Who are the top five players who have scored the most three pointers in a game?
Remember, before Stephen Curry made the three-point shot part of the lexicon, some of the greatest NBA players never really relied on shooting from beyond the arc.
Michael Jordan hit 581 3-point shots throughout his legendary 15-year career. His single-season high was matched two times with a mere 111 successful 3-pointers.
During his career, Larry Bird was considered the best long-range shooter in the NBA. What was his single-season high? Ninety. Yeah, 90!
Also read: NBA 2022-23 season schedule.
Most three pointers in a game:
Below lies a list of the top five players who’ve scored the most three pointers in a game.
Donyell Marshall: 12
It’s not that Marshall wasn’t a big name coming out of Connecticut back in 1994. He was the No. 4 overall pick of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have the career of those selected immediately ahead of him (Glenn Robinson, Jason Kidd and Grant Hill).
But for at least one game, Marshall stood above the rest. As a member of the Toronto Raptors during the 2005-06 season, Marshall nailed 12-of-19 3-pointers against the Philadelphia 76ers.
The crazy thing here is that it came off the bench for a team that included Chris Bosh and Jalen Rose. It also came against a 76ers squd that featured Allen Iverson and Andre Iguodala.
For his career, Marshall connected on 902 3-point attempts. That’s good for 168th in league history — sandwiched in between Rasual Butler and Jared Dudley. Yeah, we have to love the randomness of Donyell Marshall.
Kobe Bryant: 12
The Black Mamba was a living bucket during his all-time geat career. The then-Seattle Sonics found that it out back on January 7, 2003, in Los Angeles.
Not necessarily known for his 3-point shot during that stage in his career, the late-great Bryant absolutely torched Gary Payton and Co. by hitting on 12-of-18 from 3-point range. That broke the previous record for the most 3-pointers in a game — held by Dennis Scott.
Three years later, and Bryant would score 81 points in a game against the Toronto Raptors — bringing up memories of the great Wilt Chamberlain in the process. Interestingly enough, he hit only seven 3-pointers in that game.
Despite his status as an all-time great, Bryant’s single-season high for 3-pointers was 180 back in 2005-06. That’s tied for 208th overall in league history.
Also read: Top 5: Performances by LeBron James
Zach Lavine: 13
When LaVine entered the NBA as a first-round pick of the Minnesota Timberwolves back in 2014, most saw him as a mere athlete. The former Slam Dunk Contest winner was never going to morph into an elite-level player.
That changed when the UCLA product was dealt from Minnesota to Chicago in the now-infamous Jimmy Butler trade ahead of the 2017-18 season.
In his third full season with Chicago, LaVine averaged a career-best 25.5 points per game. He also shot 38% from 3-point range. One particular moment comes to mind in LaVine’s ascension to superstardom.
Taking on the Charlotte Hornets back in November of 2019, LaVine tied Curry for the second-most 3-pointers in a game. He nailed on 13-of-17 from distance, scoring 49 points in the process. What’s crazy here is the fact that LaVine played less than 35 minutes.
Stephen Curry: 13
Two years before Thompson broke the record for the most 3-pointers in a game, the most-lethal 3-point shooter in NBA history topped the charts. It’s no surprise given that Curry now boasts the record for the current NBA 3-point record in his career.
This specific game came against the New Orleans Pelicans on November 7, 2016. It also came in Oakland’s Oracle Arena, sending Warriors fans into a frenzy.
Curry would hit on 13-of-17 from 3-point range en route to scoring 46 points. That 77% mark from distance is just insane. The rest of Golden State’s roster, Thompson and Kevin Durant included, were a combined 3-of-18 from distance. Golden State needed it all in a 10-point win against Anthony Davis and the Pels.
Also read: Top 5: Performances by Stephen Curry
Klay Thompson: 14
It was back on October 29 of 2018 that Klay Thompson lit the Windy City on fire. Taking on the Bulls, this Golden State Warriors star nailed 10 3-pointers in the first half alone. It’s a game that saw Golden State lead by the score of 92-50 at the half.
It’s astonishing. Thompson didn’t have much of a chance to add to his total in the second half with Golden State up by a ton. With that said, he was able to hit four more in the second half to best teammate Klay Thompson for the most 3’s in a game.
All said, Thompson connected on 18-of-29 from the field. That included a 14-of-24 mark from distance en route to scoring 52 points. Amazingly, this is not the signature moment of the three-time NBA champion’s career.
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