NBA Most Three Pointers Made: The Ultimate Record Holders and Their Journey
I still remember the first time I saw Stephen Curry sink eight three-pointers in a single game back in 2013—it felt like witnessing basketball evolution in real time. Having followed the NBA for over two decades, I've watched the three-pointer transform from a risky novelty to the league's most powerful weapon. The journey of three-point shooting mirrors basketball's broader narrative of innovation, much like how the NCAA's rebranding in Season 82 back in 2006 signaled a new era for college basketball. That same period marked the beginning of what I'd call the "three-point revolution" in the NBA, where players began realizing that this shot wasn't just for specialists anymore—it was becoming fundamental to winning basketball.
When we talk about the ultimate record holders in three-point shooting, we're really discussing two distinct eras: the pioneers who proved the shot's viability, and the modern masters who perfected it. Ray Allen, whose career I followed from his Milwaukee days, held the all-time record for years with 2,973 made threes—a number that seemed almost mythical until Stephen Curry came along. What many forget is that Allen's record was built on remarkable consistency across 18 seasons, with his best year coming in 2005-06 when he knocked down 269 three-pointers for the Seattle SuperSonics. I've always argued that Allen's textbook form and clutch shooting in pressure situations—remember his game-tying three in Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals?—make him the prototype for the modern sharpshooter.
Then there's Reggie Miller, who held the record before Allen with 2,560 career threes. Watching Miller work without the ball was like watching a master chess player—he understood spacing and defensive vulnerabilities in ways that were ahead of his time. His famous 8 points in 9 seconds against the Knicks in 1995 featured two crucial three-pointers that demonstrated both technical precision and mental fortitude. What's fascinating to me is how Miller maintained elite shooting numbers—he shot 39.5% from deep for his career—in an era where teams weren't actively designing offenses around the three-point shot like they do today.
The current landscape is dominated by Stephen Curry, who didn't just break records but shattered our understanding of what's possible from beyond the arc. I still can't quite believe some of the numbers he's put up—402 three-pointers in a single season (2015-16), a career three-point percentage of 42.8% despite taking incredibly difficult shots, and his current count sitting at approximately 3,390 made threes and climbing. What separates Curry in my view isn't just the volume but the degree of difficulty—he's shooting from 30 feet with defenders in his face and making it look routine. His impact goes beyond statistics—he's fundamentally changed how defenses scheme against opponents and inspired an entire generation of young players to launch from deep.
What often gets overlooked in these discussions is how the three-point revolution has created specialized roles that didn't exist twenty years ago. Players like Kyle Korver, who I consider the purest shooter I've ever seen, built entire careers around movement shooting and spacing. Korver's 2014-15 season with Atlanta, where he shot an unbelievable 49.2% from three-point range, demonstrated how a player could become an offensive centerpiece without ever dribbling toward the basket. Similarly, Klay Thompson's record-setting 14 threes in a single game in 2018 showed that catch-and-shoot specialists could produce explosive scoring nights that rivaled those of primary ball handlers.
The evolution continues with younger players like Damian Lillard and Trae Young pushing the boundaries of range and difficulty. Lillard's series-winning 37-foot three-pointer against Oklahoma City in 2019 wasn't just a great moment—it was a statement about how the game's geography has changed. I've noticed that today's elite shooters practice from 30 feet routinely, something that would have been considered wasteful twenty years ago. The three-point line has effectively moved back without the league physically moving it, and I believe we're only seeing the beginning of this trend.
Looking at the future, I'm convinced we'll see players approach 4,000 career three-pointers within the next decade, with Curry likely setting that benchmark himself. The development pipeline has changed dramatically—college players now enter the league with thousands more three-point attempts in their background than players from previous generations. This specialization reminds me of how other sports have evolved, with baseball prioritizing strikeout pitchers or football favoring mobile quarterbacks. The three-pointer has become basketball's great disruptor, and the record holders we celebrate today are not just great shooters—they're innovators who reimagined what was possible on the basketball court. Their journeys reflect the sport's ongoing transformation, proving that sometimes the most revolutionary changes come not from changing the rules, but from changing how we play within them.