Today I was going through some old stuff, and I found my notes on Pete Maravich’s college stats. That man was a legend! But it got me thinking, what if he played with a 3-point line? So, I decided to dig into this and see what I could come up with.
First, I pulled out all the game recordings and stats I could find of Maravich. It was a bit of a treasure hunt, but I managed to collect a decent amount. His stats are insane, even without the 3-pointer. I mean, the guy averaged 44.2 points per game over 83 games! That’s just crazy to think about.
Next, I started watching those old games. I focused on where he was shooting from. Former LSU coach Dale Brown was right; Maravich was often shooting from way beyond 20 feet. So, I marked down all the shots that would have been 3-pointers in today’s game. It was a lot!
- All-Time NCAA Career Scoring Leader with 3,667 points, an average of 44.2 points for 83 games.
- Ranks first, fourth and fifth for most points in a single season in NCAA history.
- Averaged 44.5 points in 1970, 44.2 points in 1969 and 43.8 points in 1968.
Then, I did some math, I added an extra point for each of those long-range shots. Based on what I saw and the notes from Sam King, it looked like Maravich would have easily averaged around 54 points a game if the 3-point line existed back then. It’s mind-blowing to consider how many more points he would have scored.
For comparison, I even looked at a modern player, James Harden. His percentage from beyond the arc was about 55%. I thought about how different the game is now with the 3-point line. It really changes everything!
What if…
This whole thing really made me think about how the game has evolved. It’s like, if Maravich played today, defenses would have to guard him so differently. His college career was from 1967 to 1970, and the 3-point line wasn’t adopted until way later in 1986. It’s almost unfair to compare eras, but it’s still fun to speculate.
Anyway, that’s my little deep dive into Pete Maravich’s stats with a hypothetical 3-point line. It’s amazing to think about what could have been. Let me know what you guys think!
