From Way Downtown

Upon being asked why he shot so many three's, Antoine Walker responded: "Because there are no four's." (Sports Illustrated, August 2005, Adam Duerson.)

One of the most daring and challenging shots is the super long-range three pointer. Three's are already difficult at the NBA distance, and you don't get an extra point for shooting even further out, but there's something intimidating in seeing an opponent take a 30 foot jump shot and swish it. Using b-ref's play index, I tabulated all the super long shots from 2001 to 2013, including the playoffs, to determine who was truly the best at these absurd distances.

The 27 to 29 foot range is a more typical "from way downtown" range. Curry, not surprisingly, is king here, while another accurate sniper in Nash brings up second. Even though Curry is still a young guy, he has over 200 such attempts, so his range is definitely plus 27 feet. Villanueva is, however, surprising, as he's not known for high percentage shooting or deep range like JR Smith is. The list is populated either by precise snipers or guys known for bombing/chucking away. At the other end of the spectrum is Allen Iverson, who shot 16.3% on 245 attempts. This distance is definitely a problem for most shooters, as the average percentage over the 13 years was 29.4%.

Table 1: 27 to 29 foot shots, 2001-2013, >100 FGA

Player	FG	FGA	FG%	%Ast
Stephen Curry	87	208	41.8	52.9
Steve Nash	52	129	40.3	42.3
Charlie Villanueva	45	114	39.5	100.0
J.R. Smith	101	263	38.4	77.2
Mike Dunleavy	43	114	37.7	97.7
Brent Barry	47	125	37.6	85.1
Mike Miller	78	208	37.5	85.9
Ray Allen	105	287	36.6	79.0
Joe Johnson	129	353	36.5	72.1
Dirk Nowitzki	37	102	36.3	83.8
Jameer Nelson	38	107	35.5	63.2
Mike Bibby	114	326	35.0	91.2
Caron Butler	35	101	34.7	60.0
Eric Gordon	44	127	34.6	88.6
Vladimir Radmanovic	35	102	34.3	94.3
Brandon Jennings	44	129	34.1	56.8
Chris Paul	51	150	34.0	52.9
Deron Williams	36	106	34.0	47.2
Paul Pierce	70	208	33.7	82.9
Clifford Robinson	40	119	33.6	97.5
Chauncey Billups	124	370	33.5	54.0
Kyle Lowry	36	109	33.0	58.3
Rasheed Wallace	71	218	32.6	100.0
Aaron Brooks	37	114	32.5	73.0
Vince Carter	93	288	32.3	72.0
Tim Thomas	41	127	32.3	97.6
Jamal Crawford	82	255	32.2	67.1
Derek Fisher	54	168	32.1	79.6
Kyle Korver	55	172	32.0	90.9
Michael Redd	44	138	31.9	81.8
Antoine Walker	72	227	31.7	93.1
Peja Stojakovic	41	130	31.5	82.9
Rashard Lewis	40	127	31.5	80.0
Louis Williams	38	121	31.4	47.4
Gilbert Arenas	78	249	31.3	61.5
Ben Gordon	46	149	30.9	63.0
Jason Richardson	53	172	30.8	84.9
Al Harrington	38	124	30.6	100.0
Baron Davis	114	374	30.5	45.6
Mo Williams	52	172	30.2	69.2
Tracy McGrady	80	271	29.5	66.3
Rafer Alston	45	153	29.4	71.1
Stephen Jackson	55	187	29.4	74.5
Hedo Turkoglu	52	177	29.4	75.0
Antawn Jamison	35	120	29.2	100.0
LeBron James	64	220	29.1	40.6
Chris Duhon	43	148	29.1	72.1
Chucky Atkins	53	184	28.8	92.5
Kobe Bryant	168	585	28.7	69.6
Danny Granger	32	113	28.3	96.9
Nate Robinson	33	118	28.0	60.6
Quentin Richardson	47	169	27.8	89.4
Reggie Miller	30	109	27.5	83.3
Jason Williams	61	222	27.5	55.7
Dorell Wright	27	101	26.7	88.9
Metta World Peace	42	158	26.6	76.2
Andre Iguodala	30	114	26.3	53.3
Jason Terry	36	137	26.3	83.3
Stephon Marbury	41	157	26.1	39.0
Jerry Stackhouse	28	110	25.5	82.1
Kevin Durant	29	116	25.0	82.8
Lamar Odom	43	177	24.3	67.4
Lindsey Hunter	24	108	22.2	75.0
Monta Ellis	24	109	22.0	54.2
Jason Kidd	22	115	19.1	72.7
Allen Iverson	40	245	16.3	72.5

