Who Are the Leading 3 Point Shooters in NBA History and Their Records?

As I was digging through NBA archives the other day, I stumbled upon an old Filipino commentary that really stuck with me - "Bakit natin pinapaabot du'n pa?" which roughly translates to "Why do we keep pushing it further?" That phrase perfectly captures the evolution of three-point shooting in basketball. When the three-point line was introduced in 1979, nobody could have predicted how dramatically it would transform the game. I've been following basketball since the 90s, and honestly, the way teams approach shooting today would be unrecognizable to players from that era. The three-pointer has evolved from being a novelty shot to the most potent weapon in modern basketball offenses.

Looking at the all-time leaders, Stephen Curry stands alone at the summit with his revolutionary approach to shooting. What makes Curry special isn't just his accuracy - it's the degree of difficulty on his attempts. He's shooting 42.8% from deep for his career while taking shots that would get most players benched. I remember watching him drain 402 threes in the 2015-16 season, completely shattering his own record of 286 from the previous year. That season was pure magic - he was pulling up from everywhere, sometimes even before crossing half-court. Ray Allen, who held the record before Curry, was the picture of perfection in his shooting form. His 2,973 career threes stood as the benchmark for years, and his clutch shot in Game 6 of the 2013 Finals might be the most important three-pointer in NBA history. What many forget is that Allen adapted his game - he started as more of a slasher before becoming the premier shooter of his generation.

The third spot belongs to James Harden, who represents yet another evolution in three-point shooting philosophy. Harden's approach is volume-based - he's attempted over 7,000 threes in his career, making 2,576 of them at a 36.2% clip. While his percentage might not jump off the page compared to Curry's, the sheer volume and difficulty of his step-back threes have revolutionized how teams create spacing. I've always been fascinated by how different these top shooters are in their approaches - Curry with his movement and quick release, Allen with his textbook form, and Harden with his creation off the dribble. Reggie Miller, sitting fourth with 2,560 threes, deserves special mention for pioneering the art of moving without the ball. Watching Miller work through screens was like watching a master craftsman - he understood angles and timing better than anyone of his era.

What's remarkable is how the three-point revolution keeps accelerating. When I started watching basketball, making 100 threes in a season was considered exceptional. Now we have players like Duncan Robinson making 270 in a season while shooting over 44%. The game has completely transformed, and I suspect we'll see these records broken more frequently as teams continue to prioritize shooting. The next generation - players like Luka Doncic and Trae Young - are already launching from distances that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. Personally, I love the evolution, though I do miss some of the post play that's been sacrificed in this new era. The beautiful thing about basketball is how it constantly reinvents itself while honoring its history. These shooting records aren't just numbers - they represent the changing philosophy of the sport itself, answering that question of why we keep pushing the boundaries further.