On Friday night, Chicago beat the Philadelphia 76ers for the first time since March thanks in large part to Zach LaVine’s 11 three-pointers.
There have been two more 3-pointers made in a game by this team. This is the most? LaVine scored 13 points on the road against the Charlotte Hornets on November 23.
To Adam Amin and Stacey King of NBC Sports Chicago, “after I got it flowing, that basket looked like an ocean,” LaVine said during the game.
After making his first eight 3-point attempts, LaVine missed a heat check attempt from in close proximity to the Bulls’ bench. The Bulls made a season-high 20 three-pointers, and he shot 11 for 13.
To make at least 11 three-pointers at an 80 percent or better clip, LaVine joined Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors as the only players in NBA history to do so. Following the explosive game, LaVine’s 3-point percentage increased from 37.8 to 40.1.
Only 2 players in NBA history have recorded a game with 11 made threes on 80%+ 3PT shooting.
Stephen Curry
Zach LaVine pic.twitter.com/eHENLTxS9w— NBA History (@NBAHistory) January 7, 2023
LaVine moved past Ben Gordon earlier this season to become the second player in franchise history with the second-most 3-pointers made. With 836 3-pointers made with the Bulls, LaVine is second all-time behind only Kirk Hinrich’s 1,049 3-pointers.
Since 2015, LaVine has played 67 and 58 games per season, and in those two years, he has made 185 and 200 three-pointers, respectively. This means that Hinrich is a target.
A night like this serves as a reminder of LaVine’s potency as one of the league’s most unselfish scorers and his strength in catch-and-shoot situations. The Bulls scored 33, coming within one point of their season-high, and had six assists.
Nikola Vucevic completed with a triple-double, and he set the offensive tone by capitalizing on mismatches early against the Joel Embiid-less 76ers. Even after a night in which he came close to setting a record, LaVine refused to take any of the glory for himself.
Vooch, he told Amin and King, was the game’s most valuable player.
