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Horry: Best Clutch Man or Best Con Man?; Interesting article
Topic Started: Jun 17 2005, 02:54 AM (439 Views)
MagicMadness
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In Tuesday's Game 3 of the NBA Finals, San Antonio and Detroit are tied with about a minute left in the third quarter. The Spurs' Robert Horry launches a high-arching three-pointer from the top of the key. Nothing but glass. Forty-five seconds later, Horry drives in for a layup—rejected. When the Pistons run out on a fast break, Horry tries to block Richard Hamilton's shot from behind—goaltending.

In less than a minute, Horry's burst of bad play has helped the Pistons lock up a victory. But don't tell that to the announcers. "That's a guy," says ABC's Hubie Brown, "who is not giving up on anything."

This year's playoffs have followed an all-too-familiar script. Robert Horry throws up a bunch of bricks. Robert Horry gets celebrated as "Big Shot Bob," legendary sharpshooter and five-time NBA champion. In both 2003 and 2004, Horry's missed three-pointers helped eliminate his teams from the playoffs. Yet during this year's finals, there's a commercial showing then-Laker Robert Horry hitting a three from the corner against the 76ers back in 2001. "The Finals," says a voice-over, "where legends are born." In Horry's case, it's more like, "The Finals, where legends are nurtured, coddled, and defended against reality."

Robert Horry's career has been built on a great, underappreciated basketball truth: Big shots are only big shots if you make them. Unlike a missed field goal or a botched ground ball, a missed three-pointer is imminently forgettable. Even the best long-range shooters miss most of the time. Every NBA game has dozens and dozens of misfires, all of which look more or less the same. One more miss, no matter how important the context, tends to get lost in the clutter. If you're a role player, that goes double—nobody expected you to make the shot anyway.

Horry's true genius isn't his clutch shooting. It's his understanding of roundball amnesia. After sinking a buzzer-beater against Sacramento in the 2002 playoffs, Horry explained his philosophy. "If I hit it we win, if I miss y'all are going to blame the stars for losing the game anyway," he told the Washington Post's Michael Wilbon. "There's no pressure on me." Horry has none of the guts and gets all of the glory. In the 2003 playoffs, Horry went 2-for-38 from behind the arc—and everybody blamed Shaq and Kobe for the Lakers' downfall. After this year's Game 3 drubbing, Horry got off again—it was Manu Ginobili's and Tim Duncan's fault.

The Big Shot Bob persona is so overwhelming that it blocks out more than missed shots. Remember when Horry took a swing at Utah's Jeff Hornacek in 1997? What a clutch punch! Or when he threw a towel in the face of his coach, Danny Ainge, that same year? Dagger! How about when he got fined for shoving a cameraman in 2003? Now that's killer instinct!

After Game 2 of this year's finals, in which Horry scored 12 points on 4-for-10 shooting, ESPN.com's Bill Simmons declared Horry "one of the more important team players of the last 35 years," and possibly even deserving of a spot in the Hall of Fame. Horry's reputation as a great team player is a bit of a mix-up. It's more accurate to say he's been the teammate of great players: Hakeem Olajuwon in Houston, Shaquille O'Neal in Los Angeles, and Tim Duncan in San Antonio. Horry has made his career coasting on other player's coattails. He's 6-feet-10, yet he lets his teammates scrap in the paint for offensive rebounds while he hovers vulturelike at the three-point line. On offense, he's incapable of creating an open shot for himself. Instead, he stands around waiting for the defense to double-team his superstar teammate, hoping for an open look.

Horry isn't even the best forward from the University of Alabama in this year's finals. Antonio McDyess' career averages (15.7 points, .494 shooting percentage, 8.5 rebounds) dwarf Horry's feeble stat line (7.5 points per game, .431 shooting percentage, 5.0 rebounds). Yet all the glory goes to Horry.

During the first half of Game 3, Horry became the all-time leader in three-pointers made during the NBA Finals, passing Michael Jordan. Only Reggie Miller has made more playoff three-pointers than Horry. What a clutch shooter! Better than Jordan! Never mind that Horry has made only 227 of 634 of his playoff threes—a mediocre .358 shooting percentage. After all, who's going to remember any of those 407 misses?

http://slate.com/id/2121018/

Interesting read on Robert Horry and his so-called "clutchness". Don't get me wrong, I really like and respect Horry, but this article goes to show that maybe he isn't as clutch as a lot of people hype him up to be.

Still, I think he is one of the more clutch playoff players in the game today.
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gomagic33
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Interesting article. But Horry is a "role player", pure and simple. He is not the star of the team. His role is to spread the floor for Duncan - which explains why he is normally waiting at the 3-pt arc. He is indeed lucky to have plaid with elite players in the game - but that doesn't take away the fact that he played his role. He was asked to stand around the arc and hit the big shots, he did it. Of course he will not always make the shots but you have to give him credit for the big ones he made.

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gomagic33
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I wonder what this guy , Felix Gillete, has to say now. :haha:
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Drex22
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TheGreatOne
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It's not just the big shots but it's everything else he does to keep his team in the ball game.

Keeping shots alive for more opportunities. Being aggressive and attacking the basket when nobody else had the heart to. Going for the loose balls on the court, playing aggressive defense / help defense. He was everywhere on the court yesterday. Last night was the Pistons game to win, Rob stole it from them, literally.
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MagicMadness
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Yep, last night's game was just another reason why Robert's one of the clutchest playoff players in NBA history.
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Magic333
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McGrady and Howard... What could have been
Is Horry a So called HALL OF FAMER? Really I mean he is good in all....... but he isnt the type of player to lead a team from start to finish..... I wish he was a hall of famer..... But I dont see it happening :no:

His, clutchness I agree on.... hall of famer he might be borderline I dont know but he has all those rings..... That's the only thing that really matter to this guy :cool:
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TheGreatOne
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Magic333
Jun 20 2005 09:44 PM
Is Horry a So called HALL OF FAMER? Really I mean he is good in all....... but he isnt the type of player to lead a team from start to finish..... I wish he was a hall of famer..... But I dont see it happening :no:

His, clutchness I agree on.... hall of famer he might be borderline I dont know but he has all those rings..... That's the only thing that really matter to this guy :cool:

K.C. Jones (9 seasons)
7.4 PPG
3.5 RPG
4.3 APG

Robert Horry (13 seasons)
7.5 PPG
5.0 RPG
2.3 APG

If K.C. Jones can ride Bill Russell's coattails to the Hall of Fame, why can't a clutch performer with six rings from THREE DIFFERENT CHAMPIONSHIP teams get himself there? Horry has now made more playoff three-pointers than Michael Jordan. He has made so many memorable shots that his legacy is now being considered as the "greatest role player ever". Without his contributions, it's reasonable to assume that his teams would not have won championships without him. He has proven himself time and time again. He should at least be on the ballot.
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MagicMadness
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While Horry's stats (and rings) are shaping up to being comparable to KC Jones', I don't think either of them should be in the Hall...

Championships are "team achivements", and I think the HOF should be reserved for players who accomplish great "individual achievements". Horry has been a great role player his entire career - great team player - but I don't think he has accomplished nearly enough statistically and/or award-wise to have his name and bust in the Hall of Fame.

Some of his playoff accomplishments are HOF-worthy, but Robert Horry himself should not be in the Hall.
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MAGICMANEVAN
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yeah he is not good enough. he just makes big shots to win games but he is not that good all-around. i think only superstars and awesomely great players should make it to the HOF.
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Drex22
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Horry is a great player in the playoffs, but durring the regular season he doesnt really do much.. overall I would rate him a average player, would I want him on my team?? Yeah, but only if I could sign him close to the deadline.. he doesnt really produce durring the season, and has lots of little girl type injuries..ALA Shaqs big toe...
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c4ac5
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everybody knows horry really only comes to play in the playoffs,gimme a break that's the only reason why he's on the spurs,cause popovich wanted a clutch shooter they could go to,the pistons probably want him on their team now,and i can't believe they were dumb enough to leave him open after all that sh*t he did when he was on the lakers,they deserved to lose for bein' stupid on d like that.
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gomagic33
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Mr. Anderson
Only elite teams would need Horry's services. Besides I don't think he is interested to sign with a team that has no chance to advance to the Finals.
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TheGreatOne
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MagicMadness
Jun 20 2005 10:23 PM
While Horry's stats (and rings) are shaping up to being comparable to KC Jones', I don't think either of them should be in the Hall...

Championships are "team achivements", and I think the HOF should be reserved for players who accomplish great "individual achievements". Horry has been a great role player his entire career - great team player - but I don't think he has accomplished nearly enough statistically and/or award-wise to have his name and bust in the Hall of Fame.

Some of his playoff accomplishments are HOF-worthy, but Robert Horry himself should not be in the Hall.

Whether or not he's earned it is debatable, but unless they change this nomination process I guess he won't even be considered. It's difficult enough for players that definitely deserve to get in the HOF.

The current system is appalling and American players are getting screwed, while guys like Drazen Dalipagic and Dino Meneghin get in while NBA legends like Dominique Wilkins, Bernard King, and Joe Dumars have to wait.

Sorry, didn't mean to stray too far off the subject with my rant. It's just that every time the HOF is mentioned.
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MagicMadness
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TheGreatOne
Jun 23 2005 11:24 AM
The current system is appalling and American players are getting screwed, while guys like Drazen Dalipagic and Dino Meneghin get in while NBA legends like Dominique Wilkins, Bernard King, and Joe Dumars have to wait.

You are absolutely right. I don't understand why the NBA doesn't just have their own hall of fame. The MLB and NFL both have one, why not the NBA? Instead we have guys like Jordan, Chamberlain, and Bird in the Hall next to guys most of us have never even heard of or care about.
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