Golden State Warriors: Will anyone ever catch Stephen Curry for the 3-point record?

Prospecting

Are there young players, either rookies or still at lower levels, who project as the type of elite shooter necessary to make a run at Curry’s eventual mountaintop record? Teenagers right now have largely grown up in this high-volume 3-point era. A 17-year-old senior in high school was nine years old when Curry had his first flamethrower season.

Tyrese Haliburton is the most prolific 3-point marksman in the current rookie class. His large role on the Sacramento Kings from the jump is allowing him to build volume from the start, and he ranks in the top-20 already in career 3-pointers per game. Over 14 games he has hit his deep shots at a 47.0 percent clip; while that is unsustainably high, it is certainly a good sign for his future.

Other than Haliburton, the field is much more of a mystery. Desmond Bane is one of this rookie class’s best shooters, and multiple injuries and contact tracing has opened up a spot for him in the Memphis Grizzlies’ rotation early on. He would need to carve out and hold a large role to have any shot, but at least he has started strong. Players such as LaMelo Ball and Anthony Edwards could get the volume needed if they become high-level shooters.

Looking further ahead into time is difficult. Most of college basketball’s best shooters are upperclassmen, and therefore probably won’t have the early start necessary to rack up enough baskets. Players such as Corey Kispert and Jared Butler will play in the NBA, but don’t project as future stars.

Cade Cunningham is a future star, perhaps the top pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, and is a gifted shooter. Depending on his landing spot, he could seize volume early on, and hold onto it throughout his career. With the ball in his hands a lot, he will need to improve as a shooter off the dribble, but he can also leverage his off-balls skills as well.

Finally, current high schoolers represent an untapped field of potential. Emoni Bates is an offensive wizard. Chet Holmgren could be a Dirk Nowitzki-like outside shooter as a big man. Patrick Baldwin Jr. has a smooth stroke. Jalen Hardy dropped nine 3-pointers in a game last fall. All of the players pouring into the league in the next half-decade have grown up watching a 3-point league.

At the end of the day, the easy answer is that no one will catch Stephen Curry. He has put together the greatest shooting career of all time, and he’s only 32. If he plays another six or seven seasons (or even nine or ten as a shooting specialist) he will own all of the relevant records. Even with the league’s 3-point revolution, his accomplishments may stand alone, untouchable.