Celtics become first NBA team ever to achieve this 3-point shooting feat
Celtics become first NBA team ever to achieve this 3-point shooting feat originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Celtics shoot more 3-point field goals than any team in the NBA and it's not particularly close.
They are attempting 42.6 3-pointers per game, three more than any other team. Only eight other teams are shooting more than 37 3-pointers per game.
The Celtics probably aren't going to break the single-season record for 3-point shots taken -- 45.4 per game by the 2018-19 Houston Rockets -- but they will be close.
Luckily for the Celtics, they don't just attempt a bunch of 3-pointers -- they make a bunch, too. Boston is shooting 39 percent from beyond the arc, which ranks No. 2 behind the Oklahoma City Thunder (39.4 percent).
In fact, the Celtics made history Monday night against the Detroit Pistons by hitting 20 or more 3-point shots for the fourth consecutive game. This hot shooting fueled a 119-104 win for the C's.
With 22 three-pointers tonight, the Celtics became the first team in NBA history to make at least 20 in four consecutive games.
— Dick Lipe (@DickLipe) March 19, 2024
The Celtics connected on 22 of 49 attempts (44.9 percent) from 3-point range versus the Pistons. Derrick White (6-of-12), Kristaps Porzingis (5-of-9) and Payton Pritchard (5-of-9) all hit at least five 3-pointers.
Despite the high number of 3-pointers taken, the Celtics are not as dependent on these shots as they were in previous seasons. The addition of Kristaps Porzingis, and his ability to score at a high rate in the paint, has given the Celtics another dimension offensively. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown also have done a better job not settling for 3-pointers and instead attacking the defense with drives to the paint more often.
But the 3-pointer is definitely what separates the Celtics from other top contenders. The Celtics, at most points in every game, have four or five decent-to-good 3-point shooters on the floor, and that causes a lot of trouble for opposing defenses.