Allen Iverson vs. Shaquille O'Neal: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Shaquille O'Neal and Allen Iverson 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.
Career comparison / Season by season / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other
Shaquille O'Neal and Allen Iverson are among the most prolific scorers in NBA history—combining for an staggering season total of 52,964 points—and they also have two of the all-time best scoring averages. Here we compare all their scoring stats.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Allen Iverson has better scoring averages both in the regular season and Playoffs while Shaquille O'Neal scored more total points in both stages. 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.
On this page we compare: |
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Who has better scoring stats? Career Numbers |
Career Numbers
Who has the better scoring stats?
Points in the Regular Season
In his 14 NBA regular seasons played, Allen Iverson averages 3 points more than Shaquille O'Neal in his 19 seasons (26.7 points against 23.7). On the other hand Shaquille O'Neal scored a total of 4,228 points more than Allen Iverson (28,596 vs. 24,368).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Allen Iverson | 26.7 | +3.0 | 14 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 23.7 | 19 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Allen Iverson | 24,368 | 14 | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 28,596 | +4,228 | 19 |
Scoring Titles | ||
| Allen Iverson | 4 |  +2 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 2 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Allen Iverson has a better career point average than Shaquille O'Neal (+5.4 points per game) while Shaquille O'Neal scored more points (+3,139).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Allen Iverson | 29.7 | +5.4 | 8 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 24.3 | 17 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Allen Iverson | 2,111 | 8 | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 5,250 | +3,139 | 17 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 1 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 700 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 826 | +126 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 883 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1,132 | +249 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 914 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1,205 | +291 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 0 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 2 | +2 | ||
Playoffs
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 3 | +3 | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 61 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 148 | +87 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 71 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 206 | +135 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 71 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 215 | +144 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 0 | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1 | +1 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 26.7 | 9.3 | 21.8 | 42.5 | 1.2 | 3.7 | 31.3 | 7.0 | 8.9 | 78.0 | 14 | 914 |
| difference: | +3.0 | +0.1 | +5.7 | +15.7 | +1.2 | +3.7 | +26.8 | +2.1 | +0.4 | +25.3 | +5 | +293 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 23.7 | 9.4 | 16.1 | 58.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 9.3 | 52.7 | 19 | 1,207 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 24,368 | 8,467 | 19,906 | 42.5 | 1,059 | 3,383 | 31.3 | 6,375 | 8,168 | 78.0 | 14 | 914 |
| difference: | +4,228 | +2,863 | +449 | +15.7 | +1,058 | +3,361 | +26.8 | +440 | +3,084 | +25.3 | +5 | +293 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 28,596 | 11,330 | 19,457 | 58.2 | 1 | 22 | 4.5 | 5,935 | 11,252 | 52.7 | 19 | 1,207 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 29.7 | 10.6 | 26.5 | 40.1 | 1.7 | 5.3 | 32.7 | 6.7 | 8.8 | 76.4 | 8 | 71 |
| difference: | +5.4 | +1.2 | +9.7 | +16.2 | +1.7 | +5.3 | +32.7 | +1.3 | +1.9 | +26.0 | +9 | +145 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 24.3 | 9.4 | 16.8 | 56.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | 5.4 | 10.7 | 50.4 | 17 | 216 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Allen Iverson | 2,111 | 755 | 1,882 | 40.1 | 123 | 376 | 32.7 | 478 | 626 | 76.4 | 8 | 71 |
| difference: | +3,139 | +1,286 | +1,745 | +16.2 | +123 | +376 | +32.7 | +690 | +1,691 | +26.0 | +9 | +145 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 5,250 | 2,041 | 3,627 | 56.3 | 0 | 0 | - | 1,168 | 2,317 | 50.4 | 17 | 216 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Shaquille O'Neal's additional seasons: | ||||
* Shaquille O'Neal played 3 seasons more than Allen Iverson in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 17 to 19, from 2009 to 2011—he averaged 14.0 points in a total of 165 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 17.8 ppg and his lowest 9.2. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 1997 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | - | DNP | 1993 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 1998 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 20.7 | +20.7 | 1994 | 3 |
Season 8 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 2004 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 30.7 | +30.7 | 2000 | 23 |
Season 10 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 28.5 | +28.5 | 2002 | 19 |
Season 13 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 2009 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 19.4 | +19.4 | 2005 | 13 |
Season 14 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 2010 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 18.4 | +18.4 | 2006 | 23 |
Season 15 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 2010 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 18.8 | +18.8 | 2007 | 4 |
Season 16 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Allen Iverson | - | DNP | 2010 | 0 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 15.2 | +15.2 | 2008 | 5 |
Shaquille O'Neal's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 3 additional NBA seasons, Shaquille O'Neal played in two Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 9.9 points in a total of 13 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 11.5 ppg and his lowest 1. |