Jamal Murray vs. Dirk Nowitzki Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Dirk Nowitzki and Jamal Murray, 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.

Jamal Murray played 9 years in the NBA, 12 less than Dirk Nowitzki, who played 21. Jamal Murray had the first of his seasons in 2016-17, while Dirk Nowitzki had his rookie season in 1998-99. 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.

Rookie Season
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2016-17	1998-99
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	All-Rookie Second Team	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	82	21.5	9.9	0.5	2.1	2.6	2.1	0.6	0.3	1.4	1.5	3.6	8.9	.404	1.4	4.2	.334	1.3	1.5	.883
difference:	+35	+1.1	+1.7	+0.4	+0.5	+0.8	+1.1		+0.3	-0.2	-0.7	+0.7	+1.8	+.001	+1.1	+2.8	+.128	+0.8	+1.2	+.110
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
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Jamal Murray nor Dirk Nowitzki played in the postseason in their season 1

Season 3
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2018-19	2000-01
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Third Team
Playoffs	Nuggets Lost West Conf Semis	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis

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3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	75	32.6	18.2	0.9	3.4	4.2	4.8	0.9	0.4	2.1	2.0	6.8	15.6	.437	2.0	5.5	.367	2.5	3.0	.848
difference:	+7	+5.5	+3.6	+0.6	+4.3	+5.0	+2.7	+0.1	+0.8	-0.2	-1.0	+0.4	+0.4	+.037	+0.2	+0.7	+.020	+3.0	+3.6	+.010
Dirk Nowitzki	82	38.1	21.8	1.5	7.7	9.2	2.1	1.0	1.2	1.9	3.0	7.2	15.2	.474	1.8	4.8	.387	5.5	6.6	.838
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	14	36.3	21.3	1.4	3.0	4.4	4.7	1.0	0.1	1.6	1.7	7.6	18.0	.425	2.0	5.9	.337	4.0	4.4	.903
difference:	+4	+3.6	+2.1		+3.7	+3.7	+3.3	+0.1	+0.7	-0.2	-2.0	+0.7	+1.7	+.002	+0.7	+1.3	+.054	+4.3	+5.0	+.020
Dirk Nowitzki	10	39.9	23.4	1.4	6.7	8.1	1.4	1.1	0.8	1.4	3.7	6.9	16.3	.423	1.3	4.6	.283	8.3	9.4	.883

Season 4
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2019-20	2001-02
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Nuggets Lost West Conf Finals	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis

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4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	59	32.3	18.5	0.8	3.2	4.0	4.8	1.1	0.3	2.2	1.7	6.9	15.2	.456	1.9	5.5	.346	2.8	3.1	.881
difference:	+17	+5.7	+4.9	+0.8	+5.2	+5.9	+2.4		+0.7	-0.3	-1.2	+1.0	+1.4	+.021	+0.1	+0.9	+.051	+3.0	+3.7	+.028
Dirk Nowitzki	76	38.0	23.4	1.6	8.4	9.9	2.4	1.1	1.0	1.9	2.9	7.9	16.6	.477	1.8	4.6	.397	5.8	6.8	.853
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	19	39.6	26.5	1.1	3.8	4.8	6.6	0.9	0.3	2.8	2.2	9.8	19.4	.505	3.3	7.2	.453	3.7	4.1	.897
difference:	+11	+5.0	+1.9	+1.0	+7.2	+8.3	+4.3	+1.1	+0.5		-1.2	+0.7	+1.1	+.060	+1.3	+3.7	+.118	+4.4	+5.2	+.019
Dirk Nowitzki	8	44.6	28.4	2.1	11.0	13.1	2.3	2.0	0.8	2.8	3.4	9.1	20.5	.445	2.0	3.5	.571	8.1	9.3	.878

Season 5
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2020-21	2002-03
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Mavericks Lost West Conf Finals

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5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	48	35.5	21.2	0.8	3.3	4.0	4.8	1.3	0.3	2.3	2.0	7.9	16.5	.477	2.7	6.6	.408	2.8	3.2	.869
difference:	+32	+3.5	+3.9	+0.2	+5.6	+5.9	+1.8	+0.1	+0.7	-0.4	-0.6	+0.7	+2.1	+.014	+0.8	+1.7	+.029	+3.2	+3.7	+.012
Dirk Nowitzki	80	39.0	25.1	1.0	8.9	9.9	3.0	1.4	1.0	1.9	2.6	8.6	18.6	.463	1.9	4.9	.379	6.0	6.9	.881
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Dirk Nowitzki	17	42.5	25.3	0.9	10.6	11.5	2.2	1.2	0.9	2.4	3.1	8.8	18.4	.479	1.6	3.6	.443	6.1	6.6	.912

Note: Jamal Murray didn't play in 2021-22.