For shots 28 to 39 feet, certainly long enough to quality for deep three-point shooting but also excluding distances that are definitely "half-court desperation heave" length, Brent Barry appears to be the most accurate, although it's in limited attempts. (27 feet was excluded because of how popular it was; clearly it was still within the normal range of NBA shooting.) Mike Bibby, surprisingly, has taken a large sum of these shots while maintaining great efficiency. Some of the other names that are near the top of the leaderboard aren't surprising -- Mike Miller, Arenas, Joe Johnson, Vince Carter, and Stephen Curry. One notable guy, Antoine Walker, definitely takes a lot of deep three's but is (of course) not very accurate. Some other stars like James and Kobe like to heave long shots but have low percentages. Carmelo, for example, has taken 52 of these but only connected on 7.7%. But the award for worst shooting goes to former high school to pros point guard Telfair, who shot 30 of them and made zero.

Table 1: 28 to 39 foot shots, 2001-2013, >30 FGA

Player	FG	FGA	FG%	%Ast
Brent Barry	16	37	43.2	75.0
Mike Bibby	49	123	39.8	87.8
Jose Barea	13	33	39.4	69.2
Mike Miller	26	69	37.7	80.8
Gilbert Arenas	32	92	34.8	50.0
Joe Johnson	50	148	33.8	66.0
Nick Van Exel	10	31	32.3	40.0
Vince Carter	35	109	32.1	60.0
Marco Belinelli	12	38	31.6	75.0
Steve Nash	10	32	31.3	50.0
Ronald Murray	12	41	29.3	66.7
Louis Williams	16	55	29.1	37.5
Clifford Robinson	9	31	29.0	100.0
Dirk Nowitzki	10	35	28.6	70.0
Stephen Curry	13	46	28.3	53.8
Rasheed Wallace	11	39	28.2	90.9
Al Harrington	9	32	28.1	100.0
Kyle Korver	14	50	28.0	78.6
Lamar Odom	16	58	27.6	75.0
Jamal Crawford	33	120	27.5	57.6
Eric Gordon	11	40	27.5	100.0
Rafer Alston	11	40	27.5	100.0
Kyle Lowry	12	45	26.7	16.7
Aaron Brooks	13	49	26.5	76.9
Kevin Durant	9	34	26.5	77.8
DeShawn Stevenson	10	38	26.3	60.0
J.R. Smith	27	104	26.0	66.7
Nate Robinson	14	54	25.9	71.4
Chris Paul	15	58	25.9	60.0
Paul Pierce	16	62	25.8	81.3
Ben Gordon	9	35	25.7	55.6
Mike Dunleavy	9	35	25.7	88.9
Stephon Marbury	22	87	25.3	40.9
Tracy McGrady	23	92	25.0	65.2
Derek Fisher	14	56	25.0	57.1
Chucky Atkins	12	48	25.0	75.0
Jordan Crawford	10	40	25.0	50.0
Kevin Martin	9	36	25.0	77.8
Jeff McInnis	8	32	25.0	50.0
Rudy Gay	8	32	25.0	37.5
Steve Francis	12	49	24.5	16.7
Antoine Walker	17	73	23.3	94.1
Brandon Jennings	9	39	23.1	66.7
Monta Ellis	8	35	22.9	50.0
Hedo Turkoglu	12	53	22.6	58.3
Peja Stojakovic	12	53	22.6	75.0
LeBron James	25	111	22.5	24.0
Cuttino Mobley	8	36	22.2	75.0
Antawn Jamison	7	32	21.9	85.7
Chris Duhon	10	48	20.8	80.0
Stephen Jackson	12	58	20.7	58.3
Shane Battier	9	45	20.0	66.7
Tyronn Lue	8	40	20.0	50.0
Metta World Peace	7	35	20.0	71.4
Kobe Bryant	38	191	19.9	71.1
Ray Allen	14	71	19.7	78.6
Caron Butler	12	61	19.7	33.3
Bobby Jackson	7	36	19.4	14.3
Baron Davis	24	126	19.0	41.7
Chauncey Billups	16	84	19.0	43.8
Jerry Stackhouse	7	37	18.9	71.4
Jason Williams	14	78	17.9	42.9
Andre Iguodala	10	57	17.5	30.0
Jason Terry	10	59	16.9	70.0
Deron Williams	7	43	16.3	14.3
Michael Finley	5	31	16.1	60.0
Devin Harris	7	44	15.9	28.6
Jamaal Tinsley	5	32	15.6	100.0
Mo Williams	9	59	15.3	66.7
Ricky Davis	5	34	14.7	40.0
Earl Watson	5	35	14.3	20.0
Morris Peterson	5	35	14.3	60.0
Jason Kidd	10	72	13.9	70.0
Andre Miller	5	36	13.9	20.0
Jameer Nelson	5	37	13.5	80.0
Allen Iverson	9	67	13.4	66.7
Quentin Richardson	6	53	11.3	66.7
Jason Richardson	7	63	11.1	57.1
Raymond Felton	5	45	11.1	60.0
Carmelo Anthony	4	52	7.7	50.0
Eddie House	2	30	6.7	50.0
Sebastian Telfair	0	30	0.0	N/A

