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A three-pointer made during the first quarter of an NBA contest technically counts just as much as a game-winning basket drained from the identical spot at the final buzzer. Without the first, the second wouldn't have changed the outcome.

Obviously, though, the stakes are a little different for the latter. Defenders are more focused, fully aware that a single lapse can turn a victory into a loss. The crowd watches with eager anticipation, pumping the arena full of nervous energy. Heartbeats might pound just a bit harder and faster.

Some scorers have been better than others at ignoring the pressure and thriving in these clutch situations throughout the 2018-19 season—defined here as the final three minutes of games separated by no more than five points. Allow us to reveal the best of the best by looking at which players have added more points than expected on their possessions.

Keep in mind that scoring is, quite literally, all that matters here.

The league as a whole emerges from the All-Star break with 4,774 points on 4,758 estimated* clutch possessions, which comes out at 1.003 points per possession. By looking at each player's individual mark, subtracting the league average from it and multiplying the difference by the number of possessions, we can calculate the number you'll see listed next to each featured contributor, representing the additional points they've scored compared to what a league-average player might've done with those possessions.

Let's take LeBron James as an example.

In his 46 clutch minutes for the Los Angeles Lakers, he's scored 51 points on 33 field-goal attempts, 24 free-throw attempts and two turnovers—46 estimated possessions. That's good for 1.109 points per possession, which is 0.106 higher than the league average. Multiply that by 46, and he's scored 4.876 more points than a league-average player might've with his touches.

That's a respectable mark, checking in at No. 41 throughout the NBA. It's just not enough to earn featured placement.

*The possessions estimate is calculated as field-goal attempts plus 0.44 times free-throw attempts plus turnovers.