The three-point line made its debut in the NBA during the 1979-80 season, with Brian Taylor becoming the first player to win the 3-point shooting contest, making 90 shots from beyond the arc in a single season. Fast forward to the 2023-24 season, Stephen Curry has set the bar higher with a record 357 three-pointers.
Here are the players who have topped the NBA in three-point shooting across multiple seasons:
Stephen Curry: 8 Titles
Stephen Curry has led the league in three-point shooting an unprecedented eight times, currently holding the record for the most career three-pointers made with 3,747. He also leads in playoff three-pointers, having made 618. In playoff games, Curry averages 4.2 made threes with a shooting percentage of 39.7%. His highest single-game performance for three-pointers is 13, which he achieved on November 7, 2016, during a victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. Widely recognized as the greatest shooter of all time, Curry is also a two-time Kia MVP and four-time NBA champion. Throughout his career, he has made ten All-Star appearances, led the league in scoring twice, and topped assist charts once.
In his back-to-back MVP seasons of 2015 and 2016, Curry averaged 26.9 points with a shooting percentage of 49.6%, hitting 4.3 three-pointers per game at 44.9%, alongside a free throw percentage of 91.0%. He contributed with averages of 7.2 assists, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.1 steals in 33.4 minutes. Now entering his 16th season with the Golden State Warriors, Curry was selected by the team as the seventh overall pick in the 2009 draft.
James Harden: 3 Titles
James Harden clinched the three-point title in three consecutive seasons from 2017 to 2020, making a total of 942 three-pointers during this period while shooting at 36.3%. He was awarded the Kia MVP during the first year of that stretch, and led the league in total free throws made in all three seasons. In the latter years, Harden also topped the scoring charts. His time with the Houston Rockets, which spanned nine seasons, saw him average 29.6 points with a shooting percentage of 44.3% while making 3.3 threes per game at 36.3% and hitting 86.2% from the free-throw line. He has averages of 7.7 assists, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.8 steals in 37.0 minutes per game.
Harden is a ten-time All-Star and has also led the NBA in assists twice. He began his career with the Oklahoma City Thunder, spent nine years in Houston, and has since played for the Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers, and is now starting his second season with the LA Clippers. He was the third overall pick in the 2009 draft.
Ray Allen: 3 Titles
Ray Allen, a Hall of Fame guard, is celebrated as one of the most outstanding shooters in NBA history while also being a versatile scorer at his peak. He led the NBA in three-pointers made in the 2002, 2003, and 2006 seasons, representing both the Milwaukee Bucks and the Seattle SuperSonics. During those years, Allen made four All-Star selections, averaging 23.3 points on a shooting percentage of 44.4%, along with an average of 3.0 three-pointers per game at 39.9%. His overall averages included 4.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 38.2 minutes of play. Allen finished his career with a 40.0% three-point shooting average and is a two-time champion, winning with the Boston Celtics in 2008 and the Miami Heat in 2013. He shot 40.1% from beyond the arc in his 171 playoff appearances.
Other players who have led the NBA in three-pointers made twice include: