Ricky Rubio vs. Karl-Anthony Towns Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Karl-Anthony Towns and Ricky Rubio, 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 / 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.

Ricky Rubio played 12 years in the NBA, 2 more than Karl-Anthony Towns, who played 10. Ricky Rubio had the first of his seasons in 2011-12, 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
Ricky Rubio 12 3 2011-12 to 2022-23
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

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2011-122015-16
Team Minnesota TimberwolvesMinnesota 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%
Ricky Rubio 41 34.2 10.6 0.5 3.7 4.2 8.2 2.2 0.2 3.2 2.4 3.4 9.5 .357 0.8 2.3 .340 3.1 3.8 .803
difference:+41+2.2+7.7+2.3+4.0+6.3+6.2+1.5+1.5-1.0-0.6+4.2+4.6+.185+0.4+1.2+.001+0.4+0.4+.008
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 Ricky Rubio nor Karl-Anthony Towns played in the postseason in their season 1

Season 2

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2012-132016-17
Team Minnesota TimberwolvesMinnesota 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%
Ricky Rubio 57 29.7 10.7 0.8 3.2 4.0 7.3 2.4 0.1 3.0 2.5 3.2 9.0 .360 0.5 1.6 .293 3.7 4.6 .799
difference:+25+7.3+14.4+2.8+5.5+8.3+4.6+1.7+1.2-0.4-0.4+6.6+9.0+.182+0.7+1.8+.074+0.6+0.6+.033
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 Ricky Rubio nor Karl-Anthony Towns played in the postseason in their season 2

Season 3

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2013-142017-18
Team Minnesota TimberwolvesMinnesota 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%
Ricky Rubio 82 32.2 9.5 0.7 3.4 4.2 8.6 2.3 0.1 2.7 2.7 3.1 8.2 .381 0.5 1.6 .331 2.8 3.5 .802
difference:+3.4+11.8+2.2+6.0+8.1+6.2+1.5+1.3-0.8-0.8+4.7+6.1+.164+1.0+1.9+.090+1.4+1.4+.056
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%
Ricky Rubio 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

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2014-152018-19
Team Minnesota TimberwolvesMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid 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%
Ricky Rubio 22 31.5 10.3 0.9 4.8 5.7 8.8 1.7 0.0 2.9 2.7 3.5 10.0 .356 0.6 2.3 .255 2.6 3.2 .803
difference:+55+1.6+14.1+2.5+4.2+6.7+5.4+0.8+1.6-0.2-1.1+5.3+7.1+.162+1.2+2.3+.145+2.3+2.6+.033
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
* Neiher Ricky Rubio nor Karl-Anthony Towns played in the postseason in their season 4

Season 5

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2015-162019-20
Team Minnesota TimberwolvesMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid 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%
Ricky Rubio 76 30.6 10.1 0.5 3.8 4.3 8.7 2.1 0.1 2.5 2.6 2.9 7.7 .374 0.8 2.5 .326 3.5 4.1 .847
difference:+41+3.3+16.4+2.2+4.3+6.5+4.3+1.2+1.1-0.6-0.7+6.1+10.1+.134+2.5+5.4+.086+1.6+2.4+.051
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
* Neiher Ricky Rubio nor Karl-Anthony Towns played in the postseason in their season 5

Season 6

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2016-172020-21
Team Minnesota TimberwolvesMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid 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%
Ricky Rubio 75 32.9 11.1 0.9 3.2 4.1 9.1 1.7 0.1 2.6 2.7 3.5 8.7 .402 0.8 2.6 .306 3.4 3.8 .891
difference:+25+0.9+13.7+1.8+4.7+6.5+4.6+0.9+1.0-0.6-1.0+5.0+8.8+.084+1.6+3.7+.081+1.9+2.4+.032
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
* Neiher Ricky Rubio nor Karl-Anthony Towns played in the postseason in their season 6

Season 7

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2017-182021-22
Team Utah JazzMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Jazz Lost West Conf SemisTimberwolves 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%
Ricky Rubio 77 29.3 13.1 0.6 4.0 4.6 5.3 1.6 0.1 2.7 2.7 4.5 10.7 .418 1.2 3.5 .352 2.9 3.3 .866
difference:+3+4.2+11.5+2.0+3.2+5.2+1.7+0.6+1.0-0.4-0.9+4.2+5.7+.111+0.8+1.4+.058+2.3+3.0+.044
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%
Ricky Rubio 6 30.2 14.0 0.8 6.5 7.3 7.0 1.3 0.5 3.0 2.2 4.7 13.2 .354 1.7 5.3 .313 3.0 3.8 .783
difference:+6.8+7.8+1.0+2.5+3.5+4.8+0.6+1.5-1.5-2.0+1.8+0.1+.134+1.6+.142+4.2+4.5+.077
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

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2018-192022-23
Team Utah JazzMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Jazz Lost West Conf 1st RdTimberwolves 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%
Ricky Rubio 68 27.9 12.7 0.5 3.1 3.6 6.1 1.3 0.1 2.6 2.6 4.3 10.7 .404 1.2 3.7 .311 2.9 3.4 .855
difference:+39+5.1+8.1+1.2+3.4+4.5+1.3+0.6+0.5-0.4-1.2+3.0+4.1+.091+0.9+2.0+.055+1.2+1.3+.019
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%
Ricky Rubio 5 33.6 15.4 0.6 2.6 3.2 8.6 2.4 0.2 3.0 2.8 5.6 13.2 .424 0.8 4.0 .200 3.4 4.0 .850
difference:+2.4+2.8+0.6+6.4+7.0+6.6+1.8+0.6-0.6-1.4+0.8+0.8+.033+0.4+0.8+.050+0.8+1.6+.100
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

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2019-202023-24
Team Phoenix SunsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayTimberwolves 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%
Ricky Rubio 65 31.0 13.0 0.7 4.0 4.7 8.8 1.4 0.2 2.7 2.6 4.4 10.6 .415 1.2 3.3 .361 3.0 3.5 .863
difference:+3+1.7+8.8+0.8+2.8+3.6+5.8+0.7+0.5-0.2-0.7+3.3+4.7+.089+1.0+2.0+.055+1.1+1.2+.010
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%
Ricky Rubio DNP------ --- ----------
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

Ricky Rubio Karl-Anthony Towns
Season 2020-212024-25
Team Minnesota TimberwolvesNew York Knicks
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayKnicks 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%
Ricky Rubio 68 26.1 8.6 0.4 2.9 3.3 6.4 1.4 0.1 1.6 2.0 2.8 7.3 .388 1.0 3.1 .308 1.9 2.2 .867
difference:+4+8.9+15.8+2.5+6.9+9.5+3.3+0.4+0.6-1.1-1.5+6.1+9.6+.138+1.0+1.6+.112+2.8+3.5+.038
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%
Ricky Rubio DNP------ --- ----------
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

Additional Years

* Ricky Rubio played 2 seasons more than Karl-Anthony Towns in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 11 to 12, from 2022 to 2023—Ricky Rubio played in one postseason.