The art of the three point shot is a thing that teams value. Look at the potential and current contracts of shooters like Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Ray Allen, Mike Miller and Jose Calderon. While Lakers Head Coach Byron Scott has some guys on his team that can shoot the three when needed, like Kobe Bryant, Nick Young, Xavier Henry, Wesley Johnson, Steve Nash and even from time to time Ryan Kelly, Lakers coach Byron Scott doesn’t want the Lakers to focus on the three-point shot.
Coach Scott would rather his team get to the basket, and take fewer than 15 three-point attempts per game, which would be a very low number for league standards considering how the game has evolved in recent seasons. Team value the shot and most of them rely on it. The main thing is to make sure that a team knows who can shoot the three and when they can.
Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com reports the following about the three-point shot and Scott.
I asked Lakers coach Byron Scott about his philosophy on 3-pointers. “I don’t believe it wins championships. (It) gets you to the playoffs.”
The problem, of course, is that this statement is patently false. More from Holmes:
Seven of the past eight NBA champions led all playoff teams in 3-point attempts and makes.
Scott might not believe in the shot, but obviously it is the key to making the playoffs and winning. Look at LeBron’s teams for example, surrounded by three point shooters. The day of getting in the paint and scoring as apposed to shooting the three are over.
