NBA.com: Dennis Scott Bio

An outstanding shooter, Dennis Scott has been a big-time scorer everywhere he's played. From his high school days in Virginia to his NBA tenure with the Orlando Magic, the 6-8 forward has specialized in draining the long jumper. He set an NBA record in 1995-96 by sinking 267 three-pointers, surpassing the previous standard by 50. He split the 1997-98 season between Dallas and Phoenix and the 1998-99 campaign between New York and Minnesota. Scott led Flint Hill Prep in Oakton, Virginia, to a 91-6 record during his high school career. That included a 56-game winning streak and a 23-0 record in his senior year, after which he was named National High School Player of the Year. Scott moved on to Georgia Tech, where he recorded a triple-double in his first game and was named Atlantic Coast Conference Freshman of the Year. In his third season, 1989-90, he averaged 27.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.0 assists and set an ACC single-season scoring record with 970 points. The Sporting News made him Player of the Year, and he was a Second-Team All-America selection in both The Associated Press and United Press International polls. Scott left school one year early to enter the 1990 NBA Draft, and the Magic nabbed him with the fourth overall pick. In his first pro season he set a league record for three-pointers made by a rookie (125), finished third among rookies in scoring (15.7 ppg), and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. Scott struggled with leg and Achilles tendon injuries over the next two seasons, appearing in only 18 games in 1991-92 and 54 games in 1992-93. Healthy for all of the 1993-94 campaign, he nailed 155 three-pointers, shooting .399 from long range to help the Magic to their first playoff berth ever. Scott started slowly in 1994-95 and spent much of the year coming off the bench, although he canned 150 three-pointers and ranked 11th in the league in three-point percentage at .426. He came on late in the season, eventually wresting the starting job from Donald Royal in the playoffs. The Magic advanced to the NBA Finals before losing to the Houston Rockets in four games. A full-time starter in 1995-96, Scott's three-point shooting provided a strong complement to the inside game of Shaquille O'Neal and the slashing drives of Anfernee Hardaway as he posted a career-high 17.5 ppg in helping the Magic to 60 victories. Scott felt the departure of Shaquille O'Neal as a free agent more than most. Without that inside threat in 1996-97, Scott saw far fewer open three-pointers and as a result his scoring dipped to 12.5 ppg and his three-point percentage dropped to .394. His 147 treys were his fewest since 1992-93. Prior to the 1997-98 season, Scott was dealt to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for guard Derek Harper and forward Ed O'Bannon. He averaged 13.6 points in 52 games with Dallas, including 42 starts, then was traded to Phoenix on February 18 for forward Cedric Ceballos. In 29 games with Phoenix, all but three of them as a reserve, he averaged 6.3 ppg. Scott signed with the New York Knicks as a free agent on January 24 and played in 15 games, averaging just 2.9 ppg, before being waived on March 13. Minnesota signed him to a 10-day contract on March 17 and for the remainder of the season on March 27, and he played 21 games for the Timberwolves, averaging 9.1 ppg to bring his season's mark up to 6.5 ppg, by far the lowest of his career.

1999-2000 REGULAR SEASON
Netted a team-high 16 points (4-7 3-FG) in an 84-75 loss to Utah on 3/25 Scored 11 points and snared 6 boards in a 104-95 win in Dallas on 12/7 Activated from the injured list on 12/1 after missing first 14 games with a pulled hamstring

1998-1999 REGULAR SEASON
Placed on the injured list on 5/1 due to right knee tendinitis Scored 18 points (3-4 3FG) against the Dallas Mavericks on 4/15 Registered 14 points (4-5 3FG), 4 rebounds and 3 assists in a 107-88 victory over the Denver Nuggets on 4/2 Recorded 15 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals against the Milwaukee Bucks on 3/28 Signed for the remainder of the season by the Timberwolves on 3/27 Totaled a game-high 22 points and 5 rebounds, in his first start for the Timberwolves, in an 87-68 win over the Boston Celtics on 3/24 Waived by the Knicks on 3/13 and signed to a 10-day contract by the Minnesota Timberwolves on 3/17

