- \n
- John Salmons, 2009-10 Season (Chicago Bulls\/Milwaukee Bucks) \u2013 18.5% (20-for-108)<\/strong>
John Salmons, a solid journeyman wing, had a career defined by versatility rather than shooting prowess. In the 2009-10 season, split between the Bulls and Bucks, he posted one of the lowest 3-point percentages ever for a player with over 100 attempts. At 18.5%, Salmons\u2019 struggles were a mix of poor shot selection and a lack of natural touch from deep. His 108 attempts showed he was given the green light, but the results were disastrous. This mark stands as a benchmark for futility among players with a significant sample size.<\/li>\n\n\n\n- DeMar DeRozan, 2018-19 Season (San Antonio Spurs) \u2013 15.6% (7-for-45)<\/strong>
DeRozan\u2019s midrange mastery is well-documented, but his 3-point shooting has always been a weak spot. In 2018-19, his first year with the Spurs, he took a career-low 45 attempts from beyond the arc and made just 7, yielding a ghastly 15.6%. While this falls short of a 50-attempt minimum some might prefer, it\u2019s notable for a star player and reflects his reluctance\u2014and inability\u2014to adapt to the 3-point-heavy era under Gregg Popovich\u2019s system.<\/li>\n\n\n\n- Josh Smith, 2007-08 Season (Atlanta Hawks) \u2013 25.3% (38-for-150)<\/strong>
Josh Smith was an athletic marvel\u2014dunking, blocking shots, and soaring through the lane\u2014but his 3-point shot was a liability. In 2007-08, he jacked up 150 triples and hit just 38, for a 25.3% clip. Smith\u2019s insistence on shooting from deep, despite his clear limitations, made this one of the most inefficient high-volume seasons of its time. His career 28.5% from 3 underscores that this wasn\u2019t a fluke; he just wasn\u2019t built for it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n- Antoine Walker, 2000-01 Season (Boston Celtics) \u2013 25.6% (98-for-383)<\/strong>
Antoine Walker loved the 3-pointer, perhaps too much. In 2000-01, he launched a staggering 383 attempts\u2014massive volume for that era\u2014and connected on only 98, resulting in a 25.6% success rate. Walker\u2019s shoot-first mentality and willingness to fire away made him a pioneer of sorts, but his inefficiency at that volume lands him on this list. It\u2019s a testament to both his confidence and his struggles adapting to a skill he never fully mastered.<\/li>\n\n\n\n- Charles Barkley, 1995-96 Season (Phoenix Suns) \u2013 28.0% (49-for-175)<\/strong>
Yes, even Hall of Famers can flounder from deep. Barkley, known for his bruising post play and rebounding, took 175 3-point shots in 1995-96 and made just 49, for a 28.0% mark. While not as low as others percentage-wise, the volume and his reputation as a non-shooter make this season stand out. Barkley\u2019s career 26.6% from 3 shows this was par for the course, but 175 attempts from a power forward in the mid-90s was bold\u2014and often ugly.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\nHonorable Mentions<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Russell Westbrook, 2015-16 Season (Oklahoma City Thunder) \u2013 29.6% (71-for-240)<\/strong>: Westbrook\u2019s aggression extended to his 3-point shooting, often to his detriment. This season wasn\u2019t his worst percentage-wise, but the volume and inefficiency foreshadowed his career-long inconsistency from deep (30.5% overall).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, 2015-16 Season (Milwaukee Bucks) \u2013 17.1% (7-for-41)<\/strong>: An early-career low point for Giannis, though the small sample size keeps it off the main list. It\u2019s a reminder of how little he has improved, because this season he is heading to a similar percentage!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Giannis Antetokounmpo\u2019s 2024-25 Season: A Potential Contender?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-84.png?resize=359%2C540&ssl=1\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nNow, let\u2019s turn to the Greek Freak. As of March 29, 2025, Giannis Antetokounmpo\u2019s 2024-25 season is shaping up as one of his worst from beyond the arc. Known for his dominance inside and in transition, Giannis has never been a reliable 3-point shooter\u2014his career average sits at 28.6%\u2014but this year, he\u2019s plumbing new depths. Through roughly 60-65 games (assuming he\u2019s played most of the Bucks\u2019 schedule to date), he\u2019s averaging around 1.7 to 2.2 3-point attempts per game, a decrease from his peak volume seasons (e.g., 4.7 attempts in 2022-23). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This dip isn\u2019t entirely surprising. Giannis has trended toward fewer 3s under Doc Rivers, with only about 5-6% of his shots coming from deep this season, down from 13.8% two years ago. The Bucks\u2019 strategy has leaned into his strengths\u2014slashing, posting up, and drawing fouls\u2014rather than forcing an outside game he\u2019s never fully developed. Yet, if he maintains this pace and finishes with, say, 15-for-75 (20%) over 75 games, he\u2019d join the ranks of the worst 3-point seasons for a star player with a decent sample size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Could Giannis Crack the List?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