Season 6
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2022-23	2003-04
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	65	32.8	20.0	0.7	3.2	4.0	6.2	1.0	0.2	2.2	1.6	7.3	16.0	.454	2.6	6.6	.398	2.8	3.3	.833
difference:	+12	+5.1	+1.8	+0.5	+4.3	+4.7	+3.5	+0.2	+1.2	-0.4	-1.2	+0.6	+1.0	+.008	+1.3	+2.8	+.057	+2.0	+2.2	+.044
Dirk Nowitzki	77	37.9	21.8	1.2	7.5	8.7	2.7	1.2	1.4	1.8	2.8	7.9	17.0	.462	1.3	3.8	.341	4.8	5.5	.877
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	20	40.0	26.1	0.8	4.9	5.7	7.1	1.5	0.3	2.5	2.1	9.7	20.5	.473	3.0	7.5	.396	3.8	4.1	.926
difference:	+15	+2.2	+0.5	+1.8	+4.3	+6.1	+5.7	+0.1	+2.3	-1.3	-1.1	+0.7	+0.5	+.023	+1.6	+4.5	+.071	+3.4	+4.3	+.069
Dirk Nowitzki	5	42.2	26.6	2.6	9.2	11.8	1.4	1.4	2.6	1.2	3.2	9.0	20.0	.450	1.4	3.0	.467	7.2	8.4	.857

Season 7
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2023-24	2004-05
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Nuggets Lost West Conf Semis	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis

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7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	59	31.5	21.2	0.7	3.4	4.1	6.5	1.0	0.7	2.1	1.8	8.0	16.7	.481	2.5	5.8	.425	2.7	3.1	.853
difference:	+19	+7.2	+4.9	+0.5	+5.1	+5.6	+3.4	+0.2	+0.8	-0.2	-1.0	+0.5	+1.8	+.022	+1.3	+2.9	+.026	+5.2	+6.0	+.016
Dirk Nowitzki	78	38.7	26.1	1.2	8.5	9.7	3.1	1.2	1.5	2.3	2.8	8.5	18.5	.459	1.2	2.9	.399	7.9	9.1	.869
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	12	38.5	20.6	0.8	3.6	4.3	5.6	0.8	0.5	2.6	2.3	8.3	20.8	.402	1.9	6.1	.315	2.0	2.2	.923
difference:	+1	+4.0	+3.1	+1.1	+4.6	+5.8	+2.3	+0.6	+1.1	-0.1	-0.9	+0.4	+1.1		+1.1	+3.8	+.018	+5.1	+6.3	+.094
Dirk Nowitzki	13	42.5	23.7	1.9	8.2	10.1	3.3	1.4	1.6	2.5	3.2	7.9	19.7	.402	0.8	2.3	.333	7.1	8.5	.829

Season 8
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2024-25	2005-06
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Nuggets Lost West Conf Semis	Mavericks Lost NBA Finals

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8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	67	36.1	21.4	0.7	3.2	3.9	6.0	1.4	0.5	2.1	1.9	7.9	16.7	.474	2.3	5.9	.393	3.3	3.7	.886
difference:	+14	+2.0	+5.2	+0.7	+4.4	+5.1	+3.2	+0.7	+0.5	-0.2	-0.1	+1.4	+2.6	+.006	+0.9	+2.6	+.013	+3.4	+3.7	+.015
Dirk Nowitzki	81	38.1	26.6	1.4	7.6	9.0	2.8	0.7	1.0	1.9	2.0	9.3	19.3	.480	1.4	3.3	.406	6.7	7.4	.901
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	14	41.3	21.8	0.6	4.2	4.9	5.2	1.2	0.8	3.1	2.2	7.9	17.9	.444	2.4	6.9	.354	3.5	4.0	.875
difference:	+9	+1.4	+5.2	+1.4	+5.4	+6.8	+2.3	+0.1	+0.2	-1.0	-0.6	+0.6	+0.3	+.024	+1.4	+4.0	+.011	+5.4	+6.0	+.020
Dirk Nowitzki	23	42.7	27.0	2.0	9.6	11.7	2.9	1.1	0.6	2.1	2.8	8.5	18.2	.468	1.0	2.9	.343	8.9	10.0	.895

Season 9
	Jamal Murray	Dirk Nowitzki
Season	2025-26	2006-07
Team	Denver Nuggets	Dallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards	-	Season MVP
	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	15	35.0	22.8	0.5	4.3	4.7	6.7	1.2	0.3	2.4	1.7	8.3	17.5	.473	2.5	7.0	.362	3.7	4.1	.903
difference:	+63	+1.2	+1.8	+1.1	+3.0	+4.2	+3.3	+0.5	+0.5	-0.3	-0.5	+0.3	+0.3	+.029	+1.6	+4.8	+.054	+2.7	+3.0	+.001
Dirk Nowitzki	78	36.2	24.6	1.6	7.3	8.9	3.4	0.7	0.8	2.1	2.2	8.6	17.2	.502	0.9	2.2	.416	6.4	7.1	.904
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Jamal Murray	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Dirk Nowitzki	6	39.8	19.7	4.2	7.2	11.3	2.3	1.8	1.3	2.3	3.3	6.0	15.7	.383	0.7	3.2	.211	7.0	8.3	.840

Additional Years
* Dirk Nowitzki played 12 seasons more than Jamal Murray in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 10 to 21, from 2008 to 2019—Dirk Nowitzki played in 8 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those 12 extra years over Jamal Murray, Dirk Nowitzki got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	1 Finals MVP 1 All-NBA First Team 3 All-NBA Second Team 1 All-NBA Third Team 8 All-Star Game