The Los Angeles Lakers entered on Friday with the third best percentage of 3 points in the NBA and were strong on the outside once again in the 112-95 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans, reaching 15 3s at the Staples Center.
LeBron James was responsible for two of them, going 2 in 6 from the bottom, which caused his percentage in the season to drop slightly to 38.2% – what would be the second best 3-point shot in his 18-year career he must maintain -over there.
Earlier this week, Lakers coach Frank Vogel said James was “probably the best sniper on our team”, which begs the question: does James agree with his coach?
“I mean, we have a lot of excellent snipers on the team, man,” said James. “KCP [Kentavious Caldwell-Pope], a great sniper. Wes Matthews, great sniper. Kuz [Kyle Kuzma] can shoot hard out of the ball. Dennis the Menace [Dennis Schroder] you can throw the ball. ADS [Anthony Davis] you can throw the ball. So, we have a lot of great knock-down snipers.
“Obviously, if someone says ‘Bet’, then obviously you know, I’ll make up my mind. That’s just the competitive nature in me and the work ethic I put in my attempt. But I feel really good about my kick now, both the free-throw line and the 3-point line, and I want to continue with that ”.
Davis, who raised his 3-point mark from 33% in his first season in LA to 39.4% by going to the Pelicans game, put James a little lower.
“I would say that Kenny is always our guy, that we always look for pictures,” said Davis, referring to Caldwell-Pope. “Wes is still struggling to find his consistent 3. He’s getting open eyes, but I still put Wes there. I put Bron in third, just because of this year he was able to kick the ball extremely well. Marc [Gasol] you can shoot him. Marc is up there. And then I put myself. Dudz [Jared Dudley]. B.C [Alex Caruso]. “
For those who score at home, there are nine 3-point snipers rehearsed by the Lakers’ co-captains – and it doesn’t even include guys like Quinn Cook and Markieff Morris, who live beyond the arch when they’re in The Court.
Caldwell-Pope, who threw 4 out of 6 on 3 on Friday and overtook Metta World Peace for ninth place on the Lakers’ all-time franchise list, was not ready to crown James as the team’s 3rd to aim the shot king, as long as he is involved.
“The numbers don’t lie,” he said, referring to the top 55.3% of the career he has shot in 3 so far this season. “But I’m really enjoying LeBron kicking the ball. He’s shooting with incredible speed. He’s taking them down and it’s fun to see him [success] shooting the ball too. But we all know, I’m the real sniper, for sure. “
He may have a legitimate claim there, but, as Davis pointed out, everyone also knows that James gets certain privileges that Caldwell-Pope will never see.
“You know that LeBron will always be up there because he shoots a ton of them, especially when he gets hot, and starts shooting in the half court and things like that,” said Davis. “I don’t think the coach will allow Kenny to do that.”