by Micah Hart
Finally, a game-winner! There have been many fantastic plays in the first few weeks of this NBA season and several buzzer-beating miracles, but until last night we hadn’t seen a game-winning buzzer beater, which I think we can all agree is the greatest thing in the world ever ever (unless you are rooting for the losing team).
Any time there is a game-winning buzzer-beater (GWBB from now on), we will examine its bonafides in the categories of difficulty, game situation (was the team tied or behind at the time), importance (playoff game or garden-variety Clippers-Nets game), and celebration, and give it an overall grade on a scale of 1-5 Robert Horrys. After all, who else but Big Shot Bob could judge the merits of that most devastating play in basketball?
Let’s go to the videotape for last night’s GWBB, brought to you by Memphis’ 80-million dollar man, Rudy Gay.
Difficulty: I gotta give Gay pretty high marks here. First, he had to dribble around half the Miami defense in about four seconds. Second, one of the best defenders in the game, LeBron James, is draped all over him. Thirdly, the baseline fadeaway gives Gay no angle for error; the bank is closed for him on this one. All in all, a really impressive shot.
Situation: The game was tied at 95-95, so there’s no real penalty for a miss here.
Importance: It’s early in the season, but it’s safe to say that as of now, any win over the Heat carries a touch of import.
Celebration: The Grizzlies didn’t go too crazy, but Gay hitting the shot right in front of the Heat bench and then giving them a little look afterwards was a nice touch.
Grade: Four Horrys. This is about as good as it gets – there may not be another game-winner in LeBron’s face the rest of his career. But given how early in the season it is and the fact that the game was tied, four seems about the right number.
What say you?
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Catch up on every single game-winning buzzer beater during the season and see how it rates on the Horry Scale.
Good job to Rudy definitely a great clutch shot but I think the refs made a mistake that gave them the chance.! Come on, look at Z foul Gasol by basically grabing and shake him till he loses the ball. How obvious do you need to be? They wont call that foul but will call all those small touch fouls the whole game?
Oh my god. “4 Horrys”. That made me laugh so hard. Awesome article, great game winner by Rudy over LeBron’s hand in his face. THAT’S the way to redeem yourself after losing the ball in the last seconds and letting them tie the game. Sink a GW J.
Great Article, I would like to see all game winners rated against this criteria.
Do i need to remind that Carmelo Anthony hit a gamewinner vs lebron last year and Kobe Bryant has also hit some, so I dont think it will be the last game winner over Lebron. Im a heat fan, but that was a great game winner, if Wade would’ve played the heat would’ve won though. Nice game winner Rudy Gay.
Whether Wade played or not, the heat shoud have beat this team! What happened to all the hype at the beginning of the season surrounding this team. Now it seems when they lose people just make excuses for this team. Ive said all along, three players wont carry this team to a championship. Changes will be made before this team wins a chip, may take a few years, if ever.
Those three players arent going to have to carry the team. Udonis Haslem, eddie house, and mike miller will all step up later in the season once the big 3 get a better idea how to play together. Plus the overall team defense is championship looking. This team has stellar defense and offense pretty much whenever they want it. No ones making excuses for them everything just has to be looked at in perspective. I agree its going to take A LOT to beat LA and the other heavy weights, but to say that this team is years away from a championship after a dozen games is inaccurate at best.
HEATNEEDHELP i having totally agree with you people got all excited over having arguably one of the best 3 players in the NBA it will take them a while to get their momentum going.
They lost because udonis haslem got out and that d wade was out
Defense was horrible. Bosh and James scored double figures. Dwyane wade would have done double figures to, so we would have won from ther. Dwade awsome crossover ever
I agreee,,.They thought if they got all these players they would be unstoppable..well guess what..D-wade was stopped with injury and the Heat was stopped by Rudy Gay’s game winning shot!! In your face LEBRON!!!
You didnt understand the sentence. “This is about as good as it gets – there may not be another game-winner in LeBron’s face the rest of his (Rudy Gay’s) career.” Not Lebron’s career.
@Rodriguez Well Haslem is out indefinitely so i guess the Heat season is over then huh?? ALL THEM PLAYERS ON THAT TEAM..IF ONE OR TWO PPL GET HURT, IT SHOULDN’T HURT THEM AS MUCH AS IT HAS!!! PLEASE!!
Great shoot indeed! But had James jumped off the right foot, he could have blocked that shoot, (or maybe make a foul, I agree) and send it in the fifth raw
But anyway, great win for Memphis !
I meant the left foot sorry
screw dunks. i want that as a poster.
ya soooooooooooon in ur eye lebron *traitor* james u suck
Well, if you are rating him against Robert Horry’s performances,
base off of the situation:
1) Game tie (no real consequence)
2) plenty of time to get a shot off
3) inside the arc
I would give Rudy a 3 here.
A five would be Lakers v. Kings.
1) Lakers down by 2
2) 18 secs on clock, but Rob got the ball probably with 1-2 secs
3) 3 pointer for the win
Also it was during the conference playoffs finals against the second best team in the NBA
it probably would’ve gotten 5 stars if it was against the lakers, or the celtics.
4 stars because it’s against the MIA, the antagonist of the season, and against LBJ the main antagonist of the season.
