Nikola Jokic vs. Karl-Anthony Towns Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Karl-Anthony Towns and Nikola Jokic, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other

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.

Nikola Jokic and Karl-Anthony Towns both played 10 years in the NBA. Nikola Jokic had the first of his seasons in 2015-16, while Karl-Anthony Towns had his rookie season in 2015-16. 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
Nikola Jokic 10 7 2015-16 to 2024-25
Karl-Anthony Towns 10 5 2015-16 to 2024-25

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Rookie Season

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2015-162015-16
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards -Achievement Rookie of the Year
Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid Not Play
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 80 21.7 10.0 2.3 4.7 7.0 2.4 1.0 0.6 1.3 2.6 3.8 7.5 .512 0.4 1.1 .333 1.9 2.4 .811
difference:+2+10.3+8.3+0.5+3.0+3.5+0.4+0.3+1.1-0.9-0.4+3.8+6.6+.030+.008+0.8+1.0
Karl-Anthony Towns 82 32.0 18.3 2.8 7.7 10.5 2.0 0.7 1.7 2.2 3.0 7.6 14.1 .542 0.4 1.1 .341 2.7 3.4 .811
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Nikola Jokic nor Karl-Anthony Towns played in the postseason in their season 1

Season 2

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2016-172016-17
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid Not Play
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 73 27.9 16.7 2.9 6.9 9.8 4.9 0.8 0.8 2.3 2.9 6.8 11.7 .578 0.6 1.9 .324 2.6 3.1 .825
difference:+9+9.1+8.4+0.7+1.8+2.5+2.2+0.1+0.5-0.3+3.0+6.3+.036+0.6+1.5+.043+1.7+2.1+.007
Karl-Anthony Towns 82 37.0 25.1 3.6 8.7 12.3 2.7 0.7 1.3 2.6 2.9 9.8 18.0 .542 1.2 3.4 .367 4.3 5.2 .832
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Nikola Jokic nor Karl-Anthony Towns played in the postseason in their season 2

Season 3

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2017-182017-18
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayTimberwolves Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 75 32.6 18.5 2.6 8.1 10.7 6.1 1.2 0.8 2.8 2.8 6.7 13.5 .499 1.5 3.7 .396 3.5 4.2 .850
difference:+7+3.0+2.8+0.3+1.3+1.6+3.7+0.4+0.6-0.9-0.7+1.1+0.8+.046+0.2+.025+0.7+0.7+.008
Karl-Anthony Towns 82 35.6 21.3 2.9 9.4 12.3 2.4 0.8 1.4 1.9 3.5 7.8 14.3 .545 1.5 3.5 .421 4.2 4.9 .858
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic DNP------ --- ----------
Karl-Anthony Towns 5 34.0 15.2 3.0 10.4 13.4 2.2 0.4 1.0 2.4 2.8 5.6 12.0 .467 0.6 2.2 .273 3.4 4.6 .739

Season 4

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2018-192018-19
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 80 31.3 20.1 2.9 8.0 10.8 7.3 1.4 0.7 3.1 2.9 7.7 15.1 .511 1.0 3.4 .307 3.6 4.4 .821
difference:+3+1.8+4.3+0.5+1.0+1.6+3.9+0.5+0.9-0.9+1.1+2.0+.007+0.8+1.2+.093+1.3+1.4+.015
Karl-Anthony Towns 77 33.1 24.4 3.4 9.0 12.4 3.4 0.9 1.6 3.1 3.8 8.8 17.1 .518 1.8 4.6 .400 4.9 5.8 .836
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 14 39.8 25.1 3.9 9.1 13.0 8.4 1.1 0.9 2.6 3.9 9.4 18.6 .506 1.6 4.0 .393 4.7 5.6 .846
Karl-Anthony Towns DNP------ --- ----------

Season 5

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2019-202019-20
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 73 32.0 19.9 2.3 7.5 9.7 7.0 1.2 0.6 3.1 3.0 7.7 14.7 .528 1.1 3.5 .314 3.4 4.1 .817
difference:+38+1.9+6.6+0.4+0.6+1.1+2.6+0.3+0.6-0.3+1.3+3.1+.020+2.2+4.4+.098+1.7+2.4+.021
Karl-Anthony Towns 35 33.9 26.5 2.7 8.1 10.8 4.4 0.9 1.2 3.1 3.3 9.0 17.8 .508 3.3 7.9 .412 5.1 6.5 .796
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 19 36.5 24.4 1.9 7.9 9.8 5.7 1.1 0.8 3.3 3.6 9.4 18.1 .519 2.2 5.2 .429 3.5 4.2 .835
Karl-Anthony Towns DNP------ --- ----------

Season 6

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2020-212020-21
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 72 34.6 26.4 2.8 8.0 10.8 8.3 1.3 0.7 3.1 2.7 10.2 18.0 .566 1.3 3.3 .388 4.8 5.5 .868
difference:+22+0.8+1.6+0.1+0.1+0.2+3.8+0.5+0.4-0.1-1.0+1.7+0.5+.080+1.1+3.0+.001+0.5+0.7+.009
Karl-Anthony Towns 50 33.8 24.8 2.7 7.9 10.6 4.5 0.8 1.1 3.2 3.7 8.5 17.5 .486 2.4 6.3 .387 5.3 6.2 .859
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 10 34.5 29.8 3.7 7.9 11.6 5.0 0.6 0.9 2.4 2.3 11.6 22.8 .509 2.0 5.3 .377 4.6 5.5 .836
Karl-Anthony Towns DNP------ --- ----------

