James Harden entered Sunday’s Clippers-Jazz game needing a single make to move into second place all-time for most made 3-pointers.
He reached the mark in the first quarter.
With a pull-up 3-pointer from the right wing, Harden reached a career tally of 2,974 3-pointers, moving him out of a second-place tie with Hall of Famer Ray Allen.
It’s a position he projects to maintain until he retires.
Harden is a long way behind all-time 3-point shooting leader Stephen Curry, who started Sunday with 3,782 made career 3-pointers, more than 800 ahead of Harden. The Warriors great is hitting 3.9 3-pointers per game this season and will surely add significantly to his record tally before he calls it a career.
Harden’s built his own projected Hall of Fame résumé as a prolific scorer with 10 All-Star bids, seven All-NBA selections, three scoring titles and an MVP trophy. He’s also a two-time assist champion with a proficiency for getting to the free-throw line.
Three-point shooting isn’t necessarily the first or second item to come to mind when thinking about Harden’s game. That he’s ahead of shooting savants Allen, Damian Lillard, Reggie Miller and Klay Thompson on the 3-point list is a testament to his status as one of the game’s all-time great offensive players.