Getty Lakers star LeBron James
Lakers star LeBron James has never been known for his perimeter shooting. Who could ever forget when Gregg Popovich’s Spurs dared him to shoot by building a wall during the 2007 NBA Finals? Or when James was goaded into taking jump shots by the Mavericks in the 2011 NBA Finals?
James’ scoring prowess has always come from his ability to drive to the basket and finish with either hand. But his recent resurgence as a jump shooter has been nothing short of remarkable. During the 2023-24 season, James, 39, became the oldest player in NBA history to shoot over 40 percent from the three-point line.
LeBron James is the oldest player in NBA history to have a season shooting 40%+ 3PT.
“The King” broke the previous record set by Ray Allen, who shot 45 percent from deep as a 36-year-old in the 2011-12 season.
While Allen was known for his sharpshooting, nobody could have foreseen such numbers from James. A career 35 percent three-point shooter, James shot a mediocre 32 percent from deep in 2023-23, a year after making 36 percent of his threes. The only previous time he crossed the 40 percent threshold was in the 2012-13 season, but that was when he attempted only 3.3 threes per game. He’s now a volume shooter.
To put things in perspective, James shot better from three in the 2023-24 season than Stephen Curry, who’s universally regarded as the greatest shooter ever.
LeBron James finished this season with a higher 3PT% than Steph Curry.
41.0% — LeBron James
40.8% — Stephen Curry
We are going to start a dialogue 👀.
LeBron James Explains the Turnaround
James’ shooting resurgence was on display during the Lakers’ 116-112 win over the Clippers on Feb. 28. The game saw James outscoring the Clippers (19 to 16) by himself in the fourth quarter as he drained a season-high seven three-pointers.
After one of the best shooting displays of his life, James didn’t have a specific answer regarding his late career emergence as a sniper. But his answer hinted that the legendary player never stopped believing in his shooting form.
“It’s just a feeling when you feel like everything you put up is going in,” James told reporters, via ESPN. “I just kept it consistent, I wasn’t taking ill-advised shots. I stayed in the [flow] of the offense. My teammates did a great job continuing to find me. … It’s just a zone. Can’t really describe it. But you wish you could stay in it forever.”
James cited his being healthy as another reason for the turnaround. The Lakers forward played 71 games in the 2023-24 season after three injury-riddled years.
“I’ve been able to be on the floor a lot more during non-game days,” James said recently. “My foot has felt a lot better. I didn’t have much time to really rep a lot last year because I couldn’t be on the floor running around or put much pounding on the floor with my foot. I’ve had a lot of opportunities to get on the floor.”
Now that the regular season is officially done, what was your favorite Lakers moment? I’ll go first.
LeBron James and Records Galore
James becoming the most efficient 39-year-old sniper in NBA history is impressive. But that’s one among many records he set in his 21st season.
For starters, James averaged the most points (25.7) by the oldest player in the league since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (23.4) in the 1985-86 season.
Furthermore, James became the first player to average 25 points per game for 20 consecutive seasons, the oldest to lead the league in fourth-quarter scoring, and the first player in NBA history to reach the milestone of 40,000 points.
Most field goals made in the 4th quarter this season:
197 — LeBron James
192 — De’Aaron Fox
177 — DeMar DeRozan
172 — Giannis Antetokounmpo
169 — Kevin Durant
168 — Jalen Williams
166 — Stephen Curry
164 — Jalen Brunson
155 — Paul George
Oldest player in the association.
That’s not all.
James surpassed Michael Jordan for most career 30-point games and became the first player in history to average 25+ points and 8+ assists at 50/40 shooting splits.
Oh, and he became the oldest player ever to log 25 points and 15 assists in a game. Guess who was the youngest? A 20-year-old James in 2005.
LeBron James is the youngest & oldest player in NBA history to record 25+ PTS & 15+ AST.
1/26/2005 4/14/2024
20 Y/O 39 Y/O
Only player in NBA History with this career stat line 👑
