Jason Kapono

Infobox NBA Player
name = Jason Kapono


position = Small forward / Shooting guard
height_ft = 6 | height_in = 8
weight_lbs = 215
league = NBA
team = Toronto Raptors
number = 24
nationality = American
birth_date = birth date and age|1981|2|4
birth_place = Long Beach, California
college = UCLA
high school = Artesia
draft = 2nd round, 31st overall
draft_year = 2003
draft_team = Cleveland Cavaliers
career_start = 2003
former_teams = Cleveland Cavaliers (2003–2004)
Charlotte Bobcats (2004–2005)
Miami Heat (2005–2007)
awards = 2006 NBA Champion
2007 3-Point Shootout Champion
2008 3-Point Shootout Champion

Jason Alan Kapono (born February 4 1981 in Long Beach, California) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the NBA's Toronto Raptors.

Early career

Jason enjoyed a storied college career at UCLA, where he finished as the third all-time leading scorer with 2,095 points, [ [http://www.nba.com/playerfile/jason_kapono/bio.html Jason Kapono - Bio] , nba.com, accessed 18 February 2008.] was the first Bruin to earn First Team All-Pac-10 honors all four years, and was the only UCLA player to lead the school in scoring four straight years. After his senior season, Kapono was a second-round draft choice of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2003 NBA Draft.

NBA career

After his rookie season with Cleveland, he was selected by the Charlotte Bobcats in the 2004 expansion draft, where he improved his scoring average from 3.5 to 8.5 points per game. He also made the first block in Bobcats history. Later, he was traded to the Miami Heat where he was part of the 2005–06 NBA champion team.

In the 2006–07 season, Kapono's points-per-game average and minutes played significantly increased, and he led the league in three-point percentage with .514, which is close to the all time single season three-point percentage record held by Steve Kerr (.524), and is the fourth best percentage in league season history. Kapono also won the 2007 All-Star Weekend three-point shoot-out competition by defeating Dirk Nowitzki and Gilbert Arenas in the final round with a score of 24 points which tied Mark Price's record for most points in a final round of the 3-point contest.

Kapono repeated the feat in 2008, having led the league in three-point percentage going into the All-Star weekend. In the final round of the contest, he scored 25 points, tying the all-time single round record set in 1986. [McMenamin, Dave, [http://www.nba.com/allstar2008/features/saturday_20080216.html "Kapono Lights Up Saturday Night"] , nba.com, 17 February 2008, accessed 18 February 2008.] He also ended the 2007–08 season as the top three-point shooter in the league. [ [http://www.nba.com/statistics/player/3PointS.jsp?league=00&season=22007&conf=OVERALL&position=0&splitType=9&splitScope=GAME&qualified=Y&yearsExp=-1&splitDD= 2007-08 THREE POINTERS LEADERS: 3-Point FG Percentage] , nba.com, accessed 26 August 2008.]

NBA record

On November 25 2007, Kapono became the most accurate 3-point shooter in NBA history. On this date he made his 250th three-point shot, qualifying him for the NBA record in 3-point shooting accuracy. He immediately moved into first place with a .461 ratio of 3-point shots made to shots attempted, moving ahead of Steve Kerr, who had the previous lifetime best at 0.454. He is the leader among only 27 players in NBA history to have a shooting accuracy of 0.400 or greater. [ [http://www.nba.com/statistics/default_all_time_leaders/AllTimeLeadersFG3PQuery.html?topic=4&stat=6 All Time Leaders: Three Point Field Goal Percentage] , nba.com, accessed 31 January 2008.]

National team

Kapono was picked for the USA Basketball Select Team which will train with USA Men's Senior National Team in Las Vegas to assist in the build up to the 2008 Summer Olympics.

NBA career statistics

: "Correct as of 28 June 2008" [ [http://www.nba.com/playerfile/jason_kapono/career_stats.html - Career Stats and Totals] , nba.com, accessed 28 November 2007.]

Regular season

-
align="left" | 2003–04
align="left" | Cleveland
41 || 3 || 10.4 || .403 || .477 || .833 || 1.3 || .3 || .3 || .1 || 3.5
-
align="left" | 2004–05
align="left" | Charlotte
81 || 14 || 18.4 || .401 || .412 || .824 || 2.0 || .8 || .5 || .1 || 8.5
-
align="left" | 2005–06
align="left" | Miami
51 || 2 || 13.0 || .446 || .396 || .848 || 1.4 || .7 || .1 || .1 || 4.1
-
align="left" | 2006–07
align="left" | Miami
67 || 35 || 26.4 || .494 || .514 || .892 || 2.7 || 1.2 || .6 || .0 || 10.9
-
align="left" | 2007–08
align="left" | Toronto
81 || 7 || 18.9 || .488 || .483 || .860 || 1.5 || .8 || .4 || .0 || 7.2
-
align="left" | Career
align="left" |
321 || 61 || 18.3 || .452 || .464 || .853 || 1.8 || .8 || .4 || .0 || 7.3
###@@@KEYEND@@@###

Playoffs

-
align="left" | 2005–06
align="left" | Miami
1 || 0 || 2.0 || .000 || .000 || .000 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0
-
align="left" | 2006–07
align="left" | Miami
4 || 1 || 19.3 || .471 || .500 || 1.000 || 1.3 || .5 || .5 || .0 || 5.0
-
align="left" | 2007–08
align="left" | Toronto
5 || 0 || 30.4 || .585 || .542 || .750 || 2.6 || .8 || .4 || .0 || 15.6
-
align="left" | Career
align="left" |
10 || 1 || 23.1 || .557 || .536 || .833 || 1.8 || .6 || .4 || .0 || 9.8
###@@@KEYEND@@@###

Notes

External links

* [http://www.nba.com/playerfile/jason_kapono/ NBA.com Profile - Jason Kapono]
* [http://www.sportsstats.com/jazzyj/greats/03/kapono.htm Jason Kapono stats as UCLA player]