Stephen Curry is the greatest 3-point shooter in NBA history. We knew this well before he started breaking records and winning championships, but now that he is in his 30s, he has accumulated enough volume to rewrite history books. The Golden State Warriors superstar did this in an important way by hitting his 2,561th 3-point chance in a game against the Utah Jazz, making Reggie Miller the second biggest in NBA history.
Here is a look at the photo that placed Curry in second place:
To put Curry’s domain in perspective, he is only 32 years old. Miller retired at 39, but has yet to accumulate enough 3’s to hold Curry. Miller never averaged more than 6.6 attempts at 3 points per game in a single season. Curry is currently in the process of overcoming it for the ninth consecutive season. He hit 98 points out of 3 points in the 2014-15 playoffs alone, exactly the same as Miller did throughout his second NBA season. Curry may be playing in an era more conducive to his gifts, but his numbers are still off the charts.
The next on the Curry line is the all-time leader of the NBA in 3-point shooting, Ray Allen. In his Hall of Fame career, Allen scored 2,973 points out of 3 points, placing him more than 400 points ahead of Curry. In his career pace of 3.6 – 3’s per game, Curry should expect to overtake him sometime in the next season. At that point, he will be only 33 or 34 years old and will probably still have several years left in his career to increase leadership.
If he plays long enough, that record may never be broken, no matter how many future players of 3 play. Curry may have had an era advantage over Miller, but he overtook him so quickly because he is the greatest sniper in NBA history. We may never see another like Curry, and when all is said and done, the log books will reflect that.