“Ego comes into play when you hear fans chant your name” - Robert Horry on why his clutch three-point shot against the Kings will always be his favorite

Los Angeles Lakers icon Robert Horry is known as one of the most clutch players in NBA history. A big reason why is his epic buzzer-beating three-pointer against the Sacramento Kings in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals in 2002. According to Horry, this shot remains his favorite one in his career 22 years later because it solidified his moniker, “Big Shot Bob.”

“ The big shot that I hit against the Sacramento Kings. Even though I really enjoyed what I did as a whole in 2005 against the [Detroit] Pistons in their building, the ego kinda comes into play when you hear fans chant your name in the building. After taking that shot against the Sacramento Kings, I think the fans chanted my name like for five or six straight minutes after that and a personal note, growing up a Laker fan and having that moment to make that shot wearing a Lakers uniform, so fantastic ,” Horry said during his visit in the Philippines.

More than just a buzzer-beating three-pointer

This game-winning shot by Horry will always be considered an iconic shot in Lakers franchise history because of how crucial it was. It happened in Game 4, when the Lakers were close to falling to a 1-3 series deficit. Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal had their own attempts to win the game as well, but both shots missed. The loose ball just so happened to roll in Horry’s direction, which led him to hit the dagger.

This was the same game where the Kings erupted for 40 points in the first quarter, building a 20-point lead. The Lakers spent most of the contest battling back, with Bryant and O’Neal leading the charge, scoring 25 and 27 points, respectively.

In addition to his game-winning shot, Horry contributed 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter. Remarkably, the Lakers only held the lead twice—at the very start of the game and after Horry’s buzzer-beater sealed the win.

Horry knew it was going in

The thing about Bob’s iconic game-winner was that he was confident it was going to swish through the net once he released it. He knew he was in rhythm during the fourth quarter, but he didn’t expect to take the final shot or for the loose ball to come his way. In that last possession, his focus was solely on Kob' and Shaq making their play.

“ The only thing going through my mind was I hope Kobe is able to beat Doug Christie off the dribble and get to the basket,” Horry recalled as published on NBA.com. “If not, we always had the big fella in Shaq to get the rebound .”

That’s exactly what happened, only for both superstars to miss their own opportunities. So when Los Angeles needed a hero, Horry answered the call.

“Oh, I knew it was good,” he said. “When you’re playing good, you’re feeling good, and you’re feeling hot, and you let it go and know it’s going to splish-splash.”

Who knows what would’ve happened if the forward’s shot didn’t go in? The Lakers most likely would’ve lost that series against the Kings. They wouldn’t have 17 championships now; O’Neal would’ve had just three titles, while Bryant would’ve had four. Most importantly, the purple and gold wouldn’t have a three-peat if it weren’t for Big Shot Bob’s contributions.

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