Ever since Stephen Curry became the greatest shooter on the planet, NBA teams have fallen in love with the three ball. Analytics have sent the NBA into an even more drastic change, practically eliminating the mid range. Why would you shoot a 2 pointer when you can shoot a 3? The analytics say even if you hit 35% of your threes it’s better than shooting a mid range. The Boston Celtics won an NBA championship with this 3s only style in 2024. But when the shots aren’t falling it can be incredibly ugly to watch.
This season however the teams at the top of the NBA in threes attempted per game, are not fairing very successfully. Out of the 8 teams remaining in the NBA playoffs, only the Cavaliers rank in the top 12 in threes attempted, and they may be facing elimination soon. The teams with the most success this season have typically not been overly 3 happy. Here’s where every team left ranked in threes.
CLE 7th 39.7 3PA
OKC 13th 37.9 3PA
NYK 14th 37.7 3PA
SAS 16th 37.5 3PA
MIN 18th 36.6 3PA
PHI 21st 35.1 3PA
LAL 24th 32.4 3PA
DET 29th 30.8 3PA
Perhaps with the three point heavy teams losing early, we may see a shift back to taking high percentage looks even if it is only for 2 points.
