The 3-Point Shot
I wrote about this the other night after the game against the Orlando Magic. Chicago has been on a righteous tear over the last dozen or so games, but prior to that it was abysmal. They ranked dead last in multiple 3-point shooting categories and this despite having Mirotic, McDermott, and Valentine. Players that were supposed to bring shooting.
Before the McDermott trade, there was long stretch of the year where both he and Nikola were shooting below 30 percent from deep. Conversely, career abominations from deep – Rondo and Wade – were leading the team in percentage by a large margin, and were also shooting at an above average frequency compared to career numbers.
At the end of the season, Rondo was the team’s best 3-point shooter at 37.6 percent, excluding Morrow’s nine games of 9.7 minutes per game of basketball. It’s also his best season of shooting from beyond the arc.
As a team, the Bulls escaped the very bottom of the league standings from deep thanks to a very strong finish that was record-setting by Chicago standings, quite literally. They finished the year 24th in 3-point percentage, at 34 percent, tied with the 25th-ranked Philadelphia 76ers and came in at 29th in attempts, ahead of only the Minnesota Timberwolves.
With no clear-cut, consistent 3-point shooter on this roster and no such player waiting to be plucked in the draft at No. 15 this coming summer, it’s going to be a huge struggle for the Bulls to manufacture improvements in that area. If they take on Rondo’s contract, Wade exercises his option, and they match on whatever offer Mirotic gets, there is no reason to believe that a repeat performance or consistency is in the offing.
Speaking of next season…