Austin Reaves vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison

We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith and Austin Reaves 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.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings

By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Austin Reaves has better scoring averages both in the regular season and Playoffs while J.R. Smith 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.

Career Numbers
Who has the better scoring stats?

Points in the Regular Season

In his 5 NBA regular seasons played, Austin Reaves averages 2.4 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (14.8 points against 12.4). On the other hand J.R. Smith scored a total of 7,953 points more than Austin Reaves (12,148 vs. 4,195).

Points Per Game

Seasons
Austin Reaves 14.8
+2.4
5
J.R. Smith 12.4
16

Total Points

Seasons
Austin Reaves 4,195
5
J.R. Smith 12,148
+7,953
16

Points in the Playoffs

Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Austin Reaves has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+6 points per game) while J.R. Smith scored more points (+1,058).

Points Per Game

Playoffs
Austin Reaves 16.7
+6.0
3
J.R. Smith 10.7
12

Total Points

Playoffs
Austin Reaves 435
3
J.R. Smith 1,493
+1,058
12

Points by Thresholds

Regular Season

50+ Point Games

Austin Reaves 1
+1
J.R. Smith 0

40+ Point Games

Austin Reaves 3
J.R. Smith 4
+1

30+ Point Games

Austin Reaves 15
J.R. Smith 24
+9

20+ Point Games

Austin Reaves 72
J.R. Smith 160
+88

10+ Point Games

Austin Reaves 205
J.R. Smith 604
+399

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Austin Reaves 276
J.R. Smith 932
+656

0 Point Games (games without points)

Austin Reaves 8
J.R. Smith 45
+37

Playoffs

20+ Point Games

Austin Reaves 10
J.R. Smith 14
+4

10+ Point Games

Austin Reaves 24
J.R. Smith 77
+53

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Austin Reaves 26
J.R. Smith 130
+104

0 Point Games (games without points)

Austin Reaves 0
J.R. Smith 10
+10

Career Shooting Stats Comparison

more >>

Regular Season

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Austin Reaves 14.8 4.9 10.1 48.3 1.8 4.8 37.1 3.3 3.8 86.4 5 284
difference:+2.4+0.4+0.6+6.5+0.2+0.5+0.2+1.8+1.8+13.1+11+693
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
Austin Reaves 4,195 1,382 2,860 48.3 505 1,362 37.1 926 1,072 86.4 5 284
difference:+7,953+2,998+7,605+6.5+1,425+3,816+0.2+532+918+13.1+11+693
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
Austin Reaves 16.7 5.8 12.7 45.5 2.3 6.2 37.9 2.8 3.2 89.2 3 26
difference:+6.0+2.1+3.4+5.7+0.2+0.5+1.2+1.6+1.6+18.6+9+114
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
Austin Reaves 435 150 330 45.5 61 161 37.9 74 83 89.2 3 26
difference:+1,058+369+976+5.7+233+640+1.2+87+145+18.6+9+114
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
Austin Reaves 7.3
202261
J.R. Smith 10.3
+3.0
200576

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves 13.0
+5.3
202364
J.R. Smith 7.7
200655

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves 15.9
+2.9
202482
J.R. Smith 13.0
200763

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves 20.2
+7.9
202573
J.R. Smith 12.3
200874

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves 35.8
+20.6
20264
J.R. Smith 15.2
200981

J.R. Smith's additional seasons:

* J.R. Smith played 11 seasons more than Austin Reaves in the NBA.

In those years—his seasons 6 to 16, from 2010 to 2020—he averaged 12.7 points in a total of 628 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 18.1 ppg and his lowest 2.8.

Playoffs

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves -
DNP
20220
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20050

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves 16.9
+16.9
202316
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20060

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves 16.8
+12.3
20245
J.R. Smith 4.5
20074

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves 16.2
20255
J.R. Smith 18.3
+2.1
20084

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Austin Reaves -
DNP *
20260
J.R. Smith 14.9
+14.9
200916
* season in progress

J.R. Smith's additional Playoffs:

* During his 11 additional NBA seasons, J.R. Smith played in 9 Playoffs and won two NBA Championships. In those postseasons he averaged 10.0 points in a total of 116 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 14.3 ppg and his lowest 2.