With the Brooklyn Nets' Kyrie Irving averaging 50.6% from the field, 40.2% from three, and 92.2% at the line, he becomes just the 9th inductee of the esteemed 50-40-90 Club. He joins teammate Kevin Durant in this select few of greats in NBA history.
The 50-40-90 Club is a group of players who have recorded at least one season shooting 50% from the field, 40% from three, and 90% from the charity stripe (with considerations to the volume of attempts). As of the 2020-21 season, there are nine NBA players in the Club, with 13 50-40-90 seasons shared between them.
In this piece, we'll be ranking all 9 members of the 50-40-90 Club according to their 50-40-90 seasons. The players' efficiency and scoring will primarily be taken into account. The number of 50-40-90 seasons for each player will be considered as well.
With that, let's get to ranking the greatest, most efficient seasons in NBA history.
9) Malcolm Brogdon (2018-19)
2018-19 statistics: 50.5 FG%, 42.6% 3PT%, 92.8% FT%, 15.6 PPG
Starting us off is the penultimate inductee to the 50-40-90 Club in Malcolm Brogdon.
The 2016-17 Rookie of the Year showed his immense value in the 2018-19 season with the Milwaukee Bucks. Brogdon was instrumental to the success of the Bucks that season, with his 2-way ability and severe efficiency helping the Milwaukee Bucks secure a league-leading 60 wins. He was the perfect third guy alongside All-Star teammates Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton as a secondary ball-handler, catch-and-shoot player, and above-average perimeter defender.
He takes the ninth spot due to a lower scoring output than the rest of the inductees. He's still an extremely valuable player for any NBA team to have as an ultra-efficient role player, mind you; Brogdon was actually an early All-Star candidate a season ago in his first season with the Indiana Pacers.
8) Mark Price (1988-89)
1988-89 statistics: 52.6 FG%, 44.1 3PT%, 90.1 FT%, 18.9 PPG
One of the most underrated shooters and point guards of all time, Mark Price is actually only the 2nd-ever player to achieve the famed 50-40-90 shooting split.
Mark Price oversaw the most successful seasons in Cleveland Cavaliers history before LeBron James' arrival as their star point guard. He was one of the most efficient players of the league in his time, particularly from the three-point area and the charity stripe; he shot 40.2% from three and 90.4% from the free-throw line for his career. Like Brogdon, Price achieved the legendary shooting split in just his third year in the league. It is worth noting that he did this while being his team's best player, top scorer, and top playmaker, all while leading them to the 3rd seed of the Eastern Conference.
Truly one of the most efficient players the game has ever seen; the man is 2nd in career-FT% in NBA history. Price is easily one of the best players in the history of the Cleveland Cavaliers, up there with the likes of LeBron James, “Mr. Cavalier” Austin Carr, and the next entry on this list.
7) Reggie Miller (1993-94)
1993-94 statistics: 50.3 FG%, 42.1 3PT%, 90.8% FT%, 21.2 PPG
Reggie Miller: the greatest Indiana Pacer of all time, one of the deadliest shooters and trash talkers in NBA history, and 50-40-90 Club member. Not too shabby.
Miller was one of the pioneers of modern NBA, in that he had the ultimate green light to shoot from three. It was a good thing, too, because he was absolutely efficient with his outside shooting. For his career, Miller shot the three-ball at a 39.5% clip on a then-unprecedented 4.7 attempts a game. In his 50-40-90 season, he shot it at a then-career-high 42.1% on the way to averaging 21.2 points a game.
Truly one of the greatest and most influential shooters in NBA history. Miller would undoubtedly have flourished in today's NBA; the Knick Killer would have put up 50-40-90 shooting splits if he were playing in the 2020s.
6) Kyrie Irving (2020-21)
2020-21 statistics: 50.6 FG%, 40.2 3PT%, 92.2% FT%, 26.9 PPG
The latest inductee to the Club, Kyrie Irving just made history after a win against the Cleveland Cavaliers in their last regular season game.
In his second season with the Brooklyn Nets, Kyrie Irving posted career-highs in FG% and FT% to finally clinch the 50-40-90 shooting split. Uncle Drew has indeed been a very efficient scorer with a more-than-respectable amount of attempts; indeed, his career shooting splits aren't far off from the 50-40-90 mark.
“We almost expect that from Kyrie, and that shows how great he is, you know. So, welcome to the club.” – Kevin Durant on his teammate Kyrie Irving joining him in the 50-40-90 Club.
Kyrie ultimately got in the club by shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc to get his 3PT% over the 40% hump in the Nets' final day matchup (he was averaging 39.7% before the game), scoring 17 points in the process.
With Uncle Drew averaging 26.9 points this season on 50-40-90 shooting splits, he would undoubtedly have broken into the top 5 of the list with more games under his belt. Nevertheless, his 56 games and the number of shots taken are more than enough to get him into the esteemed Club.
5) Dirk Nowitzki (2006-07)
2006-07 statistics: 50.2 FG%, 41.6 3PT%, 90.4 FT%, 24.6 PPG
The big German cracks the top 5 of the ranking.
