In today’s NBA it goes without saying that one of the most desirable traits is to accurately and consistently shoot the ball at range. As we gear up for the NBA postseason I want to look at the most lethal snipers by position for the 2023 NBA season using an interesting metric called SQ, or Shot Quality. This is a metric taken from CraftedNBA that is “2 parts spacing + 5 parts padding shooting percentages, blended 75/25 with a player’s career spacing rating, converted to a 1-100 point scale.”
Let’s dive right in to the 10 most lethal shooters at each position by SQ and see what stands out! (Min 1000 MP)
PG:
- Stephen Curry (100)
- Damian Lillard (84.2)
- Malcolm Brogdon (82.4)
- Kyrie Irving (82.2)
- Anfernee Simons (80.1)
- Tyrese Haliburton (80)
- Darius Garland (78.9)
- Fred VanVleet (77.5)
- Immanuel Quickley (76.8)
- Tyrese Maxey (76)
No real surprises here as Steph is not only the clear leader but he entirely laps the field, nearly 16 points higher than Dame. From a volume and efficiency standpoint this is debatably his best individual campaign since his all-time, pantheon-level 2015-16 season. He’s shooting 50/44/92 with a 116 TS+ (In 2016 he had a TS+ of 124 which is insane!). Regardless, we aren’t shocked to see him leading the pack followed by typical star sharpshooters in Dame and Kyrie as well as up-and-coming stars like Tyrese and Darius.
Speaking of up and coming stars, I wonder if we’re seeing one in Simons. From last year to this year he’s upped his volume considerably without seeing a drop in efficiency, specifically eFG%. I think a big reason the Blazers have stayed somewhat relevant in the play-in race is because Simons has comfortably stepped in as a viable CJ replacement next to Dame.
I found it fascinating that 3 of the top favorites for 6th Man of the Year are on this list, Brogdon, Quickley and Maxey. I’ve talked about the 6MOY race in a previous article but all 3 players are having fantastic shooting seasons and are each vital to teams vying for playoff contention.
SG:
- Klay Thompson (87.7)
- Desmond Bane (86.6)
- Buddy Hield (86.2)
- Seth Curry (85.8)
- Grayson Allen (82.3)
- Damion Lee (80.5)
- Isaiah Joe (80.2)
- Tyler Herro (78.9)
- James Harden (78.5)
- Donovan Mitchell (76.7)
Klay and Steph #1 at their respective positions? I don’t think we’re shocked. We see more familiar names like Bane, Hield and the other Curry brother.
It’s cool to see a real return to true All-Star form from James Harden after some naysayers were calling for the end of his capacity to contribute to a winning team. He’s not only leading the league in assists per game but he’s shooting a career high 39.6% from 3 on over 7 attempts per game. Easily one of Harden’s greatest seasons ever.
3 role players crash the top 10 in Grayson, Damion and Isaiah. My favorites of the bunch has to be Joe. He’s one of the best “open” 3-point shooters in the league. With the closest defender being 4-6 feet away Isaiah Joe is shooting 42.6% from 3 which is 6th best in the league (min. 160 attempts). Safe to say Philly may end up regretting waiving him this past summer. He’s on a multi-year deal with OKC with a team option in 2024-25 and at age 23 he may be setting himself up for a nice pay day a couple years down the line.
SF:
- Bojan Bogdanovic (81.9)
- Trey Murphy III (81.4)
- Kawhi Leonard (80.6)
- Paul George (77.2)
- Corey Kispert (76.4)
- Patrick Williams (76.4)
- Doug McDermott (75.7)
- Jayson Tatum (74.9)
- Saddiq Bey (74.5)
- Mikal Bridges (73.5)
BOGEY! For reasons that elude me the Pistons didn’t move him this year despite his not fitting the team’s current timeline in the slightest. Like what are we doing here? There are several playoff contenders that could use as a dynamic runaround wing like Bogey. He’s 33 but he’s been sneaky durable throughout his career and is easily having his best individual season averaging 21.6 ppg on 49/41/88 splits.
Shoutout to Dougy McBuckets who is shooting 47.9% on “open” 3’s this year which is best in the league.
Love seeing recent draft picks like Kispert and Williams find some footing as valuable pieces for their teams, especially Pat. After spotty playing time his first two seasons as a Bull he’s played in 68 games this year and is shooting 43% from 3 over the last 20 games.
PF:
- Georges Niang (83.1)
- Kevin Durant (80.5)
- Michael Porter Jr. (79)
- Lauri Markkanen (77.7)
- Keegan Murray (71.3)
- Sam Hauser (70.7)
- Kevin Love (70.2)
- Tobias Harris (69.9)
- Harrison Barnes (66.9)
- Marcus Morris (66.4)
One quick caveat as we move into the PFs and Cs is that we will naturally see the average SQ number drop as it’s primarily backcourt players that are the best shooters in the league, that goes without saying. It’s just interesting to see which 4’s and 5’s are stretching the floor for their teams.
How about rookie Keegan Murray?? It is beyond impressive to see a rookie come into his first season and not only be a full time starter but contribute significantly for a team that is right in the thick of title contention. That’s exactly what Murray is doing for the Kings this year. He’s shooting over 40% on 6 attempts per game and he’s shooting over 45% one “wide open” 3s (closest defender is 6+ feet away).
C:
- Kristaps Porzingis (69.6)
- Kelly Olynyk (67.6)
- Nikola Jokic (65.7)
- Joel Embiid (62.6)
- Al Horford (62.4)
- Brook Lopez (59.6)
- Myles Turner (58.7)
- Thomas Bryant (58.7)
- Chris Boucher (56.7)
- Jonas Valanciunas (56)
Love seeing Porzingis have an incredibly solid campaign out east in the nation’s capital. He’s arguably having his best and healthiest campaign since his last year in New York and he’s shooting and making 3’s at a healthy volume. It appears he’s found a healthy medium in his shot profile as well. In Dallas his 3Pr (3 point rate) was about 40% over his 2 1/2 seasons there. This year it’s closer to 35% as it appears he’s using the 3 as a weapon while still operating within 10 feet of the basket as well.
I’m excited for a stretch playoff run with Brook Lopez. The “Brook-assiance” has been beyond fun to watch. Even in my wildest dreams I couldn’t have expected him to be as impactful for the Bucks this year as he is after his injury last year held him to only 13 games. He continues to rain fire from the corners shooting 39.7% on corner 3s, right around his career average.
What stands out to you on the league’s snipers this year? Which players on playoff teams do you expect to come up big this postseason?