Al Horford vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison

We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith and Al Horford to determine who has the better numbers. Here you can compare their career totals, points per game, games of 40+ points, 50+, etc. and their year-by-year scoring averages side by side, both in the Regular Season and Playoffs.

By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Al Horford has better scoring stats than J.R. Smith in averages and totals, both in the regular season and Playoffs. However, we won't stop there and we'll go into detail to analyze what these statistics are made up of, from how many games they had in each threshold (30+ points, 40+, 50+, etc.) to their season-by-season scoring averages.

Career Numbers
Who has the better scoring stats?

Points in the Regular Season

In his 19 NBA regular seasons played, Al Horford averages 0.4 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (12.8 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 2,627 points more (14,775 vs. 12,148).

Points Per Game

Seasons
Al Horford 12.8
+0.4
19
J.R. Smith 12.4
16

Total Points

Seasons
Al Horford 14,775
+2,627
19
J.R. Smith 12,148
16

Points in the Playoffs

Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Al Horford has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+1.2 points per game) and he also scored more points (+860).

Points Per Game

Playoffs
Al Horford 11.9
+1.2
16
J.R. Smith 10.7
12

Total Points

Playoffs
Al Horford 2,353
+860
16
J.R. Smith 1,493
12

Points by Thresholds

Regular Season

40+ Point Games

Al Horford 0
J.R. Smith 4
+4

30+ Point Games

Al Horford 8
J.R. Smith 24
+16

20+ Point Games

Al Horford 169
+9
J.R. Smith 160

10+ Point Games

Al Horford 795
+191
J.R. Smith 604

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Al Horford 1,140
+208
J.R. Smith 932

0 Point Games (games without points)

Al Horford 10
J.R. Smith 45
+35

Playoffs

30+ Point Games

Al Horford 1
+1
J.R. Smith 0

20+ Point Games

Al Horford 27
+13
J.R. Smith 14

10+ Point Games

Al Horford 122
+45
J.R. Smith 77

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Al Horford 194
+64
J.R. Smith 130

0 Point Games (games without points)

Al Horford 3
J.R. Smith 10
+7

Career Shooting Stats Comparison

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Regular Season

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Al Horford 12.8 5.3 10.4 50.8 0.9 2.3 37.6 1.4 1.8 76.4 19 1,150
difference:+0.4+0.8+0.3+9.0+1.1+3.0+0.3+0.1+0.2+3.1+3+173
J.R. Smith 12.4 4.5 10.7 41.9 2.0 5.3 37.3 1.5 2.0 73.3 16 977

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Al Horford 14,775 6,086 11,970 50.8 992 2,639 37.6 1,611 2,110 76.4 19 1,150
difference:+2,627+1,706+1,505+9.0+938+2,539+0.3+153+120+3.1+3+173
J.R. Smith 12,148 4,380 10,465 41.9 1,930 5,178 37.3 1,458 1,990 73.3 16 977

Playoffs

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Al Horford 11.9 4.8 9.7 49.3 1.0 2.6 39.1 1.4 1.8 77.5 16 197
difference:+1.2+1.1+0.4+9.5+1.1+3.1+2.4+0.2+0.2+6.9+4+57
J.R. Smith 10.7 3.7 9.3 39.7 2.1 5.7 36.7 1.2 1.6 70.6 12 140

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Al Horford 2,353 938 1,904 49.3 198 506 39.1 279 360 77.5 16 197
difference:+860+419+598+9.5+96+295+2.4+118+132+6.9+4+57
J.R. Smith 1,493 519 1,306 39.7 294 801 36.7 161 228 70.6 12 140

Year by Year Points Average Comparison

NBA Champion = NBA Champion

Regular Season

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 10.1
200881
J.R. Smith 10.3
+0.2
200576

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 11.5
+3.8
200967
J.R. Smith 7.7
200655

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 14.2
+1.2
201081
J.R. Smith 13.0
200763

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 15.3
+3.0
201177
J.R. Smith 12.3
200874

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 12.4
201211
J.R. Smith 15.2
+2.8
200981

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 17.4
+2.0
201374
J.R. Smith 15.4
201075

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 18.6
+6.3
201429
J.R. Smith 12.3
201179

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 15.2
+2.7
201576
J.R. Smith 12.5
201235

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 15.2
201682
J.R. Smith 18.1
+2.9
201380

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 14.0
201768
J.R. Smith 14.5
+0.5
201474

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 12.9
+0.8
201872
J.R. Smith 12.1
201570

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 13.6
+1.5
201968
J.R. Smith 12.1
201570

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 11.9
202067
J.R. Smith 12.4
+0.5
2016NBA Champion77

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 14.2
+5.6
202128
J.R. Smith 8.6
201741

Season 15

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 10.2
+1.9
202269
J.R. Smith 8.3
201880

Season 16

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 9.8
+3.1
202363
J.R. Smith 6.7
201911

Season 17

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 8.6
+5.8
2024NBA Champion65
J.R. Smith 2.8
2020NBA Champion6

Al Horford's additional seasons:

* Al Horford played 2 seasons more than J.R. Smith in the NBA.

In those years—his seasons 18 to 19, from 2025 to 2026—he averaged 8.4 points in a total of 72 regular season games.

Playoffs

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 12.6
+12.6
20087
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20050

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 6.9
+6.9
20099
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20060

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 14.6
+10.1
201011
J.R. Smith 4.5
20074

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 11.3
201112
J.R. Smith 18.3
+7.0
20084

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 15.3
+0.4
20123
J.R. Smith 14.9
200916

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 16.7
+5.5
20136
J.R. Smith 11.2
20106

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford -
DNP
20140
J.R. Smith 9.8
+9.8
20115

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 14.4
+2.2
201516
J.R. Smith 12.2
20125

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 13.4
201610
J.R. Smith 14.3
+0.9
201311

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 15.1
+15.1
201718
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20140

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 15.7
+2.9
201819
J.R. Smith 12.8
201518

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 13.9
+1.1
20199
J.R. Smith 12.8
201518

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 7.0
20204
J.R. Smith 11.5
+4.5
2016NBA Champion21

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford -
DNP
20210
J.R. Smith 8.1
+8.1
201718

Season 15

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 12.0
+3.3
202223
J.R. Smith 8.7
201822

Season 16

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 6.7
+6.7
202320
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20190

Season 17

Points per gameYearGames
Al Horford 9.2
+7.2
2024NBA Champion19
J.R. Smith 2.0
2020NBA Champion10

Al Horford's additional Playoffs:

* During his 2 additional NBA seasons, Al Horford played in one postseason. In those postseasons he averaged 8.0 points in a total of 11 games.