The Los Angeles Lakers came in Friday with the third-best 3-point percentage in the NBA and were hot again from the outside in their 112-95 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans, getting 15 3s at the Staples Center.
LeBron James was in charge of two of them, going from 2 to 6 from the depth, which caused the percentage of the season to drop slightly to 38.2%, which would be the second best shooting season of 3 points from his 18-year career should go on like this.
Earlier in the week, Lakers coach Frank Vogel said James was “probably the best shooter on our team,” which begs the question: Does James agree with his coach?
“I mean, we have a lot of great shooters on the team, man,” James said. “KCP [Kentavious Caldwell-Pope], a great shooter. Wes Matthews, great shooter. Kuz [Kyle Kuzma] you can kick off the ball. Dennis the Threat [Dennis Schroder] can throw the ball. AD [Anthony Davis] can throw the ball. So we got a lot of excellent shooters.
“Viously, obviously, if someone says, ‘Bet,’ of course you’ll know, I’ll take it myself. That’s just the competitive nature I have and the work ethic I put into my plan. But I feel really good about my shot right now, both from the free throw line and from the 3-point line, and I want to keep it that way. “
Davis, who increased his 3-point score by 33% in his first season in Los Angeles to 39.4% in the Pelicans game, left James a little lower.
“I should say Kenny is always our guy we’re always looking for shots at,” Davis said, referring to Caldwell-Pope. “Wes is still struggling to find his constant 3. He’s looked open, but I’m still putting Wes up there. I put third Bron, just because this year he’s been able to throw the ball really well. Marc [Gasol] you can shoot him. Marc is up there. And then I got up. Dudz [Jared Dudley]. AC [Alex Caruso]. “
For those scoring at home, these are nine three-point shots fired by Lakers co-captains, and don’t even include guys like Quinn Cook and Markieff Morris, who live beyond the arc when they’re on the court. .
Caldwell-Pope, who shot 4-on-6 against 3 on Friday and beat Metta World Peace to finish ninth on the Lakers ’all-time franchise list for triples, wasn’t ready to crown James as 3rd in the ‘shoot point equipment to the king as long as he is involved.
“The numbers don’t lie,” he said, alluding to the best 55.3% of the race he’s shooting out of three so far this season. “But I’m really enjoying LeBron shooting the ball. He’s shooting a tremendous clip. He’s knocking them down and it’s fun to see him have [success] shooting the ball as well. But we all know that, I’m the real shooter, for sure ”.
He may have a legitimate claim to it, but, as Davis pointed out, everyone also knows that James has certain privileges that Caldwell-Pope will never see.
“You know LeBron will always be there because he shoots a lot of them, especially when it’s hot, and he starts shooting midfield and stuff like that,” Davis said. “I don’t think the coach will allow Kenny to do that.”