The Beloved Three-pointer

Sloopjohnb wrote:"There is no logical reason for anyone to shoot that far away from the basket. "

I think there is in as much as long range shooting has improved dramatically due to the three pointer.  It used to be that a guy hitting about 30% of his threes would be considered an excellent three point shooter  Now there are three point shooters who hit in the mid to high 40's.

Yes, exactly. Earlier in this thread, I posted a link to a Grantland article that discusses the efficiency of the 3-pt shot and the possible consequences of extending the line. I will post it again so people won't need to find my earlier post. It is here:

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/is-it-time-to-move-the-nba-3-point-line-back/

The 2007-08 Celtic team that had a 66-16 record benefited greatly from the 3 point shot that year. The team took a total of 6286 shots of which 1564 were 3 pointers ( 24.9% ). 4 players accounted for 89.1 % of those shots. And did they light it up from downtown. Allen .398, Pierce .392, House .393, Posey .380. Just wondering how many Celtic fans were critical of the 3 point shot that glorious year.
By the way, this past season the Spurs did quite well from 3 point land also. 25.7 % of their total shots were from 3 point land.

swish

In the mid-nineties, the NBA shortened the three point distance by nearly two feet.  Within three years, it had reverted to its original figure.  I'm sure that making the distance even greater will dramatically increase the aesthetic beauty of the shot, as we will then be able to witness a plethora of graceful clangers.  Perhaps statistics will be introduced to categorize the clanging styles: parabolas, line drives, 10 points for three-pointers stuck between the rim and the backboard, etc., etc., zzzzzzzzzzzzzz........

At some point in the near-future, I expect the NBA to tap into a previously unutilized source of players.  Shotputters!!!!!  See him dip.  Watch the grace with which he "puts" the ball.  Actually, there's no such thing as putting the shot.  One heaves the shot.  And it isn't a shot.  It's a metal ball.  I like to call it "air bocce."

You think the new Celtics uniforms are a little strange?  Wait until all players are dressed in polka dot onesies, ruffled collars, floppy shoes, and big red noses overlooking lipstick-tattoed mouths.

Reports remain unconfirmed that Dr. James Naismith foresaw this lunacy and requested that, sometime around 2020, he be included in a Mars probe and left there.

Sam

swish wrote:bob

No 3 point fga's in 70-71 and attempts dropped from 109.4 to 98.0. Only 2  3 point attempts per team per game in 80-81 and attempts dropped to  88.4

swish

Swish,

That's 2 years out of how many?  Sounds more like identification of anomalies and outliers than of a trend.  My father used to say "the exception proves the rule".  What he was saying is "if something is accurate except for the rare exception, then it is generally reliable".



bob



.

bob

I just used the the first year of each decade. Check for yourself for all the years.

Here's all the data that you need to check out All THE YEARS.  Start in 1959 and compare the fga's versus points scored and you'll see that the trend of the points closely follows the path of the fga's.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_stats.html?redir

swish

"Sloop,

Although I think Pitino is among the top 20 or so greatest coaches the game of basketball has ever known, I have to agree with your statement there.

I always thought Obie was underrated and underappreciated too.  He and Harter found a way to utilize what they had with that '01 - '02 club, even though it was far from loaded with top talent. They saw the three could really add some scoring punch, and they had players who could at least do an adequate job of taking the shot. At the same time they got that group to buy into a defensive mentality. Great coaching job.

Regards"

I was a big O'Brien fan as well.  Too bad it didn't work out for him with the Pacers. With the job Dick Harter did to revive the defense you can see why Bird wanted him as an assistant in Indiana.

Pitino absolutely knows his stuff but he impaled himself on his own ego in Boston.

Sloopjohnb wrote:"Sloop,

Although I think Pitino is among the top 20 or so greatest coaches the game of basketball has ever known, I have to agree with your statement there.

I always thought Obie was underrated and underappreciated too.  He and Harter found a way to utilize what they had with that '01 - '02 club, even though it was far from loaded with top talent. They saw the three could really add some scoring punch, and they had players who could at least do an adequate job of taking the shot. At the same time they got that group to buy into a defensive mentality. Great coaching job.

Regards"

I was a big O'Brien fan as well.  Too bad it didn't work out for him with the Pacers.  With the job Dick Harter did to revive the defense you can see why  Bird wanted him as an assistant in Indiana.

Pitino absolutely knows his stuff but he impaled himself on his own ego in Boston.

Well said.

I think ultimately, the Boston fiasco and a couple of personal missteps taught Pitino the humility he needed.  As odd as it seems, his wipeout in Boston probably made him rethink things and helped him take the next step to the elite level where he is now. A little humble pie can go a long way.

As a lifetime Providence College fan I caught Pitino early in his career at providence. Great coach, Great recruiter, but in my opinion, a B S artist when it came to leveling with his players and the general public. Would have been a great SNAKE OIL salesman.

swish

As for the 3.... at least we don't have a red, white, and blue ball.

earlier someone mentioned that in the "old" days teams tented to take shots much more earlier in the shot clock. Like at the first good look.

Just to expand on that with this thought. If you pass up a good look from 15 feet with 15+ seconds on the clock. Few bad things can happen if you don't take it..such as a turnover, rushed shot, or terrible shot, or no shot at all. Personally I'll take my chances on a wide open look from 15 feet anytime, even if Rondo is launching it.

beat

beat

Reliance on 3 point shooting as a main cog of your offense is just bad. It's not reliable. You need to have a diversified attack. I disagree with Brad's notion that everyone should be taking threes. I'd only have a few players taking them on a regular basis.


KJ

Outside, I'm not sure what you mean about my distaste for the three coloring my opinion on the subject. Of course it colors my opinion on the subject. Why wouldn't it? I think you're really commenting on the reasons for my distaste for the three. I've clearly stated that I believe it adds an element of laziness to the game and can gum up the rhythms and flow of the game (which are incredibly important to me).

As a rule, where the Celtics rank in given statistic proves nothing to me because that's as much a function of the performances of other teams as it is an indicator of the Celtics' performance. Aside from W/L percentage at the end of the season, if I measured the performance of the Celtics, using other teams as a barometer, I'd have committed suicide long ago because the Celts have never had a league scoring champion.

Since before the beginning of the season, there has been a plethora of stories about how Brad wants to feature the three and how he has counseled his bigs to emphasize the three as a major part of their games. To me, that is an directional indicator of his intent that transcends statistics relative to other teams.

But, if you want a stat, here's one. This season, the Celtics are virtually tied for sixth worst in the league in terms of the number of missed threes per game. I don't really call continued emphasis on threes being very responsive to results (or lack of them).

Sam