Table 3 is remarkable. Gilbert Arenas completely outclasses the competition. A three-point percentage of 47% is outstanding no matter the distance and on an all-time scale would be the best for a career; the fact that he's doing this from 30 to 39 feet with probably a few wild, Hail Mary shots is downright amazing. He's not just sniping from 30 or 31 feet, cheating the system: if you look at the 35 to 39 foot distances, no one made more than two shots, and those that did needed 15 to 25 attempts. The exception was Arenas, who made a startling 7 out of 12 shots from this super long distance. The three-point line is already 23 feet, 9 inches, and going out to the 35 to 39 foot range is like adding the free-throw distance to this remote location. Some other notorious long-range bombers are fairly high on the list, like Carter, Miller, and McGrady, but they are nowhere near Agent Zero's prowess. This is superhuman.

Table 3: 30 to 39 foot shots, 2001-2013, >20 FGA

Player	FG	FGA	FG%	%Ast
Gilbert Arenas	17	36	47.2	35.3
Vince Carter	12	38	31.6	41.7
Mike Bibby	8	28	28.6	37.5
Mike Miller	6	21	28.6	66.7
Aaron Brooks	5	20	25.0	40.0
Kyle Lowry	5	21	23.8	0.0
Dwyane Wade	5	22	22.7	40.0
Nate Robinson	5	22	22.7	60.0
Stephon Marbury	8	38	21.1	37.5
Earl Watson	4	20	20.0	25.0
Joe Johnson	8	40	20.0	37.5
Tracy McGrady	5	26	19.2	60.0
Jason Terry	6	33	18.2	50.0
LeBron James	12	67	17.9	8.3
Derek Fisher	4	23	17.4	0.0
Steve Francis	5	29	17.2	20.0
Kobe Bryant	12	70	17.1	58.3
Louis Williams	4	24	16.7	25.0
Lamar Odom	4	24	16.7	75.0
Jamal Crawford	8	55	14.5	50.0
Allen Iverson	3	22	13.6	0.0
Andre Miller	3	22	13.6	0.0
Andre Iguodala	4	30	13.3	50.0
Chauncey Billups	5	38	13.2	20.0
J.R. Smith	6	47	12.8	33.3
Tony Parker	3	25	12.0	0.0
Baron Davis	6	50	12.0	50.0
Caron Butler	4	37	10.8	25.0
Deron Williams	3	28	10.7	0.0
Jason Williams	3	29	10.3	33.3
Jason Kidd	5	51	9.8	40.0
Chris Paul	3	31	9.7	100.0
Ray Allen	3	32	9.4	100.0
Mo Williams	3	33	9.1	33.3
Paul Pierce	2	23	8.7	50.0
Morris Peterson	2	25	8.0	50.0
Jason Richardson	2	30	6.7	0.0
Jerry Stackhouse	1	20	5.0	100.0
Raymond Felton	1	22	4.5	100.0
Devin Harris	1	29	3.4	100.0
Carmelo Anthony	0	25	0.0	N/A
Mike James	0	21	0.0	N/A
Stephen Jackson	0	20	0.0	N/A

Andre Miller apparently cares little about his field-goal percentage and is the clear leader in hoisting up super-long shots (40 feet or more) and is tied with two others for the most made. In fact, since 2001, Andre Miller's three-point percentage including the playoffs has been 22.2%, but excluding the 40 foot shots it improves to 25.9%. There are a few familiar names here like Jamal Crawford, Kobe Bryant, JR Smith, but one guy who gets accused of protecting his field-goal percentage is LeBron, who's sullied his stats with 57 of these shots. Obviously, a lot of this is pure luck, as one or two lucky shots will completely change your percentage. The average percentage from this distance, by the way, was 2.9%. Another way to think about this is that the expected points per shot attempt is 0.088 points. Don't blame a close loss on refusing to take one half-court shot, but hey, a couple games here and there are affected by making these.

