Big-shot Rob talks about Robert Horry
By David Aldridge
The Philadelphia Inquirer
PHILADELPHIA - When Magic Johnson was playing, a reporter asked him once what he'd be doing if he were, say, 5-foot-9 instead of 6-9. Johnson's answer was revealing: He said he'd probably be next to his father on the assembly line at the General Motors plant in Detroit.
We love questions - and answers - like that. Which got us to wondering recently about another call and response involving the Spurs' Robert Horry.
Horry is a six-time NBA champion - that's right, he's got six rings, as many as Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen won, more than Larry Bird and Magic. And not only has he never missed the playoffs in 13 seasons, each of his teams has won at least one round every year.
His career features a half-dozen of the top clutch shots anyone has hit in the playoffs, from his Game 3 Finals killer against the Sixers in 2001, to his Western Conference finals-saving buzzer-beater in Game 4 for the Lakers in 2003, to his Finals-changing dagger in Auburn Hills, Mich., for San Antonio in 2005 against the Pistons.
But when he was asked last season if he'd rather have his sparkling career as a winning role player, or one in which he was "the man," a guy who put up numbers - but for a team that never won anything - Horry, remarkably, chose the latter.
And he still feels that way.
"That means you established yourself," the 36-year-old Horry said recently. "You did work. It's a sense of self. Not that I've had a bad career. But you think about it. Twenty, 10 years down the line, nobody's going to know me. But people are always going to remember Charles (Barkley), Patrick (Ewing), Dream (Hakeem Olajuwon) - well, Dream won a championship, but all these (other) guys that didn't win a championship, (like) Karl Malone. These guys are major players.
"I think it boils down to being great. Everybody wants to be great. And all those guys were great. You'd rather be a great player than just an OK player who won a bunch of championships."
The Horry Question is a Rorschach test for NBA players. It gives you a great sense of how they view themselves.
Said Heat forward Antoine Walker: "It's definitely a hard decision. Everyone wants to be a Hall of Fame player in this league. ... I enjoyed my time in Boston taking big shots, game-winning shots. But when you get to this stage in your career, you want to do more than get out of the first round, out of the second round."
"At this point in my career right now, I'd say (being) a role player," Mavericks guard Devin Harris said. "Learning how to win and learning how to win as a team, you have to look at that as valuable information for later on in your career."
Said veteran forward Keith Van Horn, who is sitting out this season: "I would definitely want the championships. To have an opportunity to win, that's why you play the game. You play the game to get your team to win. If I want to play an individual sport, I would play tennis."
For his part, Horry - who's deciding whether this will be his last season - knows he's been more than just a lucky guy along for the ride. You don't make all those big shots if you don't have steel in your spine and you're not smart enough to be in the right place at the right time.
Yet, he still deflects credit.
"All the shots I made, I had to depend on somebody else," he said. "You look at what Jordan did, what Reggie Miller did. You know those guys were going to get the ball, and they still got the shot off and were successful. Even though you had people (say), `Don't leave, Rob,' that's different. You've got something creating, and (his) guy comes by, and your instinct is to help."
When he does retire, and five years go by, it will be interesting to see how many people think Horry's career is Hall of Fame-worthy.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercu...s/15990047.htm
nice article misty
though i have one question here:
who among these players feel fulfillment after they retire?"I think it boils down to being great. Everybody wants to be great. And all those guys were great. You'd rather be a great player than just an OK player who won a bunch of championships."
_ great players w/o a championship
_ok players who wears a championship ring?
I think most people would agree that Horry is more than an "OK player", he's being extremely modest here.
Bandwagoner.....
Horry is real honest, that's why his interviews are interesting. I think almost all guys would choose the big reputation over team success. Those other players are just giving us the same old PC tripe.
I think that part of the response depends on the basketball environment within which you learned the game. Many non-American players learn to value the team accomplishment over the individual accolades at an early age. It is part of why some people simply do not understand what it means to some players to play for their country and to try to win that world championship with their national team.
Horry may have had all the tools to be 'great' EXCEPT the drive to get there.
He's been dogged throughout his career with a reputation for having all the physical ability and skills to make it big--but never did. He always seems to coast through the year without really making any big effort on a nightly basis.
Horry saves himself for the post-season because his body is just not built to play big minutes throughout an entire season. He's got bad knees, right-shoulder problems, back problems and occasionally neck spasms, we saw in 2003 what happens when he plays too many minutes during the regular season - there's just nothing left there during the post-season.
Also keep in mind that this guy has played 14 years, making it at least to the second round every single season - that's a lot of extra games and a lot of wear and tear on a body.
People that have dogged RoHo for not having the work ethic or desire to play big are those who don't really know him.
BTW - if you look at his regular season/post-season averages over his career, they aren't actually all that different.
When Horry retires he will be remembered as one of the great players because he is not just a player of a winning team but an important contributor as well, such as...
-playing for Houston
-Lakers win over Sacramento
-Spurs' win over Detroit in 2005
It is not about the minutes he plays but the fact that he puts forth little effort while he is out there. He is just floating around and jacking up the occasional shot and not really working at all. This flip the switch for the play-offs has been very unsuccessful the past 4 seasons for Rob. Spurs fans give him a pass because of what he did in 2005, but he was awful against the Lakers in 2004 and downright useless in 2006.
I guess when you've won 6 championships, they stop feeling special.
You think he'll get his jersey retired?
It's a classic case of someone always wanting what they don't have. You're some ordinary guy? You want to be famous. A celebrity who's name is in commercials and rakes in millions per year? You'll say you'd give it all up to be "ordinary."
It would be a shame if Horry's name was not included in the Hall of Fame. While he may just be a "role player," I don't think there are many teams and fans who don't know exactly who Robert Horry is. He may be a role player, but Horry's role is one very few, if any, players have ever been assigned: He wins championships with a single shot.
Once is a fluke. Twice is luck. Three times and you might be able to stick it on the refs. But six championships? Countless game-winners and buzzer-beaters? That's not just luck. That's not just playing your role.
That's being a legend.
And I think Horry would much rather be a legend than just some star.
Horry is the ultimate role player. He does all the little things, hits all the big shots, and plays[ed] excellent defense. The mere fact he wasnt the go to guy and yet hit all those huge shots should say something about what his teammates have always thought of him.
When playing in Houston, he was on his to being an all-star ; he was playing at his natural position, small forward ; he did it all : dunks, steals, blocks, threes, he was just amazing
He is an underrated defender too, because playing out of position after leaving the Rockets wasn't the best situation for him : ask a natural SF to play D on guys like Karl Malone and Tim Duncan, not an easy task
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