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Former 76ers Star Makes History vs Utah Jazz

James Harden moved up the 3PM leaderboard on Sunday.

Justin Grasso

Nov 15, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (1) warms up before the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
Nov 15, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (1) warms up before the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
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A few years ago, Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry surpassed Ray Allen on the NBA’s All-Time three-pointers made list. The next active player chasing the former sharpshooter’s total was former Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden.

On Sunday night, Harden made history with a new long-range shooting milestone. By knocking down two of his eight attempts from beyond the arc in Sunday’s Los Angeles Clippers-Utah Jazz matchup, Harden moved into second all-time behind Curry.

“I’m one of the most confident guys that we have in this league,” Harden told reporters on Sunday night. “I probably won’t catch Steph [Curry]. I don’t think anybody will, honestly. He just… I don’t know. He can shoot the [expletive] out of the ball.”

After Sunday’s game, Harden has 2,974 threes to his name. Curry is out in front with over 800 more threes and counting.

While he’s not necessarily confident in his ability to catch the Warriors superstar, Harden still feels great about his accomplishment as he continues to play a pivotal role at age 35 in LA.

Since 2009, Harden has been a reliable long-range shooter. Although he wasn’t shooting threes at a high volume during his early years in Oklahoma City, Harden averaged six threes per game during his first season with the Houston Rockets. Each year since 2012, he upped the volume.

In his final two seasons with the Rockets, Harden was averaging 12 threes per game. When he took a slightly minimized role with the Brooklyn Nets, that number dropped to seven.

The Sixers acquired Harden during the 2021-2022 season. He played in just 21 games that year, putting up seven threes per game. Harden added 46 of his threes during that stretch. The following year, Harden re-signed with the Sixers and played a full season with them, which turned out to be 58 games. He knocked down 161 of his threes for a 39 percent average throughout the year in 2022-2023.

The ten-time All-Star will continue building on his legacy with the Clippers out west.

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA

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