Former Los Angeles Lakers forward Robert Horry commented on Luka Doncic. Doncic has been the target of criticism ever since he joined the NBA in 2018. Regarding the Slovenian star’s performance, effort, and even physical conditioning, remarks have been made. This time, Horry added to the criticism by highlighting his lack of defensive versatility.
Doncic isn’t the best defender when he’s playing. However, he makes up for it with his incredible offensive game. Still, experts, fans and critics pay attention to how he performs on the defensive end. Horry is no different, as he talked about the five-time All-Star’s defense.
Horry’s comments came when he was talking about the league’s Mount Rushmore. Usually, four all-time greats are mentioned, comparable to the memorial that features former presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.
Although Horry recognizes the greatness of Doncic offensively, his lack of defensive value is what’s keeping him from adding the five-time All-NBA to the NBA’s Mount Rushmore. The seven-time champion talked about it during his recent appearance at “The Travis and D’Marco Show.”
“Luka would never make that,” he said. “You got to be able to play defense for me. I love Luka’s game, but when you look at guys like MJ, Kobe, Olajuwon, Duncan, LeBron, Kareem. All these guys, to me, played on both ends of the court. That’s basketball. Think about Kobe and MJ, they were great on the defensive end. That’s why they are considered the best of all time. Look at LeBron: He was great on the defensive end. That’s why you jump into that upper echelon, that Mt. Rushmore, when you can do it on both ends of the floor.”
This might motivate the Los Angeles Lakers player to keep getting better and focus on his defense.
Dallas Mavericks’ owner jokes about Luka Doncic not succeeding with the Los Angeles Lakers
Doncic is expected to start his first full regular season with the Los Angeles Lakers in October. His former team, on the other hand, has a different direction with the No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg
Ahead of his career with the Lakers, Dallas Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban joked that he wished the 6-foot-6 guard didn’t achieve success with his new team.
“Off the court, I love Luka to death, but on the court, f**k him. I don’t want him to get hurt or anything, but the Lakers have the same color as my High School, and I threw my high school gear away,” said Cuban on Gil’s Arena. “I’m gonna hope [the Lakers] go 0-82. I love Luka to death; he’s a great guy. He’s a good guy, but f**k the Lakers.”
The Lakers have championship aspirations with Doncic at the center of the team. But since LeBron James is his only co-star, it could take a while until LA is considered a true contender.
For other sports-related content:
Follow me on X at @BarbecueBro, and follow us at @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Reign Amurao via email at reignamuraonba@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
