Robert Horry: Hall of Famer?

My name is Ryan Day and I am not the diehard basketball fan who should be writing columns about basketball.

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love the last eight games of the NCAA season and March is closing in as my favorite month in all of sports. I can sit and marvel at the gymnastics players such as Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain would showcase on the courts. And I know that white people can't play basketball because instead of spreading out the talent, God messed up and put it all in Larry Bird.

So when a casual fan such as myself hears an argument during Game 6 of the Hornets/Spurs game between the announcers as to whether a certain Robert Horry should be inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame, my first reaction is:

"Robert who?"

A simple search brings up a man who averages just over 24 minutes a game for his career of 15 years. And in those 24 minutes, he manages just 7 points. Seven points a game and a career shooting percentage that hasn't been higher than 41% since 1999 doesn't scream "Hall of Fame." In fact, it doesn't even whisper it.

So then why is there a divide in the basketball community about a man who hasn't started 30 games in a season since Bill Clinton was in office?

Because as cliché as it sounds, it's not about stats. In the Hall of Fame, it's about ... well ... fame. And Horry's got enough of it to carry his name on the ballots of all the coaches, owners, and sports writers. Not only that, but his fame was garnered in the playoffs. When the lights were the brightest and the pressure was its highest, Horry played as well or better than most players who've been inducted in the last 20 years.

Aside from the 1960s Boston Celtics, Horry is the only player to have eight championship rings. Not only that, but in the Finals games to win those championships, Horry holds the record for most three-pointers with 53 and still counting. Second place? Michael Jordan. Not still counting.

In all of playoff history, Horry is second only to Reggie Miller in three-pointers made. Not Steve Kerr. Not Dennis Scott. And not Larry Bird. Robert Horry.

He ranks in the top 50 all-time of three-pointers, offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, and blocks per game in a playoff game.

He's played in more postseason games (239) than any other player, shooting 43% from the field. Michael Jordan? 179 games and 48%. Larry Bird? 164 and 47%. And those are arguably two of the best postseason players and shooters of all-time.

Adrian Dantley just recently got inducted into the Hall of Fame after retiring in 1991. What took him so long?

No doubt, not playing on an NBA championship team hurt his chances. Actually, Dantley's was a bit of a postseason failure and that left him vulnerable in the eyes of many of the voters. He was traded away from the one team that legitimately gave him a shot at a ring, the Detroit Pistons, in 1988.

What happened after the Pistons traded Dantley? They won back-to-back championships with Mark Aguirre, the player for whom he was acquired.

I think if Adrian Dantley, a player who played on only two teams that made it past the second round of the playoffs, then Robert Horry, his postseason accolades and his eight playoff game-winning shots should be invited to Springfield, Massachusetts, as well.