Lakers Players

Robert Horry

Robert Horry (born August 25, 1970) is an American NBA basketball player recognized as one of the greatest clutch shooters in modern NBA history. He is currently playing for the San Antonio Spurs, and has won six NBA Championships in his career. His several clutch performances, many being timely three pointers, in the playoffs have earned him the nickname "Big Shot Rob" or "Big Shot Bob."

Horry was born in Hartford, Maryland but grew up in Andalusia, Alabama.

As a senior at Andalusia High School, he won the Naismith Alabama High School Player of the Year award. He attended the University of Alabama (where he was a teammate of fellow future NBA star Latrell Sprewell) on an athletic scholarship, and was drafted to play in the National Basketball Association after graduating.

Horry was selected 11th overall in the 1992 NBA Draft by the Houston Rockets as a six-foot-ten small forward. In his rookie season, he averaged 10.1 points per game. He spent his first four NBA seasons with the Rockets, helping them win the NBA Championship in 1994 and 1995, and setting an individual NBA Finals record with five 3-pointers in a quarter.

Horry nearly never won a title in Houston. In February 1994, he and Matt Bullard were traded to the Detroit Pistons for Sean Elliott, but Elliott failed a physical because of kidney problems, and the trade was rescinded before Horry could ever play for Detroit. During the 2005 NBA Finals, where Horry played against Detroit, he said that the trade falling through probably saved his career.

On August 19, 1996, Horry was traded to the Phoenix Suns. Before finishing a complete season, he had feuded with coach Danny Ainge, was suspended and subsequently traded to the Los Angeles Lakers on January 10, 1997. Horry was a member of the Lakers when they won three consecutive NBA championships (2000, 2001, and 2002), and he earned a reputation for coming up with clutch playoff baskets when the Lakers needed them most.

Over the Lakers' three-year run, Horry made a game-clinching three-pointer in at least one game in four straight playoff series (starting with the 2001 NBA Finals), but perhaps none more important than in game 4 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals against the Sacramento Kings. Trailing two games to one in the series, and facing game 5 at Sacramento, the Lakers looked bad early, and were down by as many as 24 points in the first half. The Lakers fought hard and got back in the game, but were still down 99-97 with 11 seconds to play. On the final possession, Horry's teammates Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal frantically missed two consecutive layups, making it appear as though the Lakers would lose the game and go down 3-1 heading to Sacremento. The ball, however, somehow found its way into Horry's hand, who fluidly caught and shot the ball in one motion, sending it through as time expired for a 100-99 Lakers' victory. There is little doubt that the shot saved the Lakers' season, as they would otherwise have been down 3-1 in the series against a very tough Sacramento team, with 2 of the remaining 3 games to be played at Sacramento. The Lakers would go on to win the series in 7 games, and would sweep the New Jersey Nets 4-0 in the NBA Finals.

In the 2003 playoffs, his Lakers were on a verge of winning their fourth straight championship. But in Game 5 in the semifinals against the Spurs, Horry's chance for another game-winner rattled in-and-out wiping out the Lakers' rally from a 25-point deficit. The Lakers lost the series in six games and were eliminated.

Following the 2002-03 season, Horry became a free agent. Citing concerns over family, all of whom live in Houston, Horry signed as a free agent with the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. In game 5 of the 2005 NBA Finals against the Detroit Pistons, Horry came alive in the fourth quarter to boost San Antonio to a win and 3-2 series lead over Detroit. After not scoring at all until a last-second three in the third quarter, he capped a stunning 21-point performance by making another shot that confirmed his legacy. Horry found the ball in his hands again with nine seconds remaining in overtime and promptly drained his fifth three-pointer of the night for a Spurs' one-point victory. Horry shot 13-27 from behind the arc for the series' first 6 games, and sank 7 of 12 shots, including 5-6 from behind the arc, in game 5. He scored 21 of San Antonio's final 35 points in that classic contest. The Spurs would go on to win the series in 7 games, winning their third NBA Championship in 7 seasons, and giving Horry his sixth ring.

He is second on the all-time list of three-pointers made in the playoffs, behind only Reggie Miller. He also holds the record for three pointers all-time in the NBA Finals, passing up Michael Jordan's previous record of 42, and finished 2005 with 53 career Finals 3-pointers.

Despite the fact that Robert Horry has only averaged 7.5 points per game and 5.0 rebounds per game in his career, many believe that he deserves to become a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame due to his clutch shooting in the playoffs; this debate is still ongoing and will likely not be decided until after he has retired.

Horry collected his sixth championship as a member of the Spurs in 2005. That year he joined John Salley as the only players to win NBA rings with three different teams. He has also won two titles with the Rockets and three with the Lakers. Horry has also played in more NBA playoff games than any player except Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, having passed Scottie Pippen for 2nd place during the 2006 NBA playoffs. He joined Abdul-Jabbar, Jordan and Pippen as the only non-Boston Celtics to be on six championship teams.

He holds an individual NBA Playoffs record for most three-point field goals made in a game without a miss (7), against the Utah Jazz in Game 2 of the 1997 Western Conference Semifinals.

Horry has been married to Keva since 1997. They have two children, Robert and Ashlyn. Ashlyn is seriously disabled, missing part of her 1st chromosome, meaning she may never speak or walk unaided or discard her feeding tube. After retiring, Horry plans to stay in Houston, TX, where he has built a 14,000-square-foot home to meet her needs and values the unparalleled care the specialists in Houston can give her.

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