A big pile of BRICKS is all this year's field of 3-point shootout participants is going to give you during All-Star weekend in Orlando.
I love the NBA 3-point contest because there’s so many great shooters in the NBA and it’s something that isn’t up to judges to decide. It’s just who can knock down the most shots from deep and it should be a contest of the best long range bombers in the NBA, unfortunately this year’s field leaves a lot to be desired.
2012 3-point contest participants:
James Jones – Heat (Defending Champion) – 40.4% – I’m okay with Jones being in it because he’s the defending champion but playing 11 minutes a game, averaging 3 ppg doesn’t spell out too many big game 3-pointers.
Mario Chalmers – Heat – 46.3 % – Chalmers deserves the be in the contest, fifth in the league in 3-point percentage and has made 38. Neither Chalmers or Jones are the best shooter on the Heat. Mike Miller is knocking down the deep ball at 52%, second in the NBA.
Kevin Love – Wolves – 36.2 % – This is a joke. I do not want to see Love in the 3-point contest. I know he can knock them down if left open but he’s not one of the best long distance shooters in the league. There are 40 guys who could have easily been chosen instead. If it were a rebounding contest, then I would want Kevin Love.
Joe Johnson – Hawks – 35.1 % – Another terrible selection. First he was a bad pick for the all-star game itself and now they let him in another contest he hasn’t earned the right to be in. Good player, decent shooter, but long-range marksman? No, he throws up more bricks from down town than the average shooting guard.
Ryan Anderson – Magic – 43.5 % – I can live with this pick because Anderson is having a breakout season, shoots a good percentage from deep, and 3-point shooting is the strength of his game. In a six person field, there are guys who have an argument ahead of him but this is a sound selection.
Anthony Morrow – Nets – 41.7% – He ranks 28th in 3-point percentage but this isn’t the worst selection. He’s a nice shooter from long range that gets hot and fills it up from deep. Would he have made my cut? No.
What the field SHOULD have been:
Brandon Rush – Warriors -54.1 % – Leads the NBA in 3-point field goal percentage and has made his living knocking down the 3-point ball all season long. This is the one player I thought would one hundred percent be in this contest.
Ray Allen – Celtics – 49.1 % – I don’t really have to explain this one, Shuttlesworth has been one of the best 3-point shooters in the game for a very long time and he should be an automatic in this contest. Maybe he doesn’t enter because it just wouldn’t be fair to the competition or it could be his age. Who knows, but the road to winning the contest should go through Allen.
Klay Thompson – Warriors – 48.1 % – The rookie out of Washington State is just another player to get snubbed from the Warriors. He’s drilled 38 3-pointers this season and has always been a great long-range shooter. Coach Mark Jackson has already voiced his displeasure over all the players on his team getting the snub.
Jordan Farmar – Nets – 46.1 % – The reserved point guard has nailed 41 3-pointers on the season and is shooting them at a very high clip. The numbers don’t lie so I don’t understand why these guys aren’t in this contest.
Mario Chalmers – see above.
The reality is that the competition should be 12 players. Why is it only six? The NBA needs to fix this thing and make it mean something, this is the most trash garbage field of 3-point shooters in history. This feels like a bad joke and it’s embarrassing for the league.
Six more bombers who should have been in it before the mops that are:
Vince Carter – Mavs – 46.1 %
Jeff Teague – Hawks – 45.9 %
C.J. Watson – Bulls – 45.8 %
Steve Novak – Knicks – 45.7 %
Chris Paul – Clippers – 44.6%
Willie Green – Hornets – 44.4 %
