On Monday, Lakers forward LeBron James reached yet another milestone. He moved past former Sacramento Kings forward (and the Kings’ current director of player personnel) Peja Stojakovic to become No.18 on the career three-pointers list. James finished Monday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs with four three-pointers, which gives him a total of 1,761 career three-pointers. The next player James must catch is Rashard Lewis, who has 26 more than James. So, there is a good chance that James will pass Lewis at some point as well.
James passing Stojakovic against the Spurs has a bit of irony. He became 18th in career three-pointers against the team he credits for improving his jump shot. After the game, James spoke on the Spurs and their impact on his shooting.
LeBron James passed Peja Stojakovic with 1,761 3-pointers (Photo by AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
“I just want to be able to not have any weaknesses, you know, and allow a defense to dictate what I do,” James told Spectrum Sports after the game. “Because of the Spurs, in a lot of my early years, [they are] part of the reason why my jump shot is a lot better today.”
James is no stranger to the Spurs, as his first NBA Finals appearance was against San Antonio. The Cleveland Cavaliers reached the Finals, but the Spurs swept them to win the championship. James took the lesson (and experience) from his series with the Spurs, and it helped him become a shooter. He went on to thank them for their scheme.
“My first Finals appearance in ’07, they went under on everything, and I didn’t shoot the ball,” James said. “I wasn’t comfortable with shooting the ball at that point in time in my career. So I give a lot of thanks to their scheme, a lot of thanks to a lot of other teams that I went against.”
Early in his career, James shot nearly 33 percent from deep. Now, he shots around 36 percent. In his career overall, James shoots 34.4 percent from 3-point range. While he isn’t necessarily a “threat” from deep, he can knock it down when needed.
Featured Image courtesy of David Butler II/USA Today Sports
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