I give it 3 horrys for difficulty, but overall I have to say Gay only hit that shot because of the Heat’s stupidity. They had a foul to give and plenty of opprtunities to use it, but aparently they learned nothing since they lost against the celtics in last seasons playoffs in the same exact situation.
hey man i disagree rudy gay is pretty sweet.
I wonder whether Lebron thought even for a second, “what should I do?”
4 Horrys is well deserved. Nothing more intimidating than James in your face. Gay was overly confident in the interview when he said he didn’t care who was guarding him at all.
Anyhoo…
Maybe if James just chased him down rather than faced him up, he might just have had a better chance of blocking that shot. STATS DON’T LIE!!!
Woah, that was pretty cool. I’d give it a 3. It’s good, but the conditions of the game aren’t as extreme as ‘nba’ has stated. Still it’s impressive to get the shot off with .01 on the clock and over LBJ.
Given the fact that the greatest “GWBB” I have ever witnessed is the Derek Fisher 0.4 seconds shot against San Antonio and it clearly gets 5 Horrys, I suppose the 4 Horrys grading is too generous…. I mean if that gets 4 Horrys then what does Kobe Bryant’s 3pt shot against the Heat get? and if it gets a 5 then what does Derek Fisher’s shot get?
Heat has one foul give (what happened to the couching of Heat?)
Good shot Rudy! He deserves a win…
rudy gay is a monster, killer shot. Just killer
I have seen better but, still, very good job too Rudy for making the buzzer beater shot for the win against Miami Heat. I still don’t understand that the ref’s for that game did not call a foul for the shake that Zydrunas Ilgauskas did to Marc Gasol on that last possession on that exciting moment. If the ref’s called that foul then Miami Heat would’ve won. Things got to happen and that happen was Rudy Gay making the buzzer beater shot for his team to win the game.
i would have given it 3Horrys. First the game was tied, no instant loss if Gay missed. Second, it’s not a playoff game it doesn’t really matter much this early. And last, it was against the heat, Against a team that is all-hype. Though i would agree that if Wade played, miami would have won.
its doesn’t matter whether its a playoff games or not……the bottom line miami loose again…….w/ memphis …..
Wow! that was a great fade away shot by rudy g. i hope the grizzlies make the playoffs
great shot by a great player…..I gave it 4 Horry’s only b/c the game was tied….but true….it doesn’t get any better than that…Lebron was all in Rudy’s grill and he still managed to get it over him.
I think LeBron cannot carry the team without D-Wade. Unlike in Cleveland, he’s the main man and just what THE MIZ (WWE) told at WWE Survivor Series 2010, LeBron will not win a championship and he is Dwayne Wade “LITTLE” side-kick “literally LITTLE”.. He should go back to Cleveland and apologize to each and everyone of the Cleveland Cavalier fans
4 Horry’s for Rudy because he’s Gay.
AHAHAHA RIGHT IN LEBROADS FACE!!!!!! THAT GIVES IT AN EXTRA HORRY RIGHT THERE, SINCE IT WAS LBJ!
LBJ – ” WHAT SHOULD I DO?”
GAY – “TRY AND STOP ME!!!”
Very “Kobe-esque” if u ask me. Props to Rudy Gay for this shot.
whoooooo.. how sure are you the Miami would have won the game if the refs would have called a foul on Z on that last possession? or if Wade would have played that game? come on guys, ACCEPT IT, MIAMI LOSE!!
this team will be lucky to win 48 games, Lebust’s true colors are coming through. I can’t believe all the experts across the board from ESPN to my neighbor down the street predicted with such conviction that this heat team would win more than 70 games. Just remember not to believe anything u hear or read from Chis broussard and youll be fine most of the time. I can’t wait for the mid season melt down and conflict of egos between Wade and James and also between house and jones which is a funny battle of its own, the battle of the 6th man who can shoot a three the second they touch ball. the heat are all smoke and mirrors . GG coach Spo…… ROFL LOL
Lebron is an okay defender, not one of the best in the league. Wade is leaps and bounds ahead of him in perimeter D anyway
Why there are so many Miami Haters here?? Let’s face it, I may be a Miami fan but it’s just a mere fact that every team in the NBA can lose to a underdog team.. Great example is the Miami-Memphis game.. Common gays, I mean guys.. Move on LeBron’s gone and went to Miami so stop whining all over and over again freaks..
The Miami Heat are losing waaaay too much with the talent behind the team. I agree that 3 people, no matter how good they are, can’t solely carry a team, however, with the talent Miami’s 3 posess, they should be doing better. They still don’t kno when to be selfish, and when to pass. Also, with the loss of Miller and Haslem, the Heat are a pretty mediocre team. And when you have 3 amazing players and a bunch of old and average players, your not gonna be a championship caliber team.
Wade has been playing pretty crappy, you kno why? Because he has 2 other amazing players. Last nights game against the Magic, when Lebron and Bosh were on the bench, wade put up some points when prior to that he was like 1/12 or w/e. This team has potential to be unstoppable, but with the lackluster supporting cast (now especially iwth the loss of miller and haslem), and a pretty douchey and inexperienced coach, they will not win a championship any time soon. They need to completely revamp there roster and coaching staff. They are a BIG work in process, and once the works done, they will win a ring or two, but as im seeing them now, they’re just team with 3 amazing players and no chemistry.
this is my opinion, im not gonna claim im right and im god, cuz who the hell am i? im just a guy posting on a thread with nothing better to do.