Back in October 2018, Golden State Warriors legend Klay Thompson produced an incredible 54-point display against the Chicago Bulls, producing 14 3-pointers along the way. He ended up breaking the all-time record, which was once incredibly held by late LA Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant. Bryant, en route to a 45-point performance against the Seattle Supersonics in January 2003, returned with 12 3-pointers. He ended up breaking Dennis Scott’s 1996 record, which incredibly survived for almost 7 years.
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Bryant’s performance, in addition to stunning the league, also stunned his then-coach Phil Jackson, who claimed it was the greatest display of shooting he had ever seen.
“That was perhaps the greatest streak shooting I have ever seen in my life,” the legendary coach had proclaimed, according to a tweet by Ballislife.com.
Kobe had produced 45 points and converted 2/3rds of his overall 18 3-point attempts on the night. Interestingly enough, while Bryant himself broke a longstanding record, he could not hold it down for long.
Just two years later, in March 2005, Donyell Marshall ended up equalling it. Since then, a total of 5 other players have scored 12 3-pointers in a game, with Stephen Curry eventually producing 13, in 2016, according to StatMuse.
21 years ago today was a good day as the Lakers beat the SuperSonics and Kobe broke Dennis Scott’s 3PT record with 12 threes (9 straight)!
Phil Jackson: “That was perhaps the greatest streak shooting I have ever seen in my life.” pic.twitter.com/jcsdQOXlOU
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) January 7, 2024
As a matter of fact, since Bryant became the first to score 12, a total of 10 players have either equaled or surpassed that total, with Klay Thompson the only player to have done it thrice. His teammate and one-half of the Splash Brothers, Stephen Curry, has also managed to score at least 12 3-pointers 2 times in his career.
In what acts as a reading of an obvious overall NBA trend, the likes of Zach LaVine, Damian Lillard, and Keegan Murray have all scored at least 12 3-pointers in a game since Kobe managed the feat. With more and more fine shooters like Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum, etc. entering the league and showing their potential, Thompson might also not be able to hold the record for long.
Klay Thompson broke the record for highest 3-pointers in a game, but for how long?
If Phil Jackson was impressed with Kobe Bryant’s incredible display, Klay Thompson has the potential to do the same. Thompson produced an incredible 14 3-pointers in a 149-124 victory over the Chicago Bulls, back in October 2018, according to ESPN.
He had a total of 24 attempts on the night and has managed to keep hold of the record until now. However, considering the recent trend which has seen 10 players make at least 12 3-pointers since 2003, one cannot be certain about how long the record will continue to be safe.
The NBA has in recent years seen an incredible rise in 3-point shooting, due to obvious reasons. The rise of players such as Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry has led to teams recognizing the value of distance shooters, leading to a steady transformation that is only going to spread further in the coming time.
The NBA, in recent years, has registered a dramatic increase in overall 3-point attempts, with teams averaging 35.1 attempts in the 2023-24 season thus far. That number was at a paltry 14.7, back in the 2002-03 season, when Bryant broke the record, according to Basketball Reference.
And now, with Centers like Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren as well shooting 3s efficiently, it is safe to say that this trend will only rise in the future.
