As all of us are well aware, Stephen Curry set a new NBA record last season with a whopping 272 3PM in only 78 games, while shooting 45% from long range. This combination of accuracy and efficiency had never been done before, as Curry broke Ray Allen's 2005 record of 269 three's on 53 less attempts. As mentioned in my previous Fanpost from this summer, The Importance and Evolution of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson's Threes, as the season went on, Curry started attempting more and more threes, upping his attempts from 7 to 9 after the all star break. However, the opposite occurred with Klay Thompson, as his attempts decreased after the all-star break from 7 3PA/game to 6. These were both good things for the Warriors offense, as both players increased their three point percentage after the break, and the Warriors offense started to kick into gear.

Coming into this year, many were clamoring for both Curry and Thompson to shoot more threes. The three point shot is the most dangerous and efficient shot in basketball, especially with two knockdown shooters like the Splash Brothers. In the limited sample size that we have for this season, the Warriors have done exactly that. For the season last year, the Warriors had attempted 19.9 3PA per game, whereas this years team is shooting 24.1 per game, good for 7th in the league (GSW is first in 3P% at 46%). These attempts are primarily coming from the Splash Brothers, who are shooting a combined 14.1 of these attempts. This, combined with their ridiculous 3P%'s, are giving both the Splash Brothers a realistic shot at breaking Steph's record from last year.

Thus far in the season, both Klay and Steph are both ahead of Steph's pace from last year and have a good shot at the record. While Steph is slightly behind the needed pace, he is well ahead of his pace last year. Through 11 games last year, Curry had 24 3PM, whereas Klay currently leads the league with 38, and Steph is right behind him at 32 (in one less game). If they were to keep this pace up, both would obviously have great chances.

However, at this point in the season last year, Curry was not shooting well from deep. He didn't make any threes in the first game last year, going 0-6, and was only shooting 34.3% from three through the first 11 games. This obviously picked up as the season went on, as did his 3PM/game, so the above rate is not necessarily indicative of his whole season. However, with the way the Splash Brothers have started the season, they still have a great chance to break the record. Both are shooting over 40% from behind the arc, with Klay shooting 51%!! We would expect this to go down as the season progresses, but in this offense with such great passing and ball movement, it isn't guaranteed.

It will be interesting to see how these trends play out for the rest of the year. The three point shot is often called the great equalizer and has won the Warriors a lot of games the last couple years, and it appears as though the Warriors have become even more focused on it this year. As of now, both Curry and Klay have a great chance to break the new 3PM record, and if things keep going the way they are, I wouldn't be surprised to see both of them finish above 272.

(Sidenote: if there is enough interest, I can post weekly updates on the progress of Steph and Klay toward the record)