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The Truth About 2 - 20

GVC

GVC

Well-Known Member
So, I've seen on a couple message boards people bringing up that Millsap's 3 3-pointers were a fluke, due to his 2 - 20 career mark on 3-pointers prior to this season. I went through the play-by-play of every game where Millsap shot a 3 to see the game situation when he launched them. The results are, well, reassuring:

24 January 2007, OT, 0:24 on clock - misses 25-footer with 15 on shot clock, down by 3

20 March 2007, 4th Quarter, 0:07 on clock - makes 27-footer with shot clock expiring

9 April 2007, 4th Quarter, 0:05 on clock - misses 25-footer with 5 on game clock

8 January 2008, 3rd Quarter, 0:00 on clock - misses 59-footer at buzzer

7 March 2008, 1st Quarter, 0:27 on clock - misses 25-footer with 3 on shot clock

8 April 2008, 1st Quarter, 0:00 on clock - misses 3-pointer at buzzer

16 April 2008, 4th Quarter, 2:15 on clock - misses 25-footer with 12 on shot clock

7 November 2008, 3rd Quarter, 0:00 on clock - misses 66-footer at buzzer

14 November 2008, 4th Quarter, 0:00 on clock - misses 37-footer at buzzer

19 December 2008, 4th Quarter, 8:11 on clock - misses 25-footer with shot clock expiring

24 March 2009, 3rd Quarter, 0:00 on clock - misses 41-footer at buzzer

13 November 2009, 4th Quarter, 2:40 on clock - misses 27-footer with 1 on shot clock

14 December 2009, 1st Quarter, 0:00 on clock - misses 44-footer at buzzer

4 January 2010, 1st Quarter, 0:00 on clock - misses 44-footer at buzzer

16 January 2010, 3rd Quarter, 0:01 on clock - makes 25-footer just before buzzer

27 January 2010, 3rd Quarter, 5:05 on clock - misses 30-footer with shot clock expiring

29 January 2010, 1st Quarter, 2:55 on clock - misses 25-footer with shot clock expiring

21 February 2010, 1st Quarter, 9:59 on clock - misses 23-footer with 1 on shot clock

21 February 2010, 3rd Quarter, 8:38 on clock - misses 25-footer with shot clock expiring

26 February 2010, 3rd Quarter, 0:01 on clock - misses 26-footer just before buzzer


So, to sum this all up, of Millsap's 20 3-point attempts prior to this season, 17 were taken with 3 seconds or less left on the game or shot clock.

Of the 3 remaining 3-pointers, one was taken with 5 seconds left in a blowout loss, one was taken with the Jazz down 3 and 24 seconds left in the game (both of these from Millsap's rookie season), and one was taken with plenty of time left on both clocks (sophomore season).

Prior to this season, the last 3-pointer Millsap attempted without an expiring clock was on the 16th of April, 2008, nearly 31 months ago.
 
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Thanks for compiling this.

I think the NBA should exclude the catch a pass at the knees and hoist the ball into the air in the direction of the basket as the clock expires from the stat sheet. MLB makes such official scoring decisions. I don't know why the NBA refuses to advance the game in any way, shape, or form. It's no wonder to me why they lose money when other sports don't.
 
Still a fluke. How often does any player ever do that, make 3 3's in the last minute to tie the game? He will never approach that again: he's not Ray Allan or reggie Miller.

That said, he ought to take more 3 in games. That would be incredibly beneficial to his game and to the jazz. Newspaper today said he has been hitting them regulary in practice and DWill has been begging him to shoot them in games.
 
He has proven us wrong in everything else, who is to say he can't develop a 3 point shot. Dwill himself said that millsap can hit 3s. With big al on the low post, I think there is a good chance we will see this more.
 
zman1527 said:
Still a fluke. How often does any player ever do that, make 3 3's in the last minute to tie the game? He will never approach that again: he's not Ray Allan or reggie Miller.
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No doubt, the 3 straight 3s from a guy who only hit 2 total (both buzzer beaters) in his first 4 years was a shock (or fluke, or whatever). With that said, Millsap had never been called on (really) to shoot a 3 in a game before last night, so it's a bit disingenuous to cite his 2 - 20 as an indicator of his 3-point shooting prowess. Had he been asked to shoot earlier, he may have done just fine, but since there were always better options on the floor, he never really had to shoot those threes, and instead stuck to his role crashing the boards and doing the dirty work (which he has always done better than other Jazz players).

I didn't post this earlier because I didn't want to add much commentary to my original post.

Compiling this didn't take all that long. Somewhere between one and two hours.

What makes you think I don't have a girlfriend?
 
Millsap's jumper from the top of the key continues to improve, so much that if he were to take a couple of steps back and shoot the three, it wouldn't be a bad shot. Malone had similar range and I thought he should have taken more 3's. You don't want these guys going crazy, but 1-2 shots per game at most, in the flow of the offense, wouldn't be bad shots
 
YB85 said:
You don't want these guys going crazy, but 1-2 shots per game at most, in the flow of the offense, wouldn't be bad shots
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Of course. Last thing the Jazz need is Millsap going away from his high post/short corner/hustle game and turning into a chucking prima donna a la Zach Randolph in New York. He needs to stick with his strengths first, and use the outside shot when it's there and needed.
 
It's absolutely nuts to think think how Sap's jumpshot has progressed. Even guys who come into the league as shooters don't show this level of improvement. Only 2 years ago I was hoping he'd just perfect the step back 15 footer. Now he's a double threat in the post and as a pick and pop. I feel good whenever he shoots from wherever he shoots.
 
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