1997-1998 REGULAR SEASON
Scored 16 points (3-6 3FG) against the Minnesota Timberwolves on 3/25 Registered 19 points (4-6 3FG) and 5 rebounds against the Seattle SuperSonics on 3/1 Traded by the Mavericks to the Phoenix Suns for Cedric Ceballos on 2/18 Scored a team-high 24 points and grabbed 5 rebounds against the Philadelphia 76s on 2/11 Recorded a team-high 23 points and 5 rebounds against the Sacramento Kings on 1/8 Posted a game-high 28 points (11-15 FG, 5-8 3FG), 5 rebounds and 3 assists in a 108-90 win over the Denver Nuggets on 1/6 Totaled 22 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocked shots against the Washington Wizards on 12/26 Scored 14 of his team-high 21 points in the 4th quarter, adding 8 rebounds and 3 assists, against the Sacramento Kings on 12/20 Registered 19 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists against the Golden State Warriors on 12/16 Recorded a team-high 21 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocked shots in a 93-91 win over the Toronto Raptors on 11/28 Posted a game-high 33 points, hitting 9-of-14 three-pointers, and 3 rebounds against the Golden State Warriors on 11/20 Scored a team-high 27 points, hitting 5-of-8 three-pointers, against the L.A. Lakers on 11/11 Totaled 28 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists in a 92-87 win over the Vancouver Grizzlies on 11/4

1996-1997 REGULAR SEASON
Scott had a disappointing season in 1996-97, at least partially because the departure of Shaquille O'Neal took away the team's major inside scoring threat. Opponents had less reason to double the pivot, which left fewer open looks at the basket for Scott and the Magic's other outside shooters. Scott's averaged dipped from 17.5 to 12.5 points per game and his three-pointers dropped from an NBA-record 267 to 147. Nonetheless, he still led the team in three-pointers made and in three-point shooting percentage (.394). He played in 66 games, starting 62, missing 16 due to hamstring and knee injuries. He scored 20+ points eight times, including a season-high 27 twice, in a 102-95 double overtime loss to Indiana on Dec. 18 and a 114-111 win at New Jersey on Jan. 13. He connected on at least four three-pointers in a game 12 times, with a season-high six treys twice, in a 98-86 victory over Miami on Feb. 26 and in a 100-95 win over Golden State on March 20. Hampered by injury, Scott started just one of Orlando's five playoff games, coming off the bench in the other four, and averaged just 3.0 points in 18.8 minutes.

1995-1996 REGULAR SEASON
Scott averaged 17.5 points per game, the best full-season figure for his six-year pro career, and was a major factor in Orlando's 60-win season, starting all 82 games and logging a team-high 3,041 minutes. Most of his damage was done from downtown, where he provided a valuable complement to the post moves of Shaquille O'Neal and the slashing game of Penny Hardaway. He shot a solid .425 from behind the arc and set an NBA record by sinking 267 three-pointers, breaking John Starks' one-year-old mark of 217. He made at least one three-point field goal in 78 consecutive games--the last three of 1994-95 and the first 75 of 1995-96--for the third-longest streak in NBA history. He canned at least eight three-pointers on four occasions, including an NBA record of 11 against Atlanta on April 18. And he reached the finals of the AT&T Shootout at All-Star Weekend before bowing to Washington's Tim Legler. Scott tallied 20 points or more 31 times and 30 points or more six times, including a season-high 37 points against Milwaukee on Jan. 12 and 35 points, including the 11 treys, against Atlanta on April 18. The latter game helped him become the NBA's final Player of the Week of the season as he shot a torrid 55 percent (18-for-33) from behind the arc during that period. Though regarded primarily as a scoring threat, Scott did post the first double-doubles of his career, getting 29 points and 10 rebounds against Washington on Nov. 25 and 16 points and a career-high 11 rebounds at Phoenix on Jan. 17. He also has a career-high five blocked shots against Philadelphia on Jan. 23 and matched his career high with eight assists against Boston on April 4. He was largely held in check during the playoffs, averaging 11.3 points in 37.2 minutes per game and shooting .379 on 26-for-69 from three-point range.

