Photo credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
Luke Kennard Tailing Fellow Duke Basketball Alum for NBA 3-Point Title
Memphis Grizzlies guard Luke Kennard helped snap a nine-game losing streak by shooting 4-for-6 from downtown in Wednesday night's 121-113 victory over the visiting Houston Rockets. The former two-year Duke basketball sharpshooter finished with 19 points, two rebounds, two assists, and one steal in 30 minutes as a starter.
Kennard has recorded the league's highest 3-point percentage in each of the past two seasons and is now knocking on the door of making it three straight. His 45.5 percent trails only the 48.2 percent that fellow NBA Blue Devil guard Grayson Allen has posted as a full-time starter in his first season with the Phoenix Suns.
There's another Duke pro among the NBA's 3-point leaders in Washington Wizards starting guard Tyus Jones, a former teammate to Allen in Durham for the 2015 national champions. He ranks No. 15 with his 42.6 percent. So, as things stand, Blue Devils account for the top two and 20 percent of the top 15.
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But back to Kennard. Between his past 10 outings, the 27-year-old Ohio native, drafted No. 12 overall in 2017, has heated up to the tune of a 37-for-70 (52.9 percent) clip beyond the arc.
Although his first full campaign with the Grizzlies has included roughly a six-week absence due to a bone bruise in his left knee, Luke Kennard is putting up respectable averages: 10.9 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in only 24.7 minutes per game.
Kennard and the Grizzlies (19-36) next face the Milwaukee Bucks (35-20) in Memphis at 8:30 p.m. ET Thursday.
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