Buddy Hield vs. Lauri Markkanen: Career Scoring Comparison

We break down the scoring legacies of Lauri Markkanen and Buddy Hield 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 in the regular season Lauri Markkanen has a better scoring average and Buddy Hield scored more points, and since Lauri Markkanen didn't play in the postseason, you could also say that Buddy Hield has better playoff stats. 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 9 NBA regular seasons played, Lauri Markkanen averages 3.9 points more than Buddy Hield in his 10 seasons (18.7 points against 14.8). On the other hand Buddy Hield scored a total of 2,085 points more than Lauri Markkanen (10,952 vs. 8,867).

Points Per Game

Seasons
Buddy Hield 14.8
10
Lauri Markkanen 18.7
+3.9
9

Total Points

Seasons
Buddy Hield 10,952
+2,085
10
Lauri Markkanen 8,867
9

Points in the Playoffs

Lauri Markkanen didn't play in the NBA postseason, so obviously Buddy Hield has better playoff stats in points per game and total points scored.

Points Per Game

Playoffs
Buddy Hield 10.8
+10.8
2
Lauri Markkanen 0
0

Total Points

Playoffs
Buddy Hield 172
+172
2
Lauri Markkanen 0
0

Points by Thresholds

Regular Season

50+ Point Games

Buddy Hield 0
Lauri Markkanen 1
+1

40+ Point Games

Buddy Hield 2
Lauri Markkanen 6
+4

30+ Point Games

Buddy Hield 17
Lauri Markkanen 55
+38

20+ Point Games

Buddy Hield 193
Lauri Markkanen 204
+11

10+ Point Games

Buddy Hield 551
+132
Lauri Markkanen 419

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Buddy Hield 726
+253
Lauri Markkanen 473

0 Point Games (games without points)

Buddy Hield 16
+15
Lauri Markkanen 1

Playoffs

Lauri Markkanen didn't play in the NBA postseason, so Buddy Hield's point thresholds are omited here.

Career Shooting Stats Comparison

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Regular Season

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Buddy Hield 14.8 5.3 12.4 43.2 2.9 7.4 39.5 1.1 1.3 85.9 10 742
difference:+3.9+1.1+1.7+2.4+0.3+0.5+2.5+2.2+2.5+1.1+1+268
Lauri Markkanen 18.7 6.4 14.1 45.6 2.6 6.9 37.0 3.3 3.8 87.0 9 474

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Buddy Hield 10,952 3,968 9,182 43.2 2,168 5,485 39.5 848 987 85.9 10 742
difference:+2,085+921+2,500+2.4+956+2,211+2.5+713+808+1.1+1+268
Lauri Markkanen 8,867 3,047 6,682 45.6 1,212 3,274 37.0 1,561 1,795 87.0 9 474

Playoffs

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Buddy Hield 10.8 3.7 8.9 41.5 2.4 5.6 43.3 0.9 1.0 93.8 2 16
difference:+10.8+3.7+8.9+41.5+2.4+5.6+43.3+0.9+1.0+93.8+2+16
Lauri Markkanen DNP - - - - - - - - - 0 0

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Buddy Hield 172 59 142 41.5 39 90 43.3 15 16 93.8 2 16
difference:+172+59+142+41.5+39+90+43.3+15+16+93.8+2+16
Lauri Markkanen DNP - - - - - - - - - 0 0

Year by Year Points Average Comparison

Regular Season

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 10.6
201782
Lauri Markkanen 15.2
+4.6
201868

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 10.6
201782
Lauri Markkanen 18.7
+8.1
201952

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 13.5
201880
Lauri Markkanen 14.7
+1.2
202050

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 20.7
+7.1
201982
Lauri Markkanen 13.6
202151

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 19.2
+4.4
202072
Lauri Markkanen 14.8
202261

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 16.6
202171
Lauri Markkanen 25.6
+9.0
202366

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 15.6
202281
Lauri Markkanen 23.2
+7.6
202455

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 15.6
202281
Lauri Markkanen 19.0
+3.4
202547

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield 15.6
202281
Lauri Markkanen 27.8
+12.2
202624

Buddy Hield's additional seasons:

* Buddy Hield played 5 seasons more than Lauri Markkanen in the NBA.

In those years—his seasons 10 to 14, from 2023 to 2026—he averaged 12.6 points in a total of 358 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 16.8 ppg and his lowest 7.9.

Playoffs

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20170
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20180

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20170
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20190

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20180
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20200

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20190
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20210

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20200
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20220

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20210
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20230

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20220
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20240

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20220
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP
20250

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Buddy Hield -
DNP
20220
Lauri Markkanen -
DNP *
20260
* season in progress

Buddy Hield's additional Playoffs:

* During his 5 additional NBA seasons, Buddy Hield played in 3 Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 9.7 points in a total of 20 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 12.5 ppg and his lowest 5.5.