1994-1995 REGULAR SEASON
Scott came off the bench at small forward for much of the 1994-95 season but ended the year as a starter for the Orlando Magic in the NBA Finals. He averaged 12.9 points for the year, a notch better than the season before. He also shot the ball better in 1994-95, registering a .439 field-goal percentage, a career high and a significant jump from his .409 mark in 1993-94. Scott continued to fire in three-pointers. Although he missed all of November with a strained back and sat out 10 other games because of the coach's decision, he still managed 150 treys in 62 appearances. His .426 three-point percentage ranked 11th in the league. Of his 645 field-goal attempts, 352 came from behind the arc. Scott's most electric outing occurred against the Indiana Pacers on February 3, when he exploded for 20 points in the second quarter-including 15 points in a 4:05 span-en route to a 35-point night. He buried 14 of 19 field goals in that game, including 5-of-6 from three-point range. On March 26 he came off the bench to light up the Golden State Warriors with 32 points in 35 minutes, and on April 5 he poured in 30 points in 38 minutes against the Detroit Pistons. Scott's production improved as the year wore on, and he began to receive the bulk of the minutes at small forward, eventually replacing Donald Royal as the starter. The Magic won the Atlantic Division and advanced to the NBA Finals before losing to the Houston Rockets in four games. Although Royal held the starting job in the first round of the playoffs against the Boston Celtics, Scott emerged as the starter in the next round against the Chicago Bulls. Scott started all seven games in the conference finals against the Indiana Pacers and all four of the NBA Finals contests. For the postseason, he averaged 14.7 points and led the squad with 56 three-pointers in 21 games. Against Indiana he averaged 17.6 points on .468 shooting from the field, but against the Rockets he shot only .310 from the floor.

1993-1994 REGULAR SEASON
With the arrival of rookie sensation Anfernee Hardaway in Orlando, Scott was first a victim and then a beneficiary. After spending his entire career as a starter, Scott began this season as the Magic's sixth man. Coach Brian Hill, while viewing Hardaway as the team's point guard of the future, elected to bring the rookie along slowly and played him at off guard through the first half of the season. As a result Nick Anderson moved to the small forward position, and Scott moved to the bench. But when Hill made Hardaway the team's starting point guard in early February, Anderson moved back to the off guard slot, and Scott reclaimed his place at small forward. All told, Scott started 37 times in his 82 appearances. The fact that Scott played a full season was a bonus in itself, considering he had missed an average of 46 games in each of the two previous campaigns. As the team's fourth-leading scorer in 1993-94, he recorded 12.8 points per contest. Scott also continued his trademark long-range shooting excellence, hitting 155 three-pointers for the season and ranking 11th in the league in three-point percentage at .399.

1992-1993 REGULAR SEASON
Scott returned from a leg injury that had sidelined him for most of the 1991-92 season, but he appeared in only 54 games in 1992-93, hampered throughout the year by Achilles tendinitis. Scott started 43 times and finished the year averaging 15.9 points, third best on the Magic behind Shaquille O'Neal's 23.4 and Nick Anderson's 19.9. He also led the team with 108 three-pointers, ranking ninth in the NBA with a .403 three-point percentage. He averaged 3.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.06 steals in 32.6 minutes per game. Scott scored a career-high 41 points against the Milwaukee Bucks on April 13, setting a team record by hitting 9 three-pointers in that game. He fell 1 trey short of tying the NBA record of 10 set by the Miami Heat's Brian Shaw on April 8. Earlier in the season, on December 9, Scott had scored 38 points in a game against the Pistons at Detroit, making 8 of 12 three-pointers.

1991-1992 REGULAR SEASON
Scott played in only 18 games in 1991-92, suffering from a rare leg injury called IT band friction syndrome. He underwent successful surgery to correct the problem on April 2. For his abbreviated season, Scott averaged 19.9 points, tying Nick Anderson for the team scoring lead. He tallied 20-plus points on nine occasions.

1990-1991 REGULAR SEASON
Dennis Scott led his high school team to a 91-6 record, including a 51-game winning streak. Scott then left Georgia Tech one year early after recording the highest single-season point total (970) in Atlantic Coast Conference history as a junior. Averaging 27.7 points, Scott teamed with Kenny Anderson and Brian Oliver to lead the Yellow Jackets to the 1990 NCAA Final Four. The Orlando Magic selected Scott with the fourth overall pick in the 1990 NBA Draft, and he went on to earn a berth on the NBA All-Rookie First Team. A deadeye shooting specialist, he set an NBA record for three-pointers made by a rookie, with 125, ranking 12th in the league with a .374 three-point percentage. Scott was named NBA Rookie of the Month for March after averaging 19.4 points and 3.5 rebounds. He finished the season at 15.7 points per game, third among NBA rookies behind the New Jersey Nets' Derrick Coleman (18.4 ppg) and the Sacramento Kings' Lionel Simmons (18.0)