 points per game, 7.6 assists and 8.4 rebounds in those five games.

After starting his career in Houston, Francis then played a season and a half for the Orlando Magic.

Francis was traded to the New York Knicks from Orlando during the 2005-06 season, and he played with New York through the 2006-07 season. Francis finished his career with averages of 18.1 points per game, 6.0 assists and 5.6 rebounds. He shot 42.9% from the field and 34.1% from deep.

Despite not having many playoff appearances, Francis was one of the most talented guards of his era.

Perhaps more importantly, he was a predecessor for players like Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook, two of the most explosive and athletic guards of all time.

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1999 NBA re-draft: The way it should have been

There were no superstars in this draft, but we can’t really complain about depth.

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There were no superstars in this draft, but we can’t really complain about depth.

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