As early as now, many believe that Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic will end up as one of the game's all-time greats. At 26 years of age, Luka has accomplished more than most have in their entire NBA careers and set many records. Doncic is also racking up accolades at an incredible rate.
However, according to former Lakers forward Robert Horry , as great as the Slovenian is, he will never crack the sport's Mount Rushmore because of one significant flaw in his game.
"No, Luka would never make that," said Horry when asked if Doncic would be a Top 5 player when his career is over. "I love Luka's game because I'm old school. 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."
Doncic is one of the best players in the NBA today. Although he's not yet won an MVP award, he made the All-NBA First Team in five consecutive seasons before injuries prevented him from making a sixth the last time out. However, if there is a knack in Luka's game, it's his defense, whether it's a lack of ability, effort, or both.
According to Horry, playing hoops is different from football, where you have one team for offense and another unit for defense. In basketball, players have to play on both sides of the ball. And if one can't play on one end of the floor, there's no way he's going to make it to the top of the all-time list because the names who are in that conversation stood out as two-way players.
"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 Mount Rushmore, when you can do it on both ends of the floor," he added.
Another former Laker and Horry's teammate on the 2002 Purple & Gold championship team, Samaki Walker, also recently called out Doncic for saying that the NBA lacks physicality. Samaki said Luka mocked the game for making such a comment because he does not even play defense.
"Look, man, the guy is a basketball savant," Walker said of Doncic. "He's special. He's a one-of-a-kind player. We know — real basketball players know and real fans of basketball know that, look, it's a two-way sport. It's offense, defense. You know what I'm saying? And I personally feel — and I love Luka offensively — but I feel like over the couple of years, he disrespected the NBA because I follow him. He goes back to Europe and talks about how soft the NBA is, yet he don't play no defense. You know what I'm saying? So, yeah, I take that personal."
Many Lakers fans believe that with his offseason body transformation, Doncic will be able to play the defense we did not see from him when he was out of shape. However, as Samaki and several Luka critics say, it's not just about the ability to play defense but, more importantly, the willingness to defend. That question will be answered in a couple of months when the NBA's 2025-26 season begins.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 29, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
