Heat sharpshooter Wayne Ellington tabbed for 3-point contest during All-Star weekend
Wayne Ellington has made 153 3-pointers so far this season, fourth-most in the NBA.
MIAMI -- The NBA announced Thursday that Miami HEAT guard Wayne Ellington has been selected to participate in the JBL Three-Point Shootout at the 2018 NBA All-Star Saturday Night event in Los Angeles at the Staples Center on February 17.
Ellington will become the seventh HEAT player to be represented in the event, joining James Jones (2012 & 2011), Mario Chalmers (2012), Daequan Cook (2009 & 2010), Jason Kapono (2007), Glen Rice (1991 & 1995) and Jon Sundvold (1989 & 1990). Additionally, four different HEAT players (Jones in 2011, Cook in 2009, Kapono in 2007 and Rice in 1995) have won the event, the most players by any team in NBA history.
Ellington has currently connected on a team-high 153 made three-point field goals this season, with 144 of those coming as a reserve, marking the most off the bench (30 more than the next highest player) and the fourth-most overall in the entire NBA. He has already surpassed his career single-season high for made three-pointers, which was 149 from last year. His 40.2 percent from downtown this season is the second-highest percentage during his nine-year career and is currently the fifth-highest in the NBA by any player with at least 130 made treys. He recently hit 52 three-point field goals in January, tying his record for the most by any HEAT player for a single month in team history after first setting the record in December when he also connected on 52 three-point field goals. He has now become the first player in HEAT franchise history to record 50+ made threes in consecutive months.
Ellington has connected on at least six treys in nine games this season, already the most for a single-season in HEAT history, surpassing the previous record of eight such games by Tim Hardaway and Voshon Lenard during the 1996-97 campaign. He appeared in his 100th game with Miami on December 5, having connected on 259 threes over that span, the most in team history for a player’s first 100 games as a member of the HEAT. Additionally, Ellington looks to become the first player in NBA history to shoot at least 82 percent of their shots from three-point range with at least 400 attempts. Currently, he has shot 381 of his 456 total attempts this season from downtown, marking as 83.6 percent of his attempts coming from beyond the arc. No player has ever achieved that feat since the NBA instituted the three-point line during the 1979-80 season.
Players will compete in a two-round competition with the top three finishers from the first round advancing to the finals. Five shooting stations will be set up around the three-point line, with four racks containing four orange balls worth one point each and one multi-colored ball (money ball) worth two points and a fifth “all money ball” rack in which each ball is worth two points. Each player will have one minute to shoot as many balls as they can.
Other invitees joining Ellington include Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, Paul George, Eric Gordon, Tobias Harris, Kyle Lowry and Klay Thompson.
