Sonics Happy With 3-Point Line

When the NBA announced before the season it was moving the 3-point line from 22 feet to its original distance of 23 feet, 9 inches, most teams let out a collective groan.

But the Seattle SuperSonics were quietly delighted. They had some of the best long-distance shooters in the game, and moving the line back would prove just who the real marksmen were.

Indeed, as the Sonics head into the second half of the season with the best record in the league (37-10), the most prominent staple of their success has been the 3-point shot.

They rank first in the league in 3-point shooting at 39 percent, and the Sonics say despite the danger of experiencing frigid shooting at any time, they are going to run through the second portion of the year with the same philosophy.

“We’re going to live with it, we’ll go down with it,” coach George Karl said. “Our guys are shooting it at such a good clip that we are going to continue shooting it this year.”

The Sonics have been so successful this season because they have three players - Dale Ellis, Detlef Schrempf and Hersey Hawkins - shooting better than 40 percent. Ellis leads the league at 49.6 percent, making 79 3s as a reserve.

Ellis, in fact, has been a huge factor in the Sonics’ early domination. And he is the key reason they are one of only eight teams - Dallas, Indiana, the Clippers, Milwaukee, Sacramento, San Antonio, Vancouver and Washington are the others - who have increased their 3-point percentage since last season, when they shot 35.3 percent. The 3.7 percent increase is the best in the league, followed by the Mavericks’ 3.5 percent.