Patrick Beverley: LeBron James is also to blame for NBA’s volume of threes

“Too many damn threes are being launched. So it’s a broader conversation than just about the All-Star Game,” LeBron James told the press recently, when asked about the current state of the NBA. Days before, NBA Commissioner had said that the league was looking into the saturated volume of shots taken from beyond the arc. 

Despite the fact that the all-time NBA scoring leader positioned himself against this trend of long-range shooting, some believe that he is also responsible for it. Former NBA star Patrick Beverley, who is known for not bitting his tongue, bluntly blamed the 39-year-old.

“The NBA decline happened under your tenure,” Pat responded to LeBron’s remarks about this overabundance of attempts from beyond the arc.

Most threes made in Lakers history:

1,827 — Kobe Bryant
848 — LEBRON JAMES
846 — Derek Fisher pic.twitter.com/dvZplOPApF

— BronMuse (@BronMuse) December 24, 2024

This is why commissioner Adam Silver said that the organization is looking into this trend and how to control it. As many fans and experts have been criticizing this fact, he said that teams are beginning to copy each other and follow the same style of play in order to win.

“The answer is yes, [we are having] many discussions about the style of basketball [being played],” Silver said in Las Vegas before the NBA Cup Final. “I would not reduce it to a so-called 3-point shooting issue. I think we look more holistically at the skill level on the floor, the diversity of offense, the fan reception to the game, all of the above.”

This trend simply cannot be ignored by the NBA, but Silver made it clear that any change to the game is not likely to happen soon. However, the league is already considering which kinds of modifications could take the sport to a healthier place.

“Historically, at times, we’ve moved the 3-point line,” the commissioner said. “I don’t think that’s a solution here because then, I think when we look at both the game and the data, I think that may not necessarily do more midrange jumpers, if that’s what people want, but more clogging under the basket.”

Boston’s Payton Pritchard guaranteed recently that his team will keep shooting from threes because they’re ‘the best’ at it

It seems like most of the league is agreeing on the fact that the basketball sport is changing before our eyes and shooting from afar has turned into the best strategy to win a game. If you don’t believe me, you can just take a look at the Celtics, as the reigning champions are currently leading the season with most shots from range.

Boston’s own Payton Pritchard doesn’t see a problem with it, despite criticism from pundits and fans. The team’s sixth-man star was asked this weekend about his feelings towards all the talk surrounding this situation, and he only conceded to the fact that some teams shouldn’t take so many shots from range, except his own team, of course.

I feel like some teams should maybe not take as many threes but those teams should not be us,” Pritchard told the Boston media. “We’re the best at doing it. Why would we change?”

The Massachusetts club is the most frequent at these attempts, leading the NBA with a historically prolific 51.3 attempts per contest. However, it’s not only about shooting, it is also about precision, as the Celtics 18.8 made threes per game are the most converted this year, at 36.7%.