On offense, every player has a few areas that they favor when we talk about scoring. Someone like LeBron James is an extremely versatile player, but a large part of his scoring comes from finishing at the rim. Someone like Stephen Curry is a very capable finisher, but a lot of his points come from beyond the arc.
Kirk Goldsberry has recently released a list of leading scorers by distance for the last 25 years. The list was made by using data on scorers who made the most field goals from a particular distance.
Leading Scorers By Distance, Last 25 Years pic.twitter.com/dogDoNw1xe
— Kirk Goldsberry (@kirkgoldsberry) August 31, 2021
There are quite a few expected names on this list, and some of those players were featured in a previous list by Goldsberry, which ranked leading scorers by zone. LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal were known as dominant scorers in their primes, and here, they dominate from distances of 0-4 feet. Tim Duncan does well within the restricted area as well, with him dominating the area from 4-11 feet, though Shaquille O’Neal does win in the 6-7 feet range. When we get to the midrange we see Dirk Nowitzki, as well as Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James.
From beyond the arc, we have some prominent shooters from the modern era, as well as one from prior to the 3PT boom. Ray Allen made the most FGs from 3s that are right around the line, though Stephen Curry has the most FGs for the 26 feet to 30 feet. Damian Lillard dominates the area that’s even deeper than that, from 30 to 33 feet. A slightly surprising name on this list is Trae Young, who seems to have made the most FGs from right beyond half court.
There is no doubt that this is a useful infographic, and it just shows what areas scorers prefer to do their work from. Elite scorers generally have a lot of ways to score, though they will always have a skill that separates them from the rest.
