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Warriors’ Ellis joins elite group
By Jeremy Kahn March 1, 2008 |
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When the month of February concluded on Friday night, Monta Ellis became an exclusive member of a elite and very small group. The third-year guard out of Lanier High School in Mississippi became just the ninth guard in NBA history to top the 60 percent plateau from the floor in an entire month. Ellis, the starting point guard for the Golden State Warriors, who won the 2006-2007 NBA Most Improved Player Award join the likes of former Warriors guard Rickey Pierce, Hall of Famer Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, Jim Paxson, Fred Brown, John Stockton, current Warriors shooting coach Sidney Moncrief, who accomplished the feat as Don Nelson as his head coach, as it turns out, Nelson is currently the coach of the Warriors., Brad Davis and Steve Nash. Monroe was the first guard to turn the trick when he shot 62.4 percent from the floor as a member of the New York Knicks in January of 1976. Paxson was next to join Monroe, in January of 1980, while Paxson played for the Portland Trail Blazers. Just two months in March of 1980, after Paxson turned the trick, Moncrief joined the group, as he shot 61.7 percent for the Milwaukee Bucks and Nelson. That same month, Davis shot 61.4 percent from the field while wearing the uniform of the Utah Jazz, which happened to the first year of the Jazz playing in Salt Lake City after playing their first five years in New Orleans. Less than two years later, Brown, who was known as “Downtown Freddie” during his playing career, shot 63.9 percent from the floor, while suiting up for the Seattle SuperSonics. Four and a half years later, Pierce shot 62.1 percent in November of 1986, while playing for the Milwaukee Bucks. In March of 1987, Stockton shot 60.5 percent form the field for the Utah Jazz. Ten months later, Pierce would become the first player ever to accomplish the feat twice, as he shot exactly 60 percent from the floor, while playing for the Bucks. One month later, Stockton became the second player to turn the trick, as he shot a whopping 66.9 percent, which is still the record. This rare occurrence would take place for another seven years, when Nash in the midst of his first of back-to-back MVP seasons shot 60.7 percent from the floor, while playing for the Phoenix Suns. |
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