INGLEWOOD, Calif. — James Harden passed Ray Allen for second on the NBA’s all-time 3-pointers list Sunday night against the Utah Jazz.
Harden made two 3-pointers and finished with 20 points, 11 assists and 6 rebounds to help the LA Clippers to a 116-105 victory at Intuit Dome.
“Unbelievable accomplishment,” Harden said of the 3-pointer he hit with 6:09 left in the first quarter to move into second in league history. “Just a testament to the amount of work that I’ve been putting in. As I get older and just chip away at an unbelievable career, [I] start to accomplish things like that. So I don’t ever want to take it for granted.
“I just want to give motivation to the youth and every other person that’s chasing a dream to play professional basketball or whatever it is. So it’s an honor.”
As for anyone dreaming of catching all-time leader Stephen Curry, Harden says no one will ever break Curry’s record. Harden now has 2,975 career 3-pointers to move past Allen’s 2,973. Curry, whose Warriors face Harden and the Clippers on Monday, currently has 3,782 3-pointers in his career.
“I’m one of the most confident guys that we have in this league,” Harden said. “But no, I probably won’t catch Steph. And I don’t think anybody will honestly. … I don’t know man … he can shoot the s— out the ball. And granted a lot of these guys are on that list for [being] catch-and-shoot players, so they came off pindowns, they were spot shots or whatnot. Now, where the game has evolved, guys like Steph are coming off pindowns, he’s creating off isos, he’s coming off pick-and-rolls. So there’s so many different variables to be able to shoot the 3, make shots and do it at an efficient high level.
“So, somebody has to have an unbelievable career, shoot the ball well and make a lot of 3s. I mean if it happens, it’s going to be when we’re not here anymore. So that’ll be in there for a minute.”
Harden recently cracked in an interview with ESPN’s Shams Charania that “Steph don’t count” and that he considers himself No. 1 in most 3-pointers made because of how wildly good of a shooter Curry is.
Harden, 35, and Curry, 36, are part of the same 2009 draft class with Harden going No. 3 to Oklahoma City and Curry No. 7 to Golden State.
Together, they have contributed to changing the way the game is played in today’s perimeter-oriented style and how creative shooters have become in scoring from beyond the arc.
“To be a scorer, the way he can score at all three levels,” Clippers coach Ty Lue said. “And then be second all time in 3-pointers made is crazy and a lot of tough 3s — off the dribble, step-backs, pocket 3s, pulling up off the dribble and pick-and-rolls and just to see what he’s accomplished.
“Being a 2 guard when he came into the league and then transitioned to a point guard his whole career … that’s a crazy stat, a crazy accomplishment and I’m just happy for him.”
The Clippers posted a video of Kevin Durant, Harden’s former Oklahoma City and Brooklyn teammate, watching footage of him assisting Harden on his first 3-pointer made with the Thunder.
“Congrats on reaching an amazing accomplishment,” Durant said in the video. “All the work that you put in has paid off. You inspire so many people around the world with how you play. You have been a great teammate, a great friend.”
Harden credited Durant and former teammate Russell Westbrook with creating a foundation for the work ethic he needed to reach this point in his career.
“Longevity man,” Harden said of his former Thunder teammates. “They set the blueprint. When I got there, they already had the blueprint of how to work, how to be a professional in this league, and so all I did was just fall right in line.
” … From that point on, I was so comfortable and confident in myself, to when I got traded to Houston, I just knew I was going to be successful. I learned how to work at a young age. So shoutout to KD, shoutout to Russ and an entire Oklahoma City organization for that ground building that they gave me.
