Dirk Nowitzki vs. Victor Wembanyama Season by Season Comparison
Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Victor Wembanyama and Dirk Nowitzki, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.
Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.
Dirk Nowitzki played 21 years in the NBA, 19 more than Victor Wembanyama, who played 2. Dirk Nowitzki had the first of his seasons in 1998-99, while Victor Wembanyama had his rookie season in 2023-24. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achievements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.
Their Careers | |||
| Player | Total Seasons | Playoffs Played | NBA Years |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 21 | 15 | 1998-99 to 2018-19 |
| Victor Wembanyama | 2 | 0 | 2023-24 to 2024-25 |
Rookie Season |
||
| Dirk Nowitzki | Victor Wembanyama | |
| Season | 1998-99 | 2023-24 |
| Team | Dallas Mavericks | San Antonio Spurs |
| Honors & Awards | - |  All-Defensive First Team |
| - | Rookie of the Year | |
| - | All-Rookie First Team | |
| - | Blocks Leader | |
| Playoffs | Did Not Play | Did Not Play |
Rookie Season Stats Comparison | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Regular Season Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| G | Min | Pts | ORb | DRb | Reb | Ast | Stl | Blk | TO | PF | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | ||||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 47 | 20.4 | 8.2 | 0.9 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 1.6 | 2.2 | 2.9 | 7.1 | .405 | 0.3 | 1.4 | .206 | 2.1 | 2.7 | .773 |
| difference: | +24 | +9.3 | +13.2 | +1.4 | +5.8 | +7.2 | +2.9 | +0.6 | +3.0 | -2.1 | +4.9 | +9.6 | +.060 | +1.5 | +4.1 | +.119 | +2.0 | +2.5 | +.023 | |
| Victor Wembanyama | 71 | 29.7 | 21.4 | 2.3 | 8.4 | 10.6 | 3.9 | 1.2 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 2.2 | 7.8 | 16.7 | .465 | 1.8 | 5.5 | .325 | 4.1 | 5.2 | .796 |
| Playoffs Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| * Neiher Dirk Nowitzki nor Victor Wembanyama played in the postseason in their season 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Season 2 |
||
| Dirk Nowitzki | Victor Wembanyama | |
| Season | 1999-00 | 2024-25 |
| Team | Dallas Mavericks | San Antonio Spurs |
| Honors & Awards | - | Blocks Leader |
| - | All-Star Game | |
| Playoffs | Did Not Play | Did Not Play |
2nd Season Stats Comparison | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Regular Season Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| G | Min | Pts | ORb | DRb | Reb | Ast | Stl | Blk | TO | PF | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | ||||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 82 | 35.8 | 17.5 | 1.2 | 5.2 | 6.5 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.7 | 3.1 | 6.3 | 13.6 | .461 | 1.4 | 3.7 | .379 | 3.5 | 4.2 | .830 |
| difference: | +36 | +2.6 | +6.8 | +0.6 | +4.0 | +4.5 | +1.2 | +0.3 | +3.0 | -1.5 | -0.8 | +2.6 | +5.0 | +.015 | +1.7 | +5.1 | +.027 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +.006 |
| Victor Wembanyama | 46 | 33.2 | 24.3 | 1.8 | 9.2 | 11.0 | 3.7 | 1.1 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 2.3 | 8.9 | 18.6 | .476 | 3.1 | 8.8 | .352 | 3.4 | 4.1 | .836 |
| Playoffs Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| * Neiher Dirk Nowitzki nor Victor Wembanyama played in the postseason in their season 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Additional Years |
|
* Dirk Nowitzki played 19 seasons more than Victor Wembanyama in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 3 to 21, from 2001 to 2019—Dirk Nowitzki played in 15 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those 19 extra years over Victor Wembanyama, Dirk Nowitzki got these achievements: | |
| Honors & Awards | 1 Finals MVP 1 Season MVP 4 All-NBA First Team 5 All-NBA Second Team 3 All-NBA Third Team 14 All-Star Game |