Top 5 most improved 3-point shooters in the 2020-21 NBA season
The ability to efficiently land three-point shots is arguably the most coveted skill in today's NBA, as almost every team's offensive system is based on long-range shooting.
The evolution of the basketball game in the NBA has forced most players to develop a three-point shot. While some players do not have reliable three-point shooting skills, others have developed into great shooters.
Players that have improved their 3-point shooting in the current NBA campaign
Three-point shooting is essential in the NBA, and the stats clearly show it. The leader in three-point field goals made in the 2020-21 NBA season (Stephen Curry) has 324 threes made this year.
Only 10 years ago, the leader in three-point attempts had 516 attempts, while Curry has attempted 755 this year.
In this article, we take a look at five NBA snipers who have evolved and developed a great three-point shot.
#5 Reggie Jackson - LA Clippers
Reggie Jackson is playing in his 10th NBA season, and his career average from the three-point line is only 34.9%.
However, his trend behind the three-point line has been quite good in recent years. Jackson has made 43.8% (career-best) of his three-point field goals for the LA Clippers this year while averaging 4.1 threes per game.
Jackson shot 36.9% from the three-point line in the 2018-19 campaign and 39.3% in the 2019-20 season (though he did not qualify to be amongst the NBA leaders).
He has made 112 three-pointers this year, the third-highest tally of his NBA career.
#4 Marcus Morris - LA Clippers
Marcus Morris is currently second in the 2020-21 NBA season in terms of three-point field goal percentage at 47.5%. It is, by far, his best season from beyond the arc, and it is a lot better than his career average from three (37.8%).
Morris is in his 10th NBA season and made 36% of his three-point shots in the first eight years of his career. However, he has shown tremendous progress in the last two seasons.
The 31-year-old made 40.8% from the three-point line last year but has made only 31% since getting traded to the LA Clippers (19 games).
Morris has been excellent from the three-point line this season and has the third-highest tally of threes made in his career in a single season (134). He has attempted 282 three-pointers this year, the sixth-highest number of his career.
#3 Nikola Vucevic - Chicago Bulls
Nikola Vucevic has turned into one of the best big men in the NBA right now, and his offensive skills have evolved a lot.
Vucevic attempted only 101 threes in his first six seasons, while he has made 417 threes in his last four campaigns. He averages 36.2% from the three-point line in his career. After a difficult season in that area (33.9%) last year, Vucevic is posting a career-high 41.6% this year.
#2 Bobby Portis - Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks star Bobby Portis has provided several points off the bench in the 2020-21 NBA season, and a good number of those points have come from the three-point mark.
Portis, a 36% shooter from beyond the arc in his first five NBA seasons, is currently shooting 47% from the three-point line, averaging 2.4 attempts per game. He is a qualified shooter at the moment, with 70 threes made in the year, and ranks third in the NBA, behind Brooklyn Nets' Joe Harris and LA Clippers' Marcus Morris.
#1 Nikola Jokic - Denver Nuggets
Nikola Jokic is surely the frontrunner for the 2020-21 NBA MVP award. He has been a complete player for the Denver Nuggets this year.
He is averaging 26.4 points, 10.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game this year while playing in each of their 68 games. He is also shooting 56.6% from the field and 86.3% from the free-throw mark.
Jokic has also evolved mightily from the three-point line this year. He is a 34.9 career shooter from three and only had one great season shooting the three-ball in the NBA, back in the 2017-18 season with a 39.6%.
In the last two seasons, Jokic shot 30.7% and 31.4% from three, respectively. However, he is at an amazing 40.2% this year, as he has made 92 of his 229 threes.
Also read: Top 5 active NBA players to have never recorded a triple-double