***2nd Annual Tsikot.com Fantasy NBA League***

[theveed]

Man, Yao and TMac just spanked the Clips tonight...

[ILuvDetailing]

tambak nga clips - 31pts. makakatulong kaya si Radman

uy 6-3 lamang ko kay commish, makakachamba kaya ako this week :hihihi:

[theveed]

Excuses...

Trade talk disrupts Francis, Magic
Brian Schmitz
Sentinel Staff Writer

February 14, 2006

MIAMI -- The Orlando Magic suspended Steve Francis last month for conduct detrimental to the team.

They now are considering benching him for conduct detrimental to the outcome.

Francis said Monday that he likely won't be able to turn around his lackluster play until the club trades him or not. If that's the case, the slumping preoccupied point guard and the 19-31 Magic -- clinging to playoff hopes -- have four more games to play until the Feb. 23 trade deadline. Those games are a back-to-back, home-and-home against the Southeast Division-leading Miami Heat and road games vs. the Cavaliers in Cleveland and the Nets in New Jersey.

Asked if he thought about sitting Francis, starting tonight against the Miami Heat, Magic Coach Brian Hill paused and said, "That's something for Otis [Assistant General Manager Otis Smith] and I to discuss.''

Smith doubts such a scenario would transpire, and said he's tried to impress upon Francis the need to "concentrate on playing basketball. I can only tell him that, and Brian can only tell him to concentrate on playing basketball.''

Smith said his job is to improve the club and that trades are part of the business. He even added that "it is more likely'' that Francis -- with three years and $48 million left on his contract -- will not be dealt before the Feb. 23 deadline.

"I'm just waiting, man,'' Francis said Monday after the Magic's practice at LaSalle High School in Miami. "Whatever they decide. .. .. . As far as a decision if I'm going to get traded or not.''

Francis concedes he has been affected by the trade winds and no longer feels he has "security.''

The sinking numbers back him up. Averaging 16-17 points a game this season, the three-time all-star has averaged just fewer than eight points the past four games. Orlando has lost all four.

Before his funk, Francis was soaring and energetic, averaging about 23 points in a six-game stretch. Recently, he has passed up shots and looked indifferent. Magic color analyst Matt Guokas observed during Sunday's telecast in Boston that Francis appeared to be "a non-participant.''

"It's not that easy,'' he said. "I don't want anybody to feel sorry for me. I make an excellent living. But I think if you knew you had that security, you'd just play more relaxed. You know? I don't have that security [of where he'll be playing].''

Smith doesn't expect trade offers to become serious until the deadline approaches. He said that "99.9 percent'' of the media and Internet reports citing a trade involving Francis "are just rumors. It's not uncommon for trade deals to have an affect on players. We forget they're human beings,'' said Smith, a former Magic forward and NBA veteran who once was traded a day before Christmas. "If they read something in the paper about them 900 times, it's going to affect them. .. .. . I know Steve's not comfortable. I'm not comfortable. I'm not comfortable with 19-31.''

Francis says his teammates "understand what's going on. They're like, 'Yo, don't think we think you're not trying to play hard.' I'm playing hard. I'm just not getting the results.''

Francis compared his situation to a person who has a job at a company but then learns the company has hired a possible replacement.

"In the back of your mind, you're saying, 'They might be wanting to get my butt out of here.' So I might as well try to prepare for something else. You feel me?" Francis said.

The Magic are caught between a rock and a sprained foot if they were to bench or again suspend Francis. If Jameer Nelson were healthy enough to play the point, Francis might already have been given the chance to clear his head off the court.

Nelson is still out with a sprained right mid-foot and might be sidelined longer. Smith said Nelson is seeking the opinion of yet another specialist. Orlando would be short on guards without Francis. Keyon Dooling would take over as the starting point guard. Rookie Travis Diener is the other point guard.

The other problem for the Magic is that punishing Francis affects his trade value.

Francis was upset when he was traded by the Houston Rockets to Orlando two summers ago. After becoming a first-time father last summer, he hoped to make Orlando his home. He recently put money down on a new house.

