4 NBA players to average 25 PPG on 50-40-90 shooting in a season
The NBA has been the standard for basketball around the world for decades. Featuring some of the best to ever play the game going head to head against each other, the NBA truly is "where amazing happens."
With every sport having its own string of legendary players and performances, there are certain accolades achieved only by a select few.
The 50-40-90 club is an exclusive group of players who finish a season shooting over 50% from the field, 40% from beyond the arc and 90% from the free throw line.
While this feat has only been accomplished nine times throughout NBA history, the list gets even shorter when taking the points per game (PPG) statistic into account.
Bearing that in mind, here is a list of the four NBA players to average 50-40-90 through a season while averaging 25 PPG.
#1 Kevin Durant
Kevin Durant is widely regarded as one of the greatest offensive players of all time. With an endless arsenal of moves in his bag, Durant is one of the few players who can be called unguardable.
Possessed with the athletic ability and ball handling skills of a point guard, Durant finds a way to get to his spot on the floor with immaculate head fakes and hesitation dribbles.
What truly makes him an elite offensive player is his ability to shoot. With a long wingspan, Durant uses his length and hesitation moves to create space and take virtually uncontested jumpshots from either mid-range or beyond the arc. As an offensive force, Durant is lethal from any distance.
In the 2012-2013 season, Kevin Durant joined the NBA's exclusive 50-40-90 club. He averaged 28.1 PPG on 51% from the field, 41.6% from beyond the arc and 90.5% from the free throw line. Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder ended the regular season at the top of the Western Conference table with a record of 60-22.
#2 Kyrie Irving
Kyrie Irving is one of the best point guards in the NBA right now. Irving plays for the Brooklyn Nets alongside a talented cast of Kevin Durant and James Harden. By the end of the 2020-2021 season, Irving had become the most recent member of the 50-40-90 club while averaging 25 PPG.
Boasting one of the best handles in the league and being an elite finisher at the rim, Kyrie Irving is one of the most difficult players to guard. His ability to create space between himself and defenders off the dribble allows him to get open looks at the basket.
Recovering from injuries in the 2019-2020 season and dealing with more injuries during the last one, Irving averaged 26.9 PPG on 50.6% from the field, 40.2% from beyond the arc and 92.2% from the free throw line. His performance last season helped in securing a position among the NBA's all-time greats.
#3 Stephen Curry
Stephen Curry is widely regarded as the greatest shooter of all time. Having put on shooting displays and being the catalyst for change in the way the game is played, Curry is truly the face of modern basketball.
Putting pressure on defenses the moment he steps into the opponent's half speaks volumes for the offensive threat Curry and the Golden State Warriors have become in the NBA.
Curry's ability to shoot the ball tends to overshadow other aspects of his game. From his ball handling ability to his ability to pass the rock, Curry has it all in his bag. His ability to play off the ball is a large part of why he finds himself in positions to get those "layup" like three-point shots up.
Curry and the Warriors made NBA history during the 2015-2016 season. While Curry did join 50-40-90 club and won the NBA's first unanimous MVP award, he and the Warriors also went on to have the best regular season record of all time at 73-9.
For the 2015-2016 season, Curry averaged 30.1 PPG on 50.4% from the field, 45.4% from three point territory and 90.8% from the charity stripe.
#4 Larry Bird
![Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics in action [Image: Twitter/NBATV]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/08/2071e-16295527900146-800.jpg)
Larry Bird played for the Boston Celtics from 1979-1992. Bird is considered one of the greatest players of all time. He was named one of the NBA's 50 greatest players of all time in 1996 as part of the NBA's 50th anniversary.
Bird was listed at six feet and nine inches playing at the forward position. He was an ordinary athlete, but what made him great was his ability to play the game.
Larry Bird had a genius level basketball IQ and was a dead-eye shooter with amazing leadership skills and mental toughness. With performances that sound like hyperbole, Larry Bird would put on displays of offensive dominance at will.
Bird averaged 28.1 PPG on 52.5% from the field, 40% from beyond the arc and 91% from the free throw line in the 1986-1987 NBA season. In the following season he improved on his own numbers and averaged 29.9 PPG on 52.7% from the field, 41.4% from downtown and 91.6% from the free throw line.
Putting up 50-40-90 is no easy feat. Larry Bird, doing it for consecutive seasons, truly establishes his position as one of the greatest to ever play the game.