Table 4: 40 foot shots and longer, 2001-2013, >40 FGA

Player	FG	FGA	FG%	%Ast
Andre Miller	5	139	3.6	60.0
Jamal Crawford	3	93	3.2	0.0
Jason Kidd	5	86	5.8	20.0
Kobe Bryant	1	81	1.2	0.0
Baron Davis	4	76	5.3	75.0
Ronald Murray	0	70	0.0	N/A
Raymond Felton	4	68	5.9	75.0
J.R. Smith	0	68	0.0	N/A
Dwyane Wade	2	67	3.0	0.0
Jason Williams	2	66	3.0	50.0
Joe Johnson	2	65	3.1	0.0
Steve Blake	1	64	1.6	0.0
Andre Iguodala	3	63	4.8	0.0
Caron Butler	1	61	1.6	0.0
LeBron James	3	57	5.3	66.7
Ricky Davis	1	57	1.8	100.0
Chucky Atkins	1	54	1.9	0.0
Morris Peterson	2	53	3.8	0.0
Ray Allen	1	52	1.9	0.0
Steve Francis	1	52	1.9	0.0
Stephon Marbury	4	51	7.8	25.0
Mo Williams	2	51	3.9	50.0
Jason Terry	1	49	2.0	0.0
Anthony Carter	0	49	0.0	N/A
Michael Finley	2	48	4.2	0.0
Stephen Jackson	0	48	0.0	N/A
Derrick Rose	1	47	2.1	0.0
Carmelo Anthony	0	47	0.0	N/A
Tracy McGrady	0	47	0.0	N/A
Vince Carter	4	46	8.7	25.0
Devin Harris	1	46	2.2	0.0
Earl Watson	1	46	2.2	0.0
Manu Ginobili	2	45	4.4	0.0
Leandro Barbosa	2	42	4.8	0.0
Deron Williams	3	41	7.3	33.3
Darrell Armstrong	2	40	5.0	0.0
Paul Pierce	2	40	5.0	0.0
Nate Robinson	2	40	5.0	50.0

Three guys are tied for the lead in 40 foot shots, and oddly enough Shannon Brown with only 34 attempts is one of them. But what's impressive is that Van Excel and Tyreke Evans have 4 each with not more than 20 attempts. Given the crazy nature of these shots it's possible Tyreke won't make another one again, but he could take the crown of super-long shots. Some other long shot makers who showed up previously make the cut here again like Carter, Marbury, Walker, and Crawford. Arenas only made one out of 29 attempts, but there's nothing pathetic about a 39 foot range.

Table 5: 40 foot shots and longer, 2001-2013, >3 FG's made

Player	FG	FGA	FG%	%Ast
Shannon Brown	5	34	14.7	60.0
Jason Kidd	5	86	5.8	20.0
Andre Miller	5	139	3.6	60.0
Nick Van Exel	4	18	22.2	0.0
Tyreke Evans	4	20	20.0	75.0
Zach Randolph	4	36	11.1	0.0
Vince Carter	4	46	8.7	25.0
Stephon Marbury	4	51	7.8	25.0
Raymond Felton	4	68	5.9	75.0
Baron Davis	4	76	5.3	75.0
Antoine Walker	3	25	12.0	33.3
Marco Belinelli	3	25	12.0	33.3
Cuttino Mobley	3	30	10.0	66.7
Chris Duhon	3	35	8.6	0.0
Deron Williams	3	41	7.3	33.3
LeBron James	3	57	5.3	66.7
Andre Iguodala	3	63	4.8	0.0
Jamal Crawford	3	93	3.2	0.0

The longest shot in the b-ref database, by the way, is an 88 foot shot by Baron Davis from the 2001 season. So if any enterprising NBA player wants his name in an unofficial recordbook, here's one to shoot for if you don't care about your field-goal percentage. Now if only this were worth four points....