Stephen Curry’s three-point pace is nearly double anything ever

It is not news that Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry is having a incredible season. He is the reigning MVP, after all. It is not news that he is what he is doing behind the three-point arch is unprecedented in the game history of basketball. That has been discussed almost all season.

But what might be remarkable, specifically, is how far ahead he is over anyone else at this exact point of an NBA season. During the Warriors’ 22-0 start, Curry already is 116-for-246 (47.2 percent) from three. That is 5.3 made threes per game. What he is doing is defying the history of the game.

Of course, it is notable that the three-point line has only existed in the NBA since the 1979-80 season. The line was shortened for a three-season stretch of 1994-95 through 1996-97. As has been addressed many times, three-point attempt rates have increased rapidly over time and especially so in recent years.

To see how Curry’s 2015-16 season compares historically, let’s break down the stats in three (fitting) different ways.

1) Threes per game

Notably, it took until the 1994-95 season, the first year of the shortened three-point line, for any entire team to average as many three-pointers per game as Curry alone is doing this season.

Additionally, there has never been a season where every single NBA team hit that mark. In 2012-13, Memphis averaged 4.7. In 2013-14, Memphis averaged 4.9. Last season, Minnesota averaged 5.0 and Memphis averaged 5.2. This season, Brooklyn is averaging only 4.7.

Steph already has six different games of eight-plus threes this season. That ties the single-season record set by Dallas’ George McLoud in 1995-96. Back in November, Curry passed J.R. Smith (13) for the all-time career record[1. This has been a fun side project of mine over at WaitingForNextYear. At that Cleveland sports website, I’ve dedicated no less than seven different blog posts to J.R. Smith’s outrageous three-point stats. It was a sad day in the lonely world of Cleveland sports analytics blogging when Curry passed J.R. and took away his throne.] of games with eight-plus threes. Curry is at 16 and counting already.

Steph also has seven games of seven-plus threes. That trails 2012-13 Steph Curry (8) and McLoud (10) for the single-season record. That single-season mark seems well within reach by the New Year at his current pace. And here again, Curry passed J.R. Smith (25) for the all-time career record and now has a two-game lead. He’s unlikely to ever relinquish both marks ever again.

2) The best starts to a season

So, we’ve seen that Curry is having some of the biggest three-point games in NBA history and is out-pacing the production of entire teams from three-point range. But let’s take a look at the best individual starts to a season.

Curry now has 116 threes. For some current context, Kyle Lowry is second in the league with 68. Paul George is third with 64. Damian Lillard is fourth with 63. This leaderboard is shown on the NBA League Pass commercial breaks. If the discrepancy seems laughable, it’s because it is.

What Kyle Lowry, Paul George and Damian Lillard are doing is actually pretty impressive in the context of league history. Here is a look at the most three-pointers by a player through his team’s first 22 games in a season:

Curry is miles ahead of everyone. You can see Paul George on that list. But in fact, you have to keep stretching all the way to team game No. 35 to see the fastest time another player ever reached 116 threes. Here is that leaderboard, with Curry at the top:

Steph Curry could make no three-pointers in the next 13 Warriors games and would still be tied for the NBA record for the most threes in a team’s first 35 games of a season. Think about that a few times. He’s nearly doubling up on everyone.

3) The greatest single-seasons in NBA history

Only six players have ever finished with season with 250-plus made three-pointers. The first two of those took place in 1995-96 (George McLoud and Dennis Scott), during the shortened three-point line era. Ray Allen had the next one in 2005-06. Steph Curry has the next three — all in the past three seasons.

Here is how 2015-16 Curry’s current pace compares to the pace of those six other player-seasons in particular:

2005-06 Ray Allen had 70 threes through 22 team games. That was the most among these players. Allen also had only 113 threes through 35 team games, just slightly below the record set by 2013-14 Damian Lillard and this year’s Stephen Curry.

As it currently stands, Curry is on pace to make 432 threes this season. As stated before, he’s averaging 5.3 per game. In order to hit his own record of 286 threes, set just last year, he only has to make 2.9 per game for the entire rest of the season.

We are witnessing one of the greatest single-season performances in NBA history right now with Stephen Curry. The closest modern comparison has to be the great home run race of 1999 between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. But in this instance, Curry is all alone. And he’s well on his way to doing something far more inconceivable.