To land among the all-time worst, Giannis would need to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Increase his attempts<\/strong>: At his current rate (2 per game), he\u2019d finish with around 150-160 attempts if he plays 80 games. If he stays at 20%, that\u2019s 30-for-150\u2014a mark that rivals Josh Smith\u2019s 25.3% on similar volume.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Sustain the slump<\/strong>: His current 20-22% is bad, but not unprecedented for him (see 2015-16\u2019s 17.1%). However, with more attempts, it could become historically notable.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Right now, he\u2019s on pace to finish below Salmons\u2019 18.5% if he dips further, though his lower volume (likely under 100 attempts) might keep him off stricter lists. Still, for a two-time MVP and perennial All-NBA talent, a sub-22% season would be a glaring blemish, especially in an era where 3-point shooting is a prerequisite for many stars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why Giannis Struggles<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Giannis\u2019 3-point woes stem from his mechanics and shot selection. His form\u2014stiff, deliberate, and often rushed\u2014lacks the fluidity of natural shooters. Defences sag off him, daring him to fire, as if he\u2019s rarely taken enough reps to refine the skill. But we know he has. This season, his focus has shifted even more to the paint, to get easy stat padding buckets and average 30+ points per game. That’s all he seems to care about. 3-point struggles are a footnote and something he does out of frustration that more and more teams know how to shut him down in the paint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Verdict<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/image-85.png?resize=292%2C545&ssl=1\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nGiannis\u2019 2024-25 season won\u2019t topple Salmons or DeRozan for sheer futility unless he inexplicably ramps up his attempts and keeps missing. But if he finishes below 20% on, say, 80-100 attempts, he\u2019d carve out a spot among the worst star-player 3-point seasons\u2014think Barkley or early-career Westbrook territory. For now, he\u2019s a cautionary tale of what happens when a superstar neglects the 3-point revolution. It is particularly entertaining when Giannis fans complain about Jokic and other bigs getting the limelight. Jokic is shooting better than ever in his career this year at an impressive 41.2%. Because that is what intelligent players do, they develop their game. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Giannis is regressing. His fans say “who cares?” well come trade time you will see who cares! Especially since his free throws are worse than ever too! It gets to the stage where the coach says “just don’t shoot 3s” and the opposing coaches in clutch say “just foul Giannis, we have an almost 1 in 2 chance he misses!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The 3-point shot has become the heartbeat of modern NBA basketball, revolutionizing strategy and elevating players like Stephen Curry and Damian Lillard to legendary status. But for every sharpshooter, there\u2019s a player whose struggles from beyond the arc become infamous. Whether due to poor shot selection, lack of range, or just an off year, some […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1162,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11,4],"tags":[13,14,333,332,102,163,114,125],"class_list":["post-1157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-shooting","category-skills","tag-13","tag-3pt","tag-bricking","tag-bricks","tag-point","tag-points","tag-shooting","tag-three"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/giannis-bricks-3point-percentage-worse-ever.jpg?fit=700%2C700&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1157"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1157\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1165,"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1157\/revisions\/1165"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greekinter.net\/giannis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- Sustain the slump<\/strong>: His current 20-22% is bad, but not unprecedented for him (see 2015-16\u2019s 17.1%). However, with more attempts, it could become historically notable.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, 2015-16 Season (Milwaukee Bucks) \u2013 17.1% (7-for-41)<\/strong>: An early-career low point for Giannis, though the small sample size keeps it off the main list. It\u2019s a reminder of how little he has improved, because this season he is heading to a similar percentage!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- DeMar DeRozan, 2018-19 Season (San Antonio Spurs) \u2013 15.6% (7-for-45)<\/strong>