[hardwaregeek]

That's not a huge difference. 3% is like an average of 3 extra misses, which is probably not even that noticeable with variance. 3 pointers are not replacing 2 pointers with equal percentages, but they are creating opportunities for higher percentage 2 pointers.

> Crowding is not necessarily bad. A contested shot is interesting; an uncontested shot, not so much. Even uncontested dunks are less interesting than contested dunks.

That's because you're thinking of a really cool dunk, not a big man backing down his man for like 20 seconds and throwing up a clanker that gets rebounded into another 20 second post possession. Realistically that's what a lot of offense was like back in the day. There's just selective nostalgia for the really cool plays.

[lapcat]

> That's not a huge difference. 3% is like an average of 3 extra misses

More like 5 extra misses per game.

And we're getting more uncontested misses today.

> a big man backing down his man for like 20 seconds and throwing up a clanker that gets rebounded into another 20 second post possession. Realistically that's what a lot of offense was like back in the day.

But this clearly wasn't happening 64% of the time.

The irony is that contemporary players are better shooters. Yet their overall shooting % is lower, because they're consistently taking longer, harder shots.

[cma]

Can't it be that defense got better too? Free throw percentage is up since '95 so they aren't just less accurate in general at that distance.

[lapcat]

If shooting and defense got better simultaneously, then all other things equal, overall shooting % should have stayed about the same, not gone down.

Also, as hardwaregeek mentioned: "And in turn, the game has become less crowded and more spread out, leading to a higher percentage on dunks and layups."

[cma]

> If shooting and defense got better simultaneously, then all other things equal, overall shooting % should have stayed about the same, not gone down.

Why? Getting better simultaneously doesn't imply getting better in a way to perfectly equal out.

[kenjackson]

Perimeter defense is way better now. In the old days most 3s were uncontested. It’s a shot they just wanted you to take.

[kingraoul]

The disrespect for the low post game. I sentence you to watch McHale nightlights.