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The second coming of the Franchise just didn't work out.
The Houston Rockets have traded point guard Steve Francis to (ironically) the Memphis Grizzlies, the same franchise that drafted Francis in 1999.
The move was basically a salary dump. The Rockets sent to Memphis a second round draft pick in 2009 (the same pick Houston received from Memphis in the Nicolas Batum-Darrell Arthur-Donte Greene trades) to compensate Memphis for absorbing Francis' contract. Houston receives a conditional second rounder in 2011 in the deal.
It was a high price to pay to move an expiring contract, but Rockets owner Les Alexander is not one to pay the luxury tax, even if it means going Ebenezer Scrooge on Francis on Christmas Eve. The Rockets also are going to be awfully quiet on Draft Day in June as they don't have their own first round pick (Ron Artest trade) and just gave up a high second rounder.
However, that the Rockets dumped Francis was not surprising.
Even when Rafer Alston missed 6 games this season, Francis never sniffed the court. The Rockets were unhappy with Francis' dedication to the team from nearly Day 1 as he regularly missed workouts and, at times, practices.
The Rockets made the move for salary cap and luxury tax reasons, possibly clearing a path for the return of Dikembe Mutombo. Stay tuned.
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