Giannis Antetokounmpo vs. Dirk Nowitzki: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Dirk Nowitzki and Giannis Antetokounmpo 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
Dirk Nowitzki and Giannis Antetokounmpo are among the all-time leaders in points in NBA history—combining for a total of 52,269 points—. Here we compare their scoring stats.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Giannis Antetokounmpo has better scoring averages both in the regular season and Playoffs while Dirk Nowitzki 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 13 NBA regular seasons played, Giannis Antetokounmpo averages 3.3 points more than Dirk Nowitzki in his 21 seasons (24.0 points against 20.7). On the other hand Dirk Nowitzki scored a total of 10,851 points more than Giannis Antetokounmpo (31,560 vs. 20,709).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 24.0 | +3.3 | 13 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 20.7 | 21 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 20,709 | 13 | |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 31,560 | +10,851 | 21 |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Giannis Antetokounmpo has a better career point average than Dirk Nowitzki (+1.7 points per game) while Dirk Nowitzki scored more points (+1,393).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 27.0 | +1.7 | 9 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 25.3 | 15 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 2,270 | 9 | |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 3,663 | +1,393 | 15 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 1 | +1 | ||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 568 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 861 | +293 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 765 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 1,373 | +608 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 861 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 1,509 | +648 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 3 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 13 | +10 | ||
Playoffs
20+ Point Games | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 66 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 109 | +43 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 81 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 142 | +61 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 84 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 145 | +61 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| G. Antetokounmpo | 0 | |||
| Dirk Nowitzki | 0 | |||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | 24.0 | 8.8 | 15.9 | 55.1 | 0.6 | 2.2 | 28.5 | 5.8 | 8.3 | 69.3 | 13 | 864 |
| difference: | +3.3 | +1.5 | +0.3 | +8.1 | +0.7 | +1.2 | +9.5 | +1.0 | +2.9 | +18.6 | +8 | +658 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 20.7 | 7.3 | 15.6 | 47.1 | 1.3 | 3.4 | 38.0 | 4.8 | 5.4 | 87.9 | 21 | 1,522 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | 20,709 | 7,590 | 13,763 | 55.1 | 547 | 1,916 | 28.5 | 4,982 | 7,190 | 69.3 | 13 | 864 |
| difference: | +10,851 | +3,579 | +9,971 | +8.1 | +1,435 | +3,294 | +9.5 | +2,258 | +1,049 | +18.6 | +8 | +658 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 31,560 | 11,169 | 23,734 | 47.1 | 1,982 | 5,210 | 38.0 | 7,240 | 8,239 | 87.9 | 21 | 1,522 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | 27.0 | 10.1 | 19.1 | 53.2 | 0.7 | 2.8 | 25.9 | 6.0 | 9.6 | 62.5 | 9 | 84 |
| difference: | +1.7 | +1.7 | +0.9 | +7.0 | +0.3 | +10.6 | +1.4 | +1.3 | +26.7 | +6 | +61 | |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 25.3 | 8.4 | 18.2 | 46.2 | 1.0 | 2.8 | 36.5 | 7.4 | 8.3 | 89.2 | 15 | 145 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | 2,270 | 852 | 1,602 | 53.2 | 62 | 239 | 25.9 | 504 | 807 | 62.5 | 9 | 84 |
| difference: | +1,393 | +368 | +1,040 | +7.0 | +87 | +169 | +10.6 | +570 | +397 | +26.7 | +6 | +61 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 3,663 | 1,220 | 2,642 | 46.2 | 149 | 408 | 36.5 | 1,074 | 1,204 | 89.2 | 15 | 145 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Dirk Nowitzki's additional seasons: | ||||
* Dirk Nowitzki played 8 seasons more than Giannis Antetokounmpo in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 14 to 21, from 2012 to 2019—he averaged 16.6 points in a total of 529 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 21.7 ppg and his lowest 7.3. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| G. Antetokounmpo | - | DNP | 2014 | 0 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | - | DNP | 1999 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| G. Antetokounmpo | 11.5 | +11.5 | 2015 | 6 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | - | DNP | 2000 | 0 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| G. Antetokounmpo | - | DNP | 2016 | 0 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 23.4 | +23.4 | 2001 | 10 |
Season 11 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| G. Antetokounmpo | - | DNP | 2024 | 0 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 26.8 | +26.8 | 2009 | 10 |
Season 13 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| G. Antetokounmpo | - | DNP * | 2026 | 0 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 27.7 | +27.7 | 2011 | 21 |
| * season in progress | ||||
Dirk Nowitzki's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 8 additional NBA seasons, Dirk Nowitzki played in 4 Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 21.4 points in a total of 21 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 26.8 ppg and his lowest 19.1. |