Season 7

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2021-222021-22
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdTimberwolves Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 74 33.5 27.1 2.8 11.0 13.8 7.9 1.5 0.9 3.8 2.6 10.3 17.7 .583 1.3 3.9 .337 5.1 6.3 .810
difference:+2.5+0.2+3.8+4.0+4.3+0.5+0.2-0.7-1.0+1.6+1.3+.054+0.7+1.0+.073+0.1+.012
Karl-Anthony Towns 74 33.5 24.6 2.6 7.2 9.8 3.6 1.0 1.1 3.1 3.6 8.7 16.4 .529 2.0 4.9 .410 5.2 6.3 .822
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 5 34.2 31.0 3.4 9.8 13.2 5.8 1.6 1.0 4.8 4.0 12.2 21.2 .575 1.0 3.6 .278 5.6 6.6 .848
difference:+1+2.8+9.2+1.6+0.8+2.4+3.6+0.9+1.0-0.3-0.2+5.7+7.9+.087+0.7+0.1+.177+1.6+1.7+.012
Karl-Anthony Towns 6 37.0 21.8 1.8 9.0 10.8 2.2 0.7 2.0 4.5 4.2 6.5 13.3 .488 1.7 3.7 .455 7.2 8.3 .860

Season 8

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2022-232022-23
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionTimberwolves Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 69 33.7 24.5 2.4 9.4 11.8 9.8 1.3 0.7 3.6 2.5 9.4 14.8 .632 0.8 2.2 .383 4.9 6.0 .822
difference:+40+0.7+3.7+0.7+2.9+3.7+5.0+0.6+0.1-0.6-1.3+2.1+.137+1.3+3.5+.017+0.8+1.3+.052
Karl-Anthony Towns 29 33.0 20.8 1.7 6.5 8.1 4.8 0.7 0.6 3.0 3.8 7.3 14.8 .495 2.1 5.7 .366 4.1 4.7 .874
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 20 39.5 30.0 3.5 10.0 13.5 9.5 1.1 1.0 3.5 3.5 11.4 20.7 .548 1.8 3.8 .461 5.6 7.0 .799
difference:+15+3.5+11.8+2.3+1.0+3.3+7.5+0.5+0.2-0.1-0.7+5.0+6.7+.091+0.6+1.0+.211+1.4+1.4+.049
Karl-Anthony Towns 5 36.0 18.2 1.2 9.0 10.2 2.0 0.6 0.8 3.6 4.2 6.4 14.0 .457 1.2 4.8 .250 4.2 5.6 .750

Season 9

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2023-242023-24
Team Denver NuggetsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisTimberwolves Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 79 34.6 26.4 2.8 9.5 12.4 9.0 1.4 0.9 3.0 2.5 10.4 17.9 .583 1.1 2.9 .359 4.5 5.5 .817
difference:+17+1.9+4.6+1.3+2.7+4.1+6.0+0.7+0.2-0.1-0.8+2.7+2.6+.079+1.1+2.4+.057+0.4+0.8+.056
Karl-Anthony Towns 62 32.7 21.8 1.5 6.8 8.3 3.0 0.7 0.7 2.9 3.3 7.7 15.3 .504 2.2 5.3 .416 4.1 4.7 .873
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 12 40.2 28.7 3.6 9.8 13.4 8.7 1.4 0.7 3.3 2.7 11.1 20.3 .545 1.2 4.4 .264 5.3 5.9 .901
difference:+4+7.6+9.6+1.4+3.0+4.4+6.1+0.6+0.5-1.6-0.7+4.3+5.8+.079+0.7+0.8+.097+1.6+1.6+.046
Karl-Anthony Towns 16 32.6 19.1 2.2 6.8 9.0 2.6 0.8 0.2 1.7 3.4 6.8 14.5 .466 1.9 5.2 .361 3.7 4.3 .855

Season 10

Nikola Jokic Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2024-252024-25
Team Denver NuggetsNew York Knicks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisKnicks Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 70 36.7 29.6 2.9 9.9 12.7 10.2 1.8 0.6 3.3 2.3 11.2 19.5 .576 2.0 4.7 .417 5.2 6.4 .800
difference:+2+1.7+5.2+0.1+0.1+7.1+0.8+0.1-0.6-1.2+2.3+2.6+.050+.003+0.5+0.7+.029
Karl-Anthony Towns 72 35.0 24.4 2.9 9.8 12.8 3.1 1.0 0.7 2.7 3.5 8.9 16.9 .526 2.0 4.7 .420 4.7 5.7 .829
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Nikola Jokic 14 40.2 26.2 2.1 10.6 12.7 8.0 2.0 0.9 3.9 3.4 9.4 19.1 .489 1.9 5.1 .380 5.6 7.2 .772
difference:+4+4.7+4.8+1.1+1.1+6.7+1.3+0.2-1.7-0.9+1.7+3.3+.001+0.5+1.0+.029+1.0+1.8+.073
Karl-Anthony Towns 18 35.5 21.4 2.1 9.5 11.6 1.3 0.7 0.7 2.2 4.3 7.7 15.8 .488 1.4 4.1 .351 4.6 5.4 .845