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The explosion in three-point taking pictures ushered in by Stephen Curry, alongside fellow splash bro Klay Thompson, has actually modified the sport everyone knows and love over the previous decade. As soon as Golden State proved that you could possibly win a championship taking part in largely on the perimeter offensively, all the league tried to observe go well with in duplicating that mannequin. Whereas nobody has been capable of do it fairly like Golden State, what it produced was a whole lot of guys jacking up threes all willy-nilly and setting new data at breakneck pace. All that stated, it’s completely wild to suppose that Draymond Inexperienced will go down in NBA historical past as a extra prolific three-point shooter than Larry Chicken.
Nope, that’s no typing error, Inexperienced has leaped over Larry Legend on the all-time three-pointers made record. With out context, that every one appears like the largest oxymoron in NBA historical past. However having performed his whole profession on this period the place all people jacks up threes at will, Inexperienced has surpassed a participant who’s thought-about one of many purest shooters ever to step on a basketball courtroom.
Chicken is considered one of solely two gamers to win The Affiliation’s annual three-point contest thrice. Former Chicago Bulls sharpshooter Craig Hodges is the opposite, however Chicken was so good at it, that he took the primary three contests the NBA ever held. The Boston Celtics nice additionally took dwelling three consecutive league MVP awards within the mid-Nineteen Eighties as nicely. There was simply one thing about Chicken and the No. 3.
Larry Legend was one of the feared shooters of the 80s and was identified for trash-talking opponents — calling his shot Babe Ruth fashion, then telling you about it afterward. However having performed in an period the place the additional you had been from the basket, the more serious that shot was thought-about, he’s change into considerably of a footnote, statistically, in lots of three-point taking pictures metrics. However if you return and watch Chicken, it’s straightforward to see why he was considered as such a menace from wherever on the courtroom.
None of that is meant to downplay Inexperienced as a result of, understanding his fashion, it should’ve come as a shock to most discovering out he’d made 650 (and counting) threes throughout his profession. For youthful followers who’ve solely heard Chicken’s identify talked about from time-to-time, extra context all the time helps. Makes an attempt per recreation inform a big a part of this story. Inexperienced has averaged 2.6 3-point makes an attempt per recreation up to now. Chicken didn’t even common two makes an attempt per recreation again within the day, ending his profession at 1.9.
It’s a case of two solely totally different eras, but it surely’s nonetheless loopy to see Inexperienced move Chicken on this record. The best way he’s taking pictures it this yr (over 43 p.c behind the arc), Inexperienced will move a number of extra shooters earlier than it’s all stated and finished. This takes nothing away from what Chicken completed, he simply got here alongside at a time when there was nonetheless an emphasis on getting high-percentage seems to be and never displaying your vary. Had Chicken come alongside a number of a long time later with such a wide-open recreation, there’s no telling the form of gaudy numbers he would’ve dropped on his ops.
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