NBA history was made on Thursday night as Indiana Pacers shooting guard Buddy Hield of Freeport, Bahamas became the fastest player to make a three-point shot to begin a game. According to ESPN, Hield made a shot from long range only three seconds into the first quarter in their 135-126 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The old NBA record also had a Pacers connection. That is because future NBA Hall of Famer Reggie Miller of Riverside, California made a three-point shot four seconds into the game in a 114-95 Pacers win over the Golden State Warriors on March 5, 2000.
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Hield finished the game with 25 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals. Of Hield’s 25 points, he made five of six three-point shots. Hield was one of four Pacers players with 20 points or more. The others were Tyrese Haliburton of Oshkosh, Wisconsin (29 points), rookie Bennedict Mathurin of Montreal, Quebec, Canada (23 points), and Aaron Nesmith of Charleston, South Carolina (22 points). It is interesting that the two main principal Pacers players who were involved in a blockbuster trade on February 8 (Hield and Haliburton) between Indiana and Sacramento, combined to score 54 points on Thursday.
On the season, Hield is averaging 17.9 points per game, 4.7 rebounds per game, and 2.6 assists per game. He has a field goal percentage of .461, three-point percentage of .427, and a free throw percentage of .857. The Pacers are in sixth place in the Eastern Conference at 19 wins and 17 losses. The Cavaliers are in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 22 wins and 14 losses.
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