Top 10 Players With Most Missed Shots in NBA History

Basketball is a sport where 100% is like a wine that is achieved slowly over time with passing experience. In the quest for perfectness, the players often miss the shots and cannot get a bucket. However, they start from scratch and look for another opportunity to score. Such strive for points continues until they are satisfied with their performance. But the shots they missed also show how many chances the players created for scoring and kept on going for years. The following piece recognizes the top 10 such players who had the most missed shots in their NBA career.

10 Players with Most Missed Shots in NBA

Great scorers in the NBA have a tendency to go for buckets every time they get a chance. However, it might not be a successful move every time the player goes for it. Thus, such shots result in missed shots that add to the stats tally of such players. Today, we have curated such top 10 players with the most missed shots in their NBA career according to basketball reference data.

#10 Vince Carter (12,046 Missed Shots)

The former shooting guard Vince Carter played about 22 seasons in the NBA and missed 12,046 shots during his pro-basketball stint. Carter shot an average of 43.5 percent from the floor to occupy the last spot on the list. Vince was known for his versatile positions on the court since he played the power forward by the end of his career in the NBA. The Toronto Raptors legend did not miss the chance to create score opportunity but he was not successful on every play.

He was also a dunk specialist whose most famous shot in the respective category came when he did ‘Dunk of Death’ against France during the 2000 Summer Olympics. Carter's three-point shooting was exceptional, and that's why he occupies the tenth most three-point field goal in league history.

#9 Michael Jordan (12,345 Missed Shots)

Michael Jordan stands at number 9 on the most missed shots in NBA history with his 12,345 missed shots in the league during his quest for six championships. He is considered the GOAT of the sport with his other accolades like 5 MVP awards and a tendency to approach the basketball aggressively. His form while shooting is assumed to be the best till today, and once the ball was in his hand, it was rare to witness it return without passing through the net.

He is hailed as the player who holds the record career regular season scoring average (30.1 points per game) and career playoff scoring average (33.4 points per game). In fact, Michael Jordan is one of only eight players to achieve the basketball Triple crown in the NBA.

#8 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (12,470 Missed Shots)

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar blessed the league with his presence for twenty seasons while playing for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers. The legend stands at number 8 on the most missed shots in NBA history with his 12,470 missed shots. The NBA Hall of Famer is also 6 NBA championships and 2 NBA Finals MVP awards honoree. Kareem's Hall of Famer status lives up to his stats as well since he still possesses the record for most field goals made (15,837).

And it was not just the scoring that Kareem was focused on. Rather, he was also into defending the rim and spending time on the court to change the flow of the game. That's why he is one of the leaders in minutes played and ranks second with his 57,446 minutes on the court.

#7 Carmelo Anthony (12,524 Missed Shots)

Carmelo played across six teams in the NBA while playing in 19 seasons. Due to such a large stint, he stands seventh on the list with his 12,524 missed shots in the league. He is tenth on the list of the all-time scoring leader but dominated the whole season in terms of scoring four times in his career. He was also an 11x All-Star attendee in his career. Carmelo was one of the volume scorers from the league who went on to average 22.5 points per game throughout his career.

Eventually, before his retirement, Carmelo was able to accumulate about 28,289 points in the NBA. Due to his continuous performance on the court in terms of scoring, he was selected for All-Star games ten times in his career.

#6 Dirk Nowitzki (12,565 Missed Shots)

The German basketballer played about 21 seasons in the league for a single NBA franchise, the Dallas Mavericks. He stands at number 6 on the most missed shots in NBA history with his 12,565 missed shot attempts in the league. The Mavs baller was the first European player to dish out 30,000 points in the league with a field goal percentage of 47.1%.

He might have missed out shots during his career in NBA but the international basketballer was able to still garner 31,560 points in his career within the league. Ones who witnessed him playing often know him by the signature one-legged fadeaway jumper that he used to pull on the court against the defenders.

#5 Karl Malone (12,682 Missed Shots)

The Mailman of the NBA stands fifth on the list with his 12,682 missed shots. Malone played about 19 seasons in the National Basketball League and was a 2x NBA MVP. Malone with a 51.6% field goal percentage, stands third on the list of the all-time scoring leaders in the league with 14 All-Star appearances.

Despite the fact that he missed more than 12000 shots in his career, Malone was able to score about 36,928 points in total during his career. All in all, he tallied 25.0 points and 10.1 rebounds per game during his professional basketball career.

#4 Elvin Hayes (13,296 Missed Shots)

Elvin Hayes stands at number 4 on the most missed shots in NBA history with 13,296 missed attempts in his career. Hayes won a championship with the Washington Bullets in 1978 and had an average of 21.0 points per game in 16 NBA seasons. The 12x All-Star had a career goal percentage of 45.2 percent from the field.

Elvin was a beast who could not exhaust on the field and barely had injuries in his whole career. He played a record 50,000 minutes and missed only nine games in his 16-season-long career.

#3 John Havlicek (13,417 Missed Shots)

John Havlicek was one of the Boston Celtics legends who was part of the franchise's history. He played for about 16 seasons in the league and gained the attention of the baller community for his continuous strive for buckets. He managed to get 13,417 missed shots in his career. John with a 43.9% field goal percentage, was able to lead the Celts to eight NBA championships.

He was also part of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team. In his career spanning sixteen seasons, Havlicek had 20.8 points per game over his 16-year career, scoring a total of 26,395 points.

#2 Kobe Bryant (14,481 Missed Shots)

The Black Mamba of the basketball world, Kobe Bryant, is one of the legends of the names who revived the game with his skills. Late Los Angeles Lakers star spent 20 seasons in the NBA and secured victory in five NBA titles. He was also the recipient of the two NBA MVPs. His bold approach toward the game resulted in a total of 14,481 missed shots.

Kobe would make an attempt at the end of the game for another bucket, even if it were a missed one. Late Bryant dished out 25.0 points per game in his career and played around 48,637 minutes on the hardcourt, which justifies his quest for points.

#1 LeBron James (15,055 Missed Shots)

LeBron James is still playing in the league after 22 seasons. The 4x NBA champion and 4x MVP is the highest run-scorer in the league. He stands atop the first ranking in the list of top 10 players with missed NBA shots with 15,055 missed attempts at the bucket. In his career, he has an average field goal percentage of 50.6%. His best season in terms of perimeter shooting was during the 2014 season, with 56.7 beyond shooting accuracy.

However, adding both the regular season and playoff points, LeBron James is touted as the first player in NBA history to reach 50,000 career points. He surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as an all-time leading scorer, which could not have been done without missing a record number.