Horry was a topic of heated discussion at the ribble Compound in San Antonio way back in round one, my dad's position being that Horry was next to worthless in that all he did was make big threes at crucial times in big games, and my position being that he was a very particular sort of superstar for the same reason.
Horry's full playoff highlight reel would take longer to watch than many 12th mens' whole seasons. I heard an interview with Greg Popovich where he said that he played Horry during the regular season to keep his weight down, but he only dusted him off to really play in April.
"Big Shot Rob [Formerly Bob]" makes big shots, but it's not the only thing he does. Like all Spurs (at least, all the ones who've stuck around) he plays a very strong defensive game. He's a strong guy, and he's a veteran. He makes his rotations and plays the system with the best of them.
At 37, he's also one of the older players in the league, and I've heard speculation that this will be his last season. I'm never surprised when a veteran player settles in to San Antonio to play until the end of his career. My favorite-ever Spur, Avery "The Little General" Johnson, played for five+ teams before settling in for a total of eight seasons with the Spurs. San Antonio is a great place to settle down.
What's a little surprising, maybe even suspicious about Horry is how he keeps finding his way on to championship teams. There are championship-level teams every year, but only one gets a championship. Why does Horry choose championship teams? Why do they choose him? Doesn't it kind of make him a freeloader to always get on these championship teams and steal the glory with pressure shots, like how he never picks up his share of the check at a restaurant?
I heard an interview with Horry during the Suns series where he said the reason he could make big shots was that for him, it was just another shot. Horry has played long enough to know that life is about more than basketball - his friends and loved ones aren't going to abandon him if he misses some stupid shot - so he doesn't.
Over and over during the playoffs, I've heard announcers talk about how the Spurs are a veteran team that are not easily rattled. They can fall behind by seven, 12, 19 points, not panic, and rally for a win by the end of 48 minutes.
This is a carefully cultivated attitude. There are no showboaters on the Spurs team, which is why so few people talk about them.
I remember way back when Dennis Rodman got traded off the Spurs, back when he was making the transition from incredible rebounder to potential surreal life cast member. It probably cost us a couple of championship - we needed those rebounds - but he couldn't be a part of the kind of championship franchise that coach Gregg Popovich wanted to build.
Result: a stable, reliable, friendly, veteran, unselfish and championship team that is going to be a factor in this league long past the Duncan era.
Making big shots isn't just about aiming and delivering, it's about having the balls to put a ball up with a championship on the line. Horry's biggest asset is being able to play a solid game and make big shots, but his biggest strength is being able to recognize a good thing when it comes around.
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