{"id":9784,"date":"2021-08-31T18:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-08-31T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/?p=9784"},"modified":"2021-09-30T12:37:19","modified_gmt":"2021-09-30T12:37:19","slug":"mr-muscle-leome-is-back-for-a-3rd-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/mr-muscle-leome-is-back-for-a-3rd-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Mr. Muscle Leome is back for a 3rd season"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>With over ten years playing across the NBL under his belt, Leome Francis enters his third season with the Rockets as an experienced veteran with plenty to offer the team. Coming off the back of knee surgery, Leome is ready to assert himself this season as a powerful force around the rim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Standing at 6\u20195\u201d, Leome still manages to play above his size thanks to his power and tenacity on the court. His frame allows him to carve out space in the post, shrugging off defenders who are often too weak to compete with the British power forward. His strength is such an impressive asset that he even featured in a workout video for PureGym\u2019s Youtube channel!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although his rebounding and scoring abilities are certainly rooted in his physicality, you don\u2019t manage to put up 13.5PPG on over 50% from the field as Leome has done during his two seasons in Reading without excellent touch around the rim. Leome manages to capitalize on his athleticism while still utilizing smooth footwork and finishing, and has developed a number of reliable spin moves and step-throughs to keep defenders on their heels. One of his best assets is that he produces points without taking away opportunities from teammates, snatching offensive rebounds, and forcing fouls from desperate defenders for free throws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Leome\u2019s talents are a perfect complement to the number of outside threats the Rockets have on the roster. His frame and explosive power make him an inside threat who can score when given space down low, while also giving him the great potential to make plays defensively. With him in the lineup, Coach Pearson can put out high-scoring offensive lineups with Leome as a two-way piece ready to contribute on both ends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We can\u2019t wait to see Leome fully recovered and ready to get back on the court. He\u2019s clearly developed winning habits since he joined the team, having taken home \u00a376,000 after an appearance on BBC gameshow The Wheel in November 2020. Here\u2019s hoping he keeps them up as he steps out for year three as the Rockets\u2019 number 12!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With over ten years playing across the NBL under his belt, Leome Francis enters his third season with the Rockets as an experienced veteran with plenty to offer the team. Coming off the back of knee surgery, Leome is ready to assert himself this season as a powerful force around the rim. Standing at 6\u20195\u201d, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":9772,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":[],"_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"spay_email":""},"categories":[3,2,4],"tags":[265,278,271,277,263,279],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/DSC09584-X4.jpg?fit=1365%2C910&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pdDaI5-2xO","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5864,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/storm-v-rockets-match-report\/","url_meta":{"origin":9784,"position":0},"title":"Storm V Rockets | Match Report","date":"27\/03\/2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Hemel Storm 82 v 80 Reading Rockets Having lost a titanic battle against joint league leaders Thames Valley Cavaliers on Tuesday evening, Rockets travelled to joint third side Hemel Storm on Saturday and came tantalisingly close to an upset as they led for over 38 of the 40 minutes but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Match Report&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/01sfgtNA-X5.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9787,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/the-champ-is-home-lewis-champion-returns-to-the-rockets\/","url_meta":{"origin":9784,"position":1},"title":"The Champ is home! Lewis Champion returns to the Rockets!","date":"01\/09\/2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Lewis has been at the top of British basketball for over ten years, logging time in the NBL D1 and the BBL during his pro career. Having started out with the Rockets at 18 years old back in 2011\/12, he picked up eight appearances for Great Britain U20s during his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Club Announcements&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/MG_0210-X3.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4875,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/rockets-looking-to-bounce-back-from-cup-final-defeat-with-trip-to-loughborough\/","url_meta":{"origin":9784,"position":2},"title":"Rockets looking to bounce back from cup final defeat with trip to Loughborough","date":"04\/02\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Reading Rockets (13-5) will return to NBL Division One action this weekend when they take on Loughborough Riders (10-5) on Sunday afternoon, 2pm tip-off. The Reading team missed out on the first piece of silverware last weekend when they were beaten 90-67 by Team Solent Kestrels in the National Cup\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Game Preview&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/news-16-12-2019.png?fit=700%2C298&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4911,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/rockets-to-face-unbeaten-kestrels\/","url_meta":{"origin":9784,"position":3},"title":"Rockets to face unbeaten Kestrels","date":"18\/02\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Reading Rockets (13-6) will be looking to bounce back from their surprise defeat to Leicester Warriors (8-10) when they take on unbeaten league leaders Team Solent Kestrels (16-0) on Sunday afternoon, 5pm tip-off at Rivermead Leisure Complex. Rockets suffered their sixth defeat in NBL Division One sending them right back\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Game Preview&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/news-feb18-2020.png?fit=700%2C298&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5570,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/dragons-v-rockets-match-report\/","url_meta":{"origin":9784,"position":4},"title":"Rockets overcome the Dragons","date":"08\/02\/2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Bradford Dragons 90 v 111 Reading Rockets Rockets\u2019 most experienced senior players Sam Toluwase and Leome Francis got them off to a brisk start with lay-ups and defensive rebounds respectively as point guard O\u2019Showen Williams imposed himself from the tip and shooting guards Sam Grant and Reis Pinnock drained trebles\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Match Report&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Dragons-A-171.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4833,"url":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/rockets-to-take-on-liverpool-as-fight-for-top-four-heats-up\/","url_meta":{"origin":9784,"position":5},"title":"Rockets to take on Liverpool as fight for top four heats up","date":"21\/01\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Reading Rockets (11-5) will be looking to use last Sunday\u2019s National Cup semi-final victory as a springboard in the league when they host Liverpool (2-14) on Sunday afternoon, 15:30pm tip-off at Rivermead in Round 17 of the regular season. Rockets defeated NBL Division Two outfit Myerscough College last weekend, running\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Game Preview&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/news-21-01-2020.png?fit=700%2C298&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9784"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9784"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9784\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9785,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9784\/revisions\/9785"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9784"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9784"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingrockets.co.uk\/rr2021\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}