Through the Miami Heat’s first three games, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade have combined for zero three-point attempts.
Not one. Last season they would have averaged 19 by now.
This is not by accident. As part of Miami’s new aggressive, up-tempo style LeBron and Wade are trying to attack the rim, not settle for threes. Leave the deep shots to the specialists, like James Jones and Mike Miller, the leaders on the Heat have to attack the rim.
LeBron isn’t even really practicing the three anymore, he told Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.“I’ve cut back a lot,” he said. “I still work on it and still shoot it. It’s not part of my everyday workout, though….
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to go a whole season without shooting a 3,” he said with a smile, as the Heat prepared for Friday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. “It’ll be those games where you feel real good and you’re shooting the ball extremely well, and that’s when you may go back to the 3-point line.”
LeBron shot 33 percent from three last year, Wade 30.6 percent. In contrast, so far this season LeBron is shooting 78.9 percent inside three feet and 85.7 percent out to 10 feet (10 shots per game average). It’s not rocket science — you do what you are most effective at. LeBron and Wade are two of the best at getting to the rim and finishing in the league. Do that, don’t float around the perimeter.
The only question is if the Heat will slip back into bad habits as the season wears on. Watch the three-ball attempts to see.
