Miami's Best 3-Point Shooters: The 5 Leaders by FGs
The style of play in the National Basketball Association (NBA) is much different today than it was 30 years ago. This is in large part due to analytics and the prevalence of the three-point shot. During the 1993-94 season, teams averaged just 9.9 three-point attempts per game. In the 2022-23 season, teams averaged 34.2 attempts from beyond the arc, so it's no surprise that players in the modern era are among the league's franchise leaders in three-point shooting statistics.
This is true with the Miami Heat; two of the team's three all-time leaders in three-point field goals, Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro, were on the Heat roster in the 2023-24 season. Moreover, both players are in their 20s with only a combined 11 seasons of experience between them.
Below is a breakdown of the Heat's five all-time leaders in three-pointers.
1. Duncan Robinson
Robinson, a 29-year-old small forward and shooting guard from York, Maine, had 1,006 career three-point field goals as of March 29, 2024. He became the NBA player to record at least 1,000 three-pointers the quickest when he reached the achievement in his 343rd career regular season game. Fittingly, he set the record in Michigan against the Detroit Pistons; Robinson starred for the Michigan Wolverines and was passed over in the NBA Draft before signing with Miami.
Robinson has established himself as one of the best shooters in the NBA since signing with the Heat in 2018. His personal best, 270 three-pointers in the 2019-20 season, is currently tied with Damian Lillard for 20th-most in a single season. He shot a career-best 44.6 percent from beyond the arc that year and finished 14th in Most Improved Player voting. He made 250 and 232 three-pointers in the following two seasons. Robinson became the Heat's all-time leader in threes made with 807, surpassing Tim Hardaway, in a December 30, 2022, game against the Denver Nuggets.
"It's pretty remarkable what he's been able to do and how much he's had to overcome with a different path to get to this point," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. "I'm happy for him and I know Tim is happy for him too."
2. Tim Hardaway
Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2022, Hardaway played 367 games in six seasons with Miami from 1995-96 to 2000-01 and made 806 three-point field goals. Acquired from the Golden State Warriors for Bimbo Coles and Kevin Willis, Hardaway was an All-Star in each of his first two seasons with the Heat and made a career-high 203 three-point field goals in the 1996-97 season. This was the fifth-most among all players; Reggie Miller led the league with 229.
Hardaway, a first-round pick in the 1989 NBA Draft, was a five-time All-Star and later played for the Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets, and Indiana Pacers before retiring following the 2002-03 season. He finished his career with 1,542 three-pointers on 4,345 attempts for a success rate of 35.5 percent.
3. Tyler Herro
A 6-foot-5 shooting guard selected by the Heat with the 13th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, Herro has already cemented himself as one of Miami's best-ever shooters through just four full seasons in the NBA. He has averaged at least 13.5 points per game (PPG) since his rookie season and won Sixth Man of the Year in 2021-22 after averaging a career-best 20.7 PPG while coming off the bench in 56 of the 66 games in which he played.
Herro made a career-high 203 three-point field goals in 2022-23. He also led the league with a 93.4 free throw percentage that season.
4. Eddie Jones
A decorated NBA veteran of 14 seasons, Eddie Jones played 387 games with Miami through six seasons and ranks fourth all-time in made three-pointers with 712. He scored a career-best 177 three-point field goals with Miami in the 2003-04 season, shooting 37 percent from beyond the arc while averaging 17.3 PPG. Selected 10th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1994 NBA Draft, Jones made 1,546 career threes on 4,147 attempts for a 37.3 percent success rate.
Jones played 954 career regular season games with the Heat, Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Charlotte Hornets, and Dallas Mavericks. He was a three-time All-Star, three-time All-Defensive team member, and led the league in steals (2.7 per game) in the 1999-00 season.
5. Glen Rice
Also a three-time NBA All-Star, Glen Rice is fifth all-time in made threes for Miami with 708 in 478 games through six seasons. Miami's first pick, fourth overall in the 1989 NBA Draft, Rice averaged at least 13.6 PPG in each of his six seasons in Miami. After making just 17 threes in his first season, he recorded 71 the following year and followed that up with totals of 155, 148, 132, and 185.
Rice made a career-high 207 three-point field goals in 1996-97 with the Hornets and led all players with a 47 percent success rate from beyond the arc. He retired following the 2003-04 season with 1,559 made threes in 1,000 career regular season games.