Image via Complex Original
Maybe Steve Francis just sucks at taking photos. Maybe he does look like an actual 37-year-old instead of a 65-year-old who camps outside the bodega with a 40 oz. Maybe he's secretly flourished with some unknown successful business venture.
It's much harder to be optimistic for the former three-time All Star, because he's very rarely been seen in flattering circumstances after his NBA career ended. Once a promising second overall draft pick with handles and flash, Francis' fall was apparently kickstarted with a trip to the Knicks. He stumbled downhill with an extremely short stint with the Chinese Basketball Association, a bad rap video, and some terrible photographs. Some believe drugs are part of his fall, while others point toward sickness. Whatever is the reason, let it be known that Beyonce didn't make "Drunk in Love" for Francis to be looking like this. Let's look back at Francis' struggle.
RELATED: Gallery: Athletes Who've Aged Terribly Over the Years
Getting Traded to the Knicks
Date: 1/22/2006
Joining the Knicks these days is still dicey business, but this was where careers went to die in the '00s. It was like getting bit on The Walking Dead—you're pretty much a goner. Steve Francis joined Amar'e Stoudamire, Tracy McGrady, and Stephon Marbury as the group of stars to get hit with this "virus." A combination of right knee tendinitis and just playing for a poor team led Francis' points average to go from 16.2 per season to 11. He played for the Rockets in a few games when he signed in 2007, but of course, he never got his mojo back.
His Cameo in a Fat Trel Video
Date: 10/11/2011
In which Steve Francis plays the dude whose friend has a decent come-up, so he says "We came up!" as if he had any part in it. The friend doesn't want to be a dick, so he's like "Sure, take all the shine you can get." It doesn't look like this moment helped out Steve Francis too much.
Side note: We're sure having a cameo in a video titled "Nightmare on E Street Preview" where one dude pops molly isn't the best idea if you're trying to co-sign a mayoral candidate.
Steve Sheds So Many Tears in China
Date: 2010
Francis was allegedly shedding some tears upon arriving to China to start his short CBA career. Chinese basketball isn't so bad though. J.R. Smith played there for a year before becoming Sixth Man of the Year for the Knicks. Stephon Marbury seems to be doing OK. Francis averaged .5 points and .8 rebounds in the four games he played there. Yes, half a point and 0.8 rebounds. *cues the soundtrack*
The "Finer Things" Music Video
Date: 3/1/2012
In one of the earliest documented accounts of his decline, Steve Francis created a music video for his own song, "Finer Things." While his best Ja Rule circa 2002 impression is catchy—trust us, you're going to be singing that hook for the rest of the day—you can already see that those two years away from basketball had taken their toll on The Franchise. And it only got worse from here...
Looking Like Your Drunk Uncle at All-Star Weekend
Date: 2/15/2013
During the 2013 NBA All-Star Weekend in Houston, celebrities from all walks of life showed up, as usual. Take the above picture for example. In it, we have Drake, French Montana and DJ Clue with some fan of theirs, right? Wait, that's Steve Francis?! After going AWOL following the "Finer Things" video, Francis, who looks like he went straight to the club after getting his ass beat in a boxing match, has taken a turn for the worse. #prayforthefranchise
Gets Choked by Stephen Jackson in the Club
Date: 9/11/2013
You generally want to avoid engaging in fisticuffs with any NBA player, especially the ones who are about that life. Tyler Hansbrough knew better than to try anything with Metta World Peace. So props to him for becoming joke fodder minus the head injury. Francis wasn't physically injured in this altercation with perpetual about-that-lifer/athlete-turned-rapper Stephen Jackson, but it's never a good feeling to be choked and be punked publicly. Also, Jackson is Stretch Armstrong in the flesh.
Jackson broke it down like this when he spoke about it to ESPN: "He said something crazy, one thing led to another, my hand ended up on his throat and the next thing you know, he in cuffs." Noted: Don't say anything crazy to Stephen Jackson.
From Bad to Worse at the Press Conference in China
Date: 1/5/2014
In January 2014, Steve Francis went over to China for the opening of the Liuzhou weekend basketball league, sporting the face that only a mother could love. Just look at him! Francis barely resembles the guy who was selected by the Vancouver Grizzlies with the second-overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft. It was around this point where we went from cracking jokes at dude's expense to just feeling plain sorry for him.
Walking Into a Glass Door
Date: 3/11/2014
Even though it was never confirmed that the guy in the above video running into a glass door at The Hamilton restaurant in downtown Washington, D.C. is Steve Francis, you can kinda assume that it would be him, given the trajectory that his life has taken.
Making It Rain on Himself to "Drunk in Love"
Date: 5/6/2014
Imagine the sense of awe inspired by watching Steve Francis—formerly Stevie Franchise—dancing the night away by pouring champagne on himself to "Drunk in Love" in the middle of the dance floor. It's almost like watching a unicorn with the purple light emanating from him and the champagne dripping from his forehead. Except instead of wonder, it's partly tragic.
The footage hit the Internet with almost no context—just that he was in Dream nightclub in Miami. This could've been passed off as a faux pas in other cases; picture if it was MVP Kevin Durant doing this. However, since this is Francis, you have to believe the best case scenario is him trying to pick up a girl by the bar, only to be greeted by an "Ew!" with a cold shoulder. Francis then slouches—forehead still dripping with champagne—and mumbles to himself, "B-But...I'm Stevie Franchise."
