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Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors are coming off a record-setting performance in teaming up with the Sacramento Kings for the most combined 3-pointers made in a game. The Warriors snatched the road victory, 127-123, behind 42 points from Stephen Curry and 29 from Durant.
While the story of the night turned out to be the new NBA record, it's a perfect reminder of how the game has evolved with today's teams being highly enamored in taking long distance shots.
In fact, this season's league average 3-point attempts per game, as of this writing, is at an all-time high mark of 31.2. The top four is rounded out by every season since the Warriors' first championship.
In speaking with reporters, Kevin Durant addressed the three-ball boom and took it as a trend that will eventually fade away, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic.
“I don’t see this lasting too much longer. Just the volume of 3s, the pick-up style, it’ll seize.”
It's ironic to hear such words from Durant when he's playing for the Warriors who have played a greater role than anyone in changing how the game is played today.
The Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns of the mid-2000s tried it, but they never got close to Golden State's current success. It made the transition easier to accept for other teams as they try to take away the uniqueness of the dominant Dubs' style.
No one has dared to step outside of the circle up to this point. But Kevin Durant may be right with his statement. Before the Warriors became the Warriors, no one believed that this formula would equate to championships — just ask Charles Barkley.
Until someone dethrones the Warriors by employing a different kind of philosophy, we're not going to see the end of this three-point craze.
