Is a stretch four a PF who stands 15 feet away from the rim?

Pistol Pete would be lucky to have the same career as Doug McDermott.

It used to be for damn sure.

It didn’t use to exist, because a 15 foot jumper isn’t stretching the floor in any meaningful way, even in 1975.

So who was the first elite shooter in the NBA?
Who was the first stretch 4?

The line didn't even exist for half of his career.

Who is the inventor of it?

So who was the first elite shooter in the NBA?

Reggie?

Jack Marin

I'm not even sure the modern definition of stretch 4 is correct compared to back in the day. Who's to say that maybe just the act of pulling out the defensive 4 20 feet from the hoop because the offensive 4 can hit that shot is in fact "stretching". I don't think it is but an argument can be made that the defense just lost their main rebounder because he's out defending the perimeter. In which case,

Jerry Lucas is the 1st Stretch 4.

Nardi may have saved ltg in this thread.

To me, the idea of a stretch 4 is that they have outside skills that bring their defender away from the basket. That would mean a 3 point shooter now based on how the NBA is played but before the concept of a 3 point line existed there could still technically be a stretch 4.

Too bad you were not as fortunate.

Operative word may

Reading is a skill.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/spo ... -offenses/


During the 1995 Western Conference semifinals, Houston Rockets Coach Rudy Tomjanovich had never heard the term “stretch-4,” because it had not entered the basketball vernacular. The phrase “pace and space” did not exist. Tomjanovich only sought a means to guard Phoenix Suns forward Charles Barkley without double-teaming him, to prevent passes to open three-point shooters. And so Tomjanovich tried something new. He played usual small forward Robert Horry at power forward.

Tomjanovich quickly realized the defensive strategy actually created a more significant shift in the Rockets’ offense. With Horry on the floor instead of a plodding power forward, four shooters surrounded center Hakeem Olajuwon, and every player on the court had more space to operate. It gave Tomjanovich a sudden, clear insight: This is how teams should play.

from the NY Times 2014
SAN ANTONIO — Bob McAdoo, with his graceful, high-arcing jumper, was a rarity for an N.B.A. big man. At 6 feet 9 inches, he could pull shot blockers like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Artis Gilmore and Bob Lanier out near the top of the key and shoot over them or drive past them. Three times, McAdoo led the league in scoring, and in 1975, he was named the N.B.A.’s most valuable player.
But when the N.B.A. instituted the 3-point line midway through his career, McAdoo did not venture there. He made just three 3-point shots in seven seasons.
“It was a strain for most of us,” McAdoo said. “When I did shoot it, it was a desperation shot.”

Case closed.

Case closed.

The NBA’s general reluctance to shoot threes, once the line was implemented in 1979-80, was even more pronounced among its big men. In 1986-87, Tom Chambers made history: he became the first minutes-qualified player standing 6-foot-10 or taller to average at least one three-pointer per game. That’s right, there wasn’t a single big man to crack that modest standard for the first seven seasons that the three-point line existed. It wasn't until the 1987-88 season that players standing 6-foot-10 or taller attempted greater than five percent of all three-pointers. During the 1980s, the three-point line was basically an amusement park rollercoaster with a sign that read “must be shorter than 6-foot-10 to ride.”