"It's hard, man, when you're thinking about that [trade rumors] and me buying a house [in Orlando] with my family,'' he said. "You think about all those things, and all that stuff factors in.''

[ILuvDetailing]

walang hiya, $10M/year is security enough for me, be a professional Stevie play hard, I'm counting on you on my fantasy team

[theveed]

hehe, GM's should know that this guy is a primadonna from the start.

Sinong rookie pa ba na ayaw magreport to the team that drafted him just because it's in Canadaland hehe...

Kakaasar mga ganyan, kung nagretire at mamulubi sya walang maaawa sa lokong yan.

Well, maybe magsama sila nina Jerome James and co.. hehe.

[ILuvDetailing]

^^kaw nag pick sa kanya sa 3rd round hehehe... then traded him to PK

Well no choice na, I'm stuck with this cry baby... either he helps my team reach the playoffs or drags it down

[theveed]

Yup, I thought may utak na sya this year... Guess not...

Daming reklamo, natrade si Cat Mobley iiyak, trade rumors iiyak...

Laki ng ulo... kasing laki ng labi...

[empy]

oo nga...ILD, walang kwenta yan

DROP NA!!!

[baiskee]

Laki ng ulo... kasing laki ng labi...

naiirita nga ako nung nba tv ad nya nung sa houston pa sya....

close-up pa yung mukha.

[empy]

ok boyz...how about a new feature - RATE THAT TRADE!!

review the following trades many games after they were made. who do you think won?

1. ILD gives Pierce and Andre Miller to Theveed for Billups and Rich Jefferson

2. Kimpoy gives Rashard Lewis and Randolph to JLee for Stephen Jax and Shaq

3. Altis trades Gordon and Prince to Theveed for David West

4. Theveed trades Kobe to Jim for Marion

[baiskee]

syempre dun ako sa 81pts ni kobe. kay JIM na ba yun?

[theveed]

Nakay Jim na yun 81, yung 61 na sa kin pa si Kobe.

I think I made a good deal kay Andre and Pierce dahil I traded Billups and RJeff din down the road...

I lost out on David West though...

and of course, my infamous drops... Kurt Thomas, TJ Ford, Al Harrington.

[kimpOy]

well ok din naman si Gordon now and tayshuan well ...sa piston naman any given night may roon sa kanilang lima ang pupukol...

i lost out sa trade namin ni JLEE kasi shaq was injured in the first part of the season...lewis and randolph delivered to their respective team

[Altis6453]

Yep. When I traded T. Prince and Air Gordon, I thought that it was pretty fair for both parties. Prince contributes in ppg/reb/steals and sometimes in 3PM. Gordon, on the other hand, gives the team manager the flexibility of having a PG/SG/G who contributes in ppg/ast./3PM. Not as prolific as the other scoring guards in the NBA, but hey, that's why it was a 2 for 1.

[theveed]

Altis, the trade was fair, don't get me wrong... hehe naoverestimate ko lang si tayshaun...

[ILuvDetailing]

I think I did ok with my first 4 or 5 picks - TMac, Bosh, Lewis, Miller, Rasheed. I should have stoped trading when I got Pierce from Kimpoy. na overestimate ko si Jefferson and I should have kept Battier, and asked for Diaw instead of Barbosa from PK for James Jones.

[Altis6453]

Altis, the trade was fair, don't get me wrong... hehe naoverestimate ko lang si tayshaun...

No prob, boss theveed.

[baiskee]

gawa na kay oline up for next season...

kukunin ko na si darko.

[theveed]

Oh, how can we forget Josh Howard for James Jones hehe

[jim]

yup nasa akin si Kobe nung naka 81 siya Kobe. ok naman pero hindi kasi nananalo ang team ko sa points kaya i traded him for Davis and Miller. Ok naman yung trade until na injure si Davis hehehehe. Si Ginobili rin has been contributing a lot. Pero I got lucky sa FA picks ko. Boykins, Dunleavey and Songaila are contributing well. Pero best FA pick ko so M. James ;)