Rockets guard Michael Carter-Williams' work on shot pays off with record-setter

PHOTOS: Rockets vs. Wizards Houston Rockets guard Michael Carter-Williams (1) celebrates after his three-pointer in the final seconds during the second half of an NBA game at Toyota Center, Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018, in Houston. >>>See more game action from the Rockets' win over the Wizards on Wednesday ... less PHOTOS: Rockets vs. Wizards Houston Rockets guard Michael Carter-Williams (1) celebrates after his three-pointer in the final seconds during the second half of an NBA game at Toyota Center, Wednesday, Dec. ... more Photo: Karen Warren/Staff Photographer Photo: Karen Warren/Staff Photographer Image 1 of / 60 Caption Close Rockets guard Michael Carter-Williams' work on shot pays off with record-setter 1 / 60 Back to Gallery

Long before the Rockets had reached their final shot of the game and at history on Wednesday, before the Toyota Center crowd and his Rockets teammates demanded Michael Carter-Williams take the record-breaking 3-pointer he sank, Carter-Williams had prepared if not for that moment, for that shot.

A career 25.4 percent 3-point shooter, Carter-Williams would not seem to be a likely candidate to put in a record-setting 3-pointer, as he did when he dropped in the Rockets’ 26th of the game to break the NBA mark for 3s in a game. But Carter-Williams had been working through the season to hone his shooting form.

“I’m trying to put as much time as I can into it,” Carter-Williams said earlier this week, before his 3-point touch was called upon in the closing minutes against the Wizards. “I made some changes. That was one of the things we wanted to do, to get it set here (with a higher release point) and just let it go.”

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Carter-Williams struggled in a brief stretch filling in for injured rotation players, usually playing out of position at small forward or shooting guard rather than at the point. But even in the final game with Chris Paul out with a groin injury, Carter-Williams did not get the call. In recent games, the Rockets have used Brandon Knight off the bench to try to get him up to speed after a season-and-a-half lost to a knee injury.

Carter-Williams did not play in any of the Rockets five games prior to Wednesday. He had not played other than bench-clearing minutes in routs since Nov. 26, when the Rockets previously played the Wizards with Paul and Gerald Green out. He has made 7 of 19 3-pointers (36.8 percent) this season, the best shooting percentage from deep in his career and said he has used the time out of the rotation to work on his shooting.

“I never really had broken mechanics,” Carter-Williams said. “I struggled with shooting, but my shot never looked bad as far as form. Just some little adjustments and I’ve been shooting the ball a lot better.

“Me and Luke (Rockets director of player development John Lucas) and I have been spending a lot of time together. I’m not playing right now, so I try to go in after the game, get some shots up upstairs (on the Toyota Center practice court). I’m a competitor. I want to play. But right now, I’m not playing, so I have to do whatever I can at this time when I’m fresh to be the best player I can be.”