In the history of the NBA, Shaquille O’Neal has solidified his legacy as the most dominant player of all time. However, despite his prowess as a potent force in and around the paint, the 7ft 1″ icon had a major weakness in his gameplay. The New Jersey-born often struggled to score from mid-range and subsequently long-range, prompting the opposition to exploit that shortcoming of his.
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Accordingly, his three-point shooting has remained a key area of interest amongst NBA fans. Acknowledging the question marks over his shooting stats, we delve deep to dissect the seemingly underwhelming aspect of his journey.
Q. How Many 3s Has Shaq Made in His NBA Career?
Throughout his 19-year-long NBA career, Diesel only made one of his three-point attempts count. During his fourth year with the Orlando Magic, the center shot from behind the arc in the first quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks on February 16, 1996. The ball bounced off the backboard before passing through the net, marking the sole outlier of his career.
Q. How Many 3s Did Shaq Attempt in His NBA Career?
In his entire career, Shaq attempted 22 three-pointers with 11 of them taking place during his first four years in the NBA with the Magic. During his following eight years with the Los Angeles Lakers, the big man tried a total of 9 times from behind the arc. The remaining two occurred during the twilight of his career with one attempt each while representing the Phoenix Suns and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Q. Which Team Did Shaq Make His Three-pointer Against?
The Big Aristotle made his only ever three-pointer during a 121-91 home win against the Milwaukee Bucks on February 16, 1996. With two seconds left in the first quarter, the former Magic center received a pass from Joe Wolf well beyond the arc. After dribbling to control the ball, Shaq opted to take a deep three right before the buzzer sounded, signaling the end of the first quarter.
Interestingly, the basketball bounced off the glass to enter the net as the home crowd erupted to celebrate the unanticipated shot. The effort put the hosts in a comfortable 15-point lead by the end of the quarter as they refused to let the momentum go for the rest of the clash.
Q. How Many Three-pointers Did Shaquille O’Neal Make In College?
During his college days, the 51-year-old reportedly did not attempt a single three-pointer. His three years with the LSU Tigers men’s basketball team depended entirely on his dominance within the arc. Hence, all of his 1289 field goal attempts in college consisted of two-pointers.
Q. What Was Shaq’s Career Free Throw Percentage?
Alongside the three-pointers, his ability to score free throws remained a source of concern for his teams. During his 19 years in the NBA, Shaq averaged a free throw percentage of merely 52.7%. This makes him the fifth-worst free-throw shooter in the history of the league, marking a forgettable aspect of his display.
Q. How Many Free Throws Had Shaq Missed In His Career?
Diesel had to shoot a total of 11,252 free throws in his entire NBA journey. Amongst those, the 4x champion has made 5,935 of his efforts count, while missing 5,317 of such attempts. The 2000/01 season remains a particular highlight in this regard. After all, the 15x All-Star recorded his season-high free throws made (499) and missed (473) in that campaign.
These instances reveal the underwhelming aspects of his gameplay while shedding light on the recurring problems he faced. Despite failing to conquer these obstacles, the center earned the status of a Hall of Famer later on. This further puts into perspective the necessity of mastering only a handful of skill sets to retire as a legend of the sport.
