It's freaking beautiful. I've said it multiple game threads now, but if Harden is going to be a good-great 3 point shooter this year it isn't going to be fair to the NBA. When he his hitting a high clip of 3s the Rockets just drown teams.
That's just insane. I hope it's a long time before he comes down to earth. Like maybe next July. The guy looks to be in the best shape of his career and he's really having a great time. Hell, everyone looks like they're having fun. Ariza has a grin on his face half the time that I don't remember seeing before. I don't know what's going on, but it looks like it's contagious. Maybe it's CP3 Disease? This ride is getting ridiculously far out. This is special.
9.8% of his 3-pt attempts are "wide-open" (defender 6+ feet away) this season, and he's shooting 43.6% on those wide-open attempts. Last season it was ~5%. It will probably trend higher with CP3 back in the lineup. He's also taking some Ryan Anderson/GorDon-esque 3s as well, so that's part of it as well. 31.4% of his attempts so far have been "open" (4-6 feet), and he's shooting 45.6% (2.9-6.3). Only 19.9% of his 3s were "open" last season (1.4-3.8) https://stats.nba.com/players/shots-closest-defender-10/?sort=PLAYER_LAST_TEAM_ABBREVIATION&dir=-1&Season=2016-17&SeasonType=Regular Season&CloseDefDistRange=4-6 Feet - Open
According to the NBA, 21 of 39. However, I remember seeing a step-back during the Indiana highlights. Here are the official details from the last game. http://stats.nba.com/player/201935/shooting/?Season=2017-18&SeasonType=Regular Season&LastNGames=1
He's got a lateral version of it as well when he's on the wings/corners that effectively clear the same space for him. I recall at least one of those in those 3 he hit in a row in the 3rdQ but those might not be counted as a 'step-back'. Either way the footwork on display every night is amazing.
There is the answer right there. He's been one of the best spot up 3pt shooters in the game for a while he just didn't get many. Now he's getting double than usual and his % is at 40% rather than 35%.
