Lucca could work at world record

[pdxclone]

With all the rep Lucca has earned for his 3 point shooting before games (http://www.cyclonefanatic.com/forum/...big-thing.html (Lucca will be the next big thing!)), perhaps he could burn up some spare time breaking the three-point world record.

Local sharpshooter breaks three-point world record
By Matthew Sherman

The West Linn Tidings, Feb 14, 2008


One of the most prolific world records for three-point shooting used to be held by Dave Hopla, the current shooting instructor for the NBA’s Washington Wizards.

Hopla drained 20 shots from behind the arc in one minute to set the mark and, if was to be broken, one might imagine basketball stars like Michael Redd, Raja Bell or even Portland Trail Blazer James Jones would be the one to do it.

But last summer, the record wasn’t just broken, it was shattered by West Linn resident and Wilsonville High School graduate Dan Loriaux.

Loriaux hit 25 NBA-range three-pointers in a minute. And, just recently, that total was verified by Guinness, making him the new champion.

And Loriaux knows that total wasn’t even his best effort. To officially set a Guinness World Record, all measurements must be verified and two non-partisan witnesses also need to be present. And if a representative from Guinness is not present, a camera must be set up that clearly shows the entire path of each shot.

That proved to be the most difficult obstacle in Loriaux’s way. When he first attempted the feat, he beat the record from the college line and was then informed it needed to be from NBA-range.

So he took a few steps back and broke it even more soundly.

Once everything was in order for his official attempt at the record at ClubSport in Tigard, Loriaux only had time for two tries. First, he knocked down 24 threes. Then he hit 25. Simple as that. In that minute Loriaux generally can get 30 shots off and, for him, 83 percent is actually fairly pedestrian.

“I missed a few and I know I can do a little better. It’s a little harder with the witnesses and the cameras set up,” he said.

Loriaux took the shots from the top of the key with a spotter feeding him basketballs from a rack.

Loriaux first thought about attempting the record when his brother was flipping through the family’s Guinness World Record books and, after seeing the mark, knew instantly that he could break it.

Growing up, Loriaux, who is now a freshman at the University of California Santa Barbara, used to take a minimum of 3,000 shots a day.

“It’s just repetition. You can be as good as you make yourself. If you take that many shots you’re bound to get to a point where you get pretty good at it,” Loriaux said.

Now he doesn’t have time for that much work but still gets on the court on a daily basis. A few weeks ago, Loriaux said he drained 63 consecutive three-pointers and he has also hit 99-of-100 attempts from that range before.

In high school, Loriaux competed for Wilsonville’s team but his three-point shooting prowess was difficult to showcase in the team’s defensive-minded style. Today the freshman still plays in pick-up games but when he is at the gym, he generally just prefers to take jump shots. But don’t challenge him to a game of H-O-R-S-E.

“As long as I can remember I haven’t lost. Maybe if someone threw in some hook shots or something,” Loriaux said. Over the past week, Loriaux has received a lot of attention and was even contacted by Good Morning America.

Loriaux doesn’t rule out the possibility of another official attempt at breaking his own record. He was unable to find what the record for consecutive three-pointers made, however, but knows that the mark for made free throws is an absurd 5,221.

“Yeah, I haven’t taken a shot at that. Maybe that’s next,” Loriaux said with a laugh.

[cyclonemaniac7]

That's nuts! I'd rather have Lucca studying the playbook though.

[Phaedrus]

Coincidentally, the word "hopla" is from the Greek "Arms, armor, or to bear arms", but is now used when referring to the scientific art of shooting guns.

If he didn't change his name to match his profession, that is sure one of those long-shot coincidence thingies.