What is the NBA single-game record for most 3-pointers? Full list of leaders for regular season and NBA playoffs

The 3-point shot, led primarily by the duo of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, has grown in frequency over the past decade in the NBA. 

Just looking at the average 3-pointers attempted paints a very clear picture. Early in the 2021-22 season, the NBA's 75th year, the average 3-point shots attempted are 35.5, just shy of being double the average of 18.4 from the 2011-12 season. 

The same can be seen in the number of single-game 3-point records broken over the past few years, both in the regular season and the playoffs. 

Single-game Regular season record 

For over a decade, Donyell Marshall and Kobe Bryant jointly held the record for most 3-pointers in a single regular-season game. In 2016, during his unanimous MVP season, Stephen Curry tied that tally. 

In the five years since, three players have knocked down more than 12 3-pointers in a single-game. First, Curry broke his own record that same year before his teammate Klay Thompson set the NBA record with 14 at the start of the 2018-19 season. 

A year later, Zach LaVine put his name alongside these greats when he knocked down 13. 

Of the 26 times an NBA player has knocked down 11 3-pointers, all but four have occurred in 2015 or later. Curry, the greatest shooter this game has seen, accounts for 12 of them. No other player in league history has done it more than twice.

Single-game Playoffs record

The impact of the 3-point shot in the postseason has been the same, albeit slightly delayed. All instances of a player knocking down more than nine 3-pointers have come after 2016. 

Klay Thompson first broke then then long-time record of nine 3-pointers in a single playoff game, jointly held by multiple players (Jason Terry, Ray Allen, Rex Chapman, Vince Carter), when he knocked down 11 3-pointers during his epic Game 6 performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2016. 

This past postseason in 2021, Damian Lillard broke that record when he knocked down 12 en route to scoring 55 against the Denver Nuggets. 

Prior to Lillard's eruption, Thompson held the record for most 3-pointers in a single game in both the regular season and playoffs. 

Of the 14 times an NBA player knocked down nine 3-pointers in a postseason, all but five have come after 2018. 

Single-game Playoffs record (quarter)

After struggling in his previous match-ups vs. the Boston Celtics in the 2021-22 regular season, Stephen Curry let it fly in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The Warriors point guard left no doubt he's the greatest shooter of all-time. 

Steph just set an #NBAFinals record and we're only a quarter into the series 🤯 pic.twitter.com/rkCbPf5SLh

— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) June 3, 2022

Curry set an NBA Finals record in Game 1 with by connecting on six 3-pointers in the first quarter. He tied Antoine Walker's playoff record of most three's in a quarter, a feat the Celtics forward set in the first round of the 2002 playoffs vs. the 76ers. 

Additionally, Curry's 21 first-quarter points are the most in a Finals quarter since Michael Jordan had 22 in the 4th quarter of Game 4 against Phoenix in 1993, per ESPN Stats & Info.

Team Single-game Regular season record 

The 3-pointer has become so important in today's NBA that teams design whole offensives based on the long-distance shot. 

The 2020-2021 Milwaukee Bucks have the record for most threes in a regular season game, splashing 29 in a matchup with the Miami Heat on December 29, 2020.

The 2020-2021 Utah Jazz and 2020-2021 Houston Rockets are both tied for second with 28 made three-pointers in a single game.

Team Single-game Playoffs record 

In NBA playoffs history, there have been a number of elite three-point shooting teams that have used the long-distance shot to create postseason magic.

The 2015-2016 Cleveland Cavaliers have the record for most threes in a playoff game, hitting 25 in Game 2 of their second-round series against the Atlanta Hawks.

The Cavaliers almost broke their own record a year later as they made 24 3-pointers in NBA Finals matchup against the Golden State Warriors. Cleveland's 24 3-pointers however, is an NBA Finals record.