Pretty much everything we have done in the past few years has benefited us; however, we made a SERIOUS mistake when we traded Robert Horry. During the past few years (ok ten years!) I have realized that Horry was most definitely the SECOND best player on the team during the championship years. Welcome to the Hall of Fame Robert Horry, another championship can only cement your place in the hall. MAW P.S. The dunk during this past year's NBA Final's may have been your best since the Knicks NBA Finals in '94.
Barkley is a hall of famer, a superstar, and an MVP. If you can get 4 years of Barkley to pair with Olajuwan, whose time is running short, and Drexler who is also aging, you do it, especially for a role player that barely tries until the playoffs and a shoot first backup point guard. Even considering the career that Sam ended up having, that was still a good trade. The only other reasonable way to go would have been to trade Hakeem and Drexler and start a youth movement, but then you are building your team around Horry and Cassell, and that would not be pretty. You have to try to build a championship team, not constantly have a good team that can't get over the hump.
I love Robert as much as anyone else... but Hall of Fame? A role player for sure.. but more like good luck charm. and second best player during the championship years? I don't know about that... what about Kenny Smith, Drexler, even Sam? hell even Otis the first championship season. I did remember all those crazy dunks tho.. I think he is definitely under appreciated in that regard. He looked a lot leaner back then.. he kinda looks chunky to me now.
I like Horry too, but he would have been obsolete once Hakeem retired. What has Horry done without a Hall of Fame big man (Hakeem, Shaq, Duncan)?
I think Horry is probably the first role player that anyone has ever talked about in terms of making the HOF. That alone is a major accomplishment. Whether or not it is possible is another story. The voters would need to change their thinking like the HOF did for closers. Tough sell. But Horry is comong close to that breaking point. If he hit another big shot they'd have a hard time keeping his ass out. At the veyr least he should have a little section in the Hall devoted to the role player.
I would think it's more about trading Cassell. Although he's more of a burden now, what did trading him lead to? let's see some of the PG's we've had Matt Maloney Brent Price Bryce Drew Cassell > the 3 above mentioned combined.
you could say that, but I'm one to believe if he weren't there, someone else would have been in his place...to make more impact in the game than just the end. And if they make more impact during the other 47 minutes and someodd seconds, then maybe they woudln't need a "big shot" to win. BUT...can't take it away from him. And I did think he was more of a player in his rocket days than after.
Funny how time alters history. Fact: Robert and Sam were crucial in the two championships. If memory serves, Horry was 2nd in Finals MVP voting, and was regarded even higher than Drexler because of the way he stepped up to fill the PF void. In the 96 season, Horry and Cassell (IMO, and many others' at the time) became somewhat complacent as two-time champs and faced criticism about their level of effort and focus during the regular season. I believe this was about the time that Horry openly admitted to not enjoying the game and only played it for the opportunity to make millions (I would do the same thing, personally). There was talk about a trade at the deadline, but nothing happened. The team was still intact that spring and made it into the postseason, seemed flat, and was swept by the Sonics. It looked as if the team nucleus had gone as far as it could and was losing ground to the rest of the league, especially with the return of Jordan. That offseason, the Rockets pulled the trigger on the trade. Personally, I feel that the Rockets would have been better off trading for Barkley in Feb rather than waiting. Unfortunately, that would have been almost impossible to do, since we'd have a massive roster void and only scrap heap FAs to bring in. I feel this was a case of Horry (and Sam) needing a change of scenery to grow up. Both were falling into the habit of joking around on the bench during blowout loses. I would note that neither one of them lasted with the Suns for long. Horry's immaturity was showcased with his incident with Ainge. Several teams later, Sam evolved from a me-first sparkplug and became a top tier point guard. Horry likewise became a more professional playoff assassin and the top clutch guy around in spring. However, it should be noted that Horry has NEVER averaged more than 7.8 PPG since leaving Houston (averaged 10.5/game). Would that have kept us afloat when Dream's body broke down? Evan
Yes, a bad night in shooting. However, the real problem was in COACHING!!!!!!! No effective offensive strategy or leadership from JVG!
I'm not hating on JVG, but I tend to agree. JVG may be a fantastic defensive coach, but his understanding of efficient and effective offense is seriously lacking.
