Lakers News: Horry Hated the Lakers When He Left in 2003

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If you were old enough to see and remember the Lakers winning three straight championships in the early 2000’s, then you probably love Robert Horry.

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The Lakers were led by Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, but those three banners hanging from Staples Center would not be there if it wasn’t for Horry. Big Shot Bob bailed the Lakers out several times, including the infamous buzzer beater that beat the Kings in Game 4 of the 2002 NBA Finals.

Laker fans will always love Robert Horry, but he didn’t feel the same about the purple and gold. After his contract was up, Horry was willing to take less money to stay with the Lakers, but they declined and ultimately mishandled the situation. In Horry’s piece with the Players’ Tribune, he explains why he left the Lakers bitter after winning three titles :

"Honestly, I left the Lakers with so much hatred for that team. I felt that the way they handled my situation was so wrong […]I’m a realist. Tell me like it is and I will respect you more, just don’t go behind my back. I told them I’d stay for $2 million, but they weren’t interested. All I asked them was to allow me to find a team before the money dried up and not to wait until the last day to release me. They told me, “We won’t do you like that.”Well, they didn’t do me like that. They waited until the next to last day to release me."

Obviously, Horry was not happy about being released when most of the free agent money had gone to other players. He was put in a bad situation because the Lakers were not upfront with him and that led to him building this hatred.

Horry deserved to be treated better and probably should have ended his career with the Lakers. However, he moved on and signed with the San Antonio Spurs and won another two championships with them. Could he have been the difference in 2003 when the Lakers lost to the Pistons in the Finals? It’s hard to say, but sadly we will never know

This is the unfortunate side of sports, but we must remember that ultimately this is business. In Horry’s case, he just wished it was handed differently.

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