Dirk and his Dallas Mavericks entered the 2006-07 season having just blown a 2-0 advantage in the previous year's NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. In that infamous 6-game series, Nowitzki only shot 39% from the field and 25% from three. He more than made up for it the following season.
Not only did Nowitzki shoot lights-out that season with then-career-high shooting splits, but he also won his first and only Most Valuable Player award to boot. He led the Dallas Mavericks to a better regular season finish, clinching the 1-seed convincingly after last season's 4-seed finish.
Dirk is only the first of five MVPs on this list, which just goes to show how esteemed the Club really is.
4) Kevin Durant (2012-13)
2012-13 statistics: 51.0 FG%, 41.6% 3PT%, 90.5% FT%, 28.1 PPG
Easily one of the most unstoppable scorers in NBA history, KD makes putting the ball in the net look so simple. It's absolutely no surprise that he averaged 50-40-90 for at least a season in his career.
Like Nowitzki, Durant's 50-40-90 season came at the back of an NBA Finals loss against the Miami Heat. Durant's defeat was much less disappointing, however, in that he was facing Miami's Big 3, and that he had a much younger and inexperienced team around him. Nevertheless, he came out the next season to average 28.1 PPG with 50-40-90 splits, barely missing the scoring title. His splits were all then-career-highs as well.
A remarkable achievement for such a young player. Ironically, this was also the only year from 2010-2014 that Durant didn't win the scoring title. He would, of course, reclaim it the next season, along with winning his first MVP trophy.
3) Stephen Curry (2015-16)
2015-16 statistics: 50.4 FG%, 45.4 3PT%, 90.8 FT%, 30.1 PPG
Of course, the greatest shooter of all time has a 50-40-90 season under his belt.
In perhaps one of the greatest MVP campaigns of all time, Steph Curry produced video game-like numbers on the way to collect his second-straight MVP award. On the way to breaking numerous records, he scorched the league from three with a mind-blowing 45.4 3PT% on a staggering 11.2 attempts, a then-career-high. Unlike Kevin Durant, Curry was able to win the scoring title in his 50-40-90 season, along with the steals title just for the kicks. This means that he is also in the exclusive group of players who won both awards in one season.
This season was special for Curry for many more reasons: his Golden State Warriors set the record for wins in the regular season with 73, his half-court shot against the OKC Thunder to help his team come back from a 3-1 deficit, and of course, his being the only unanimous MVP in league history. His shooting splits were just one of many, many accomplishments that season.
2) Larry Bird (1986-87, 1987-88)
1986-87 statistics: 52.5 FG%, 40.0 FG%, 91.0 FT%, 28.1 PPG
1987-88 statistics: 52.7 FG%, 41.4 FG%, 91.6 FT%, 29.9 PPG
Larry Legend, the very first member of the 50-40-90 Club, takes second spot on this list.
Larry Bird, in a spectacular 2-season stretch, put up 50-40-90 splits to average exactly 29 points a contest. His back-to-back 50-40-90 seasons came off the back of three straight MVP awards and his last NBA Championship. Not a bad 5 years for Bird, who won three straight 3-Point Contests in the same timespan as well.
As the first dominant stretch 4, Bird was the greatest scorer of his time and one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. He could score from everywhere on the floor with his array of moves and iconic jump shot while doing so with efficiency.
Shooting with 50-40-90 splits across two seasons is no easy feat, particularly while being your team's leading scorer with 28.1 and 29.9 PPG respectively. It was a tough choice between the original member of the 50-40-90 Club and the last entry of the list. It really is a toss-up between the two; Larry Legend could easily have taken top spot.
1) Steve Nash (2005-06, 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10)
2005-06 statistics: 51.2 FG%, 43.9 3PT%, 92.1 FT%, 18.8 PPG
2007-08 statistics: 50.4 FG%, 47.0 3PT%, 90.6 FG%, 16.9 PPG
2008-09 statistics: 50.3 FG%, 43.9 3PT%, 93.3 FG%, 15.7 PPG
2009-10 statistics: 50.7 FG%, 42.6 3PT%, 93.8 FT%, 16.5 PPG
The 2000s Phoenix Suns embodied efficient offense through Mike D'Antoni's “7 Seconds or Less” system; no other Sun exhibited the team's values more than their star point guard, Steve Nash.
The South African was the epitome of offensive efficiency, which is evident from his statistics. He is the only NBA player to average 50-40-90 shooting splits for 4 seasons and three straight seasons. The scary thing is, he could've had 5 straight (!) 50-40-90 seasons from 2006-2010, had he just shot 0.1% more of his free throws in the 2006-07 season. Not surprising for the greatest free throw shooter of all time, but a remarkable stat nonetheless. In this time span, Nash also won an MVP, the second of his career. Nash was known for his unrivaled free throw shooting, but he was also an excellent outside shooter, hitting a ridiculous 47% of his three-pointers at one point, on a respectable 4.7 attempts.
Nash is perhaps the greatest embodiment of efficient scoring and the 50-40-90 shooting split, The two-time NBA MVP takes his rightful place at the top of this list.
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