Zach Edey vs. Dirk Nowitzki Season by Season Comparison
Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Dirk Nowitzki and Zach Edey, 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.
Zach Edey played 2 years in the NBA, 19 less than Dirk Nowitzki, who played 21. Zach Edey had the first of his seasons in 2024-25, 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.
Their Careers | |||
| Player | Total Seasons | Playoffs Played | NBA Years |
| Zach Edey | 2 | 1 | 2024-25 to 2025-26 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 21 | 15 | 1998-99 to 2018-19 |
Rookie Season |
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| Zach Edey | Dirk Nowitzki | |
| Season | 2024-25 | 1998-99 |
| Team | Memphis Grizzlies | Dallas Mavericks |
| Honors & Awards |  All-Rookie First Team | - |
| Playoffs | Grizzlies Lost West Conf 1st Rd | 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 | % | ||||
| Zach Edey | 66 | 21.5 | 9.2 | 3.5 | 4.8 | 8.3 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 2.8 | 3.8 | 6.6 | .580 | 0.3 | 0.8 | .346 | 1.4 | 1.9 | .709 |
| difference: | +19 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +2.6 | +2.2 | +4.9 | +0.1 | +0.7 | -0.3 | -0.6 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +.175 | +0.6 | +.140 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +.064 | ||
| 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 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| G | Min | Pts | ORb | DRb | Reb | Ast | Stl | Blk | TO | PF | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | ||||
| Zach Edey | 4 | 27.0 | 6.3 | 2.8 | 5.0 | 7.8 | 1.8 | 0.0 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 2.5 | 3.8 | .667 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | 1.3 | 1.8 | .714 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Season 2 |
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| Zach Edey | Dirk Nowitzki | |
| Season | 2025-26 | 1999-00 |
| Team | Memphis Grizzlies | Dallas Mavericks |
| Honors & Awards | ||
| Playoffs | Did not play (season in progress) | 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 | % | ||||
| Zach Edey | 11 | 25.8 | 13.6 | 3.9 | 7.2 | 11.1 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 3.4 | 5.6 | 8.9 | .633 | 0.1 | 0.5 | .200 | 2.3 | 2.9 | .781 |
| difference: | +71 | +10.0 | +3.9 | +2.7 | +2.0 | +4.6 | +1.4 | +0.2 | +1.1 | -0.7 | -0.3 | +0.7 | +4.7 | +.172 | +1.3 | +3.2 | +.179 | +1.2 | +1.3 | +.049 |
| 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 |
| Playoffs Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| * Neiher Zach Edey nor Dirk Nowitzki played in the postseason in their season 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Additional Years |
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* Dirk Nowitzki played 19 seasons more than Zach Edey 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 Zach Edey, 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 |