James Harden vs. Jayson Tatum: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Jayson Tatum and James Harden 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
James Harden and Jayson Tatum have two of the highest career scoring averages in league history (James Harden is also one of the all-time leaders in total points) and 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 James Harden scored more points both in the regular season and Playoffs and also has better season average while Jayson Tatum has a better scoring average in the postseason. 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 17 NBA regular seasons played, James Harden averages 0.5 points more than Jayson Tatum in his 8 seasons (24.1 points against 23.6), and he also scored a total of 14,666 points more (28,450 vs. 13,784).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| James Harden | 24.1 | +0.5 | 17 |
| Jayson Tatum | 23.6 | 8 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| James Harden | 28,450 | +14,666 | 17 |
| Jayson Tatum | 13,784 | 8 | |
Scoring Titles | ||
| James Harden | 3 |  +3 |
| Jayson Tatum | 0 | |
Points in the Playoffs
In the NBA postseason Jayson Tatum has a better career point average than James Harden (+1.8 points per game) while James Harden scored more points (+959).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| James Harden | 22.5 | 16 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 24.3 | +1.8 | 8 |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| James Harden | 3,895 | +959 | 16 |
| Jayson Tatum | 2,936 | 8 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 4 | +3 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 1 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 759 | +384 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 375 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 1,082 | +532 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 550 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| James Harden | 1,179 | +595 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 584 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| James Harden | 1 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 1 | |||
Playoffs
50+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 0 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 2 | +2 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 101 | +17 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 84 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 155 | +40 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 115 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| James Harden | 170 | +49 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 121 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| James Harden | 3 | +3 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 0 | |||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| James Harden | 24.1 | 7.1 | 16.2 | 43.9 | 2.8 | 7.6 | 36.3 | 7.1 | 8.2 | 86.2 | 17 | 1,180 |
| difference: | +0.5 | +1.1 | +1.6 | +2.0 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.7 | +2.6 | +2.8 | +2.2 | +9 | +595 |
| Jayson Tatum | 23.6 | 8.2 | 17.8 | 45.9 | 2.6 | 7.1 | 37.0 | 4.5 | 5.4 | 84.0 | 8 | 585 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| James Harden | 28,450 | 8,393 | 19,114 | 43.9 | 3,277 | 9,025 | 36.3 | 8,387 | 9,728 | 86.2 | 17 | 1,180 |
| difference: | +14,666 | +3,604 | +8,685 | +2.0 | +1,731 | +4,844 | +0.7 | +5,727 | +6,561 | +2.2 | +9 | +595 |
| Jayson Tatum | 13,784 | 4,789 | 10,429 | 45.9 | 1,546 | 4,181 | 37.0 | 2,660 | 3,167 | 84.0 | 8 | 585 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| James Harden | 22.5 | 6.8 | 16.0 | 42.5 | 2.5 | 7.4 | 34.0 | 6.4 | 7.4 | 86.9 | 16 | 173 |
| difference: | +1.8 | +1.3 | +2.5 | +1.4 | +0.1 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +2.8 | +8 | +52 |
| Jayson Tatum | 24.3 | 8.1 | 18.5 | 43.9 | 2.4 | 6.9 | 34.8 | 5.6 | 6.7 | 84.1 | 8 | 121 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| James Harden | 3,895 | 1,173 | 2,760 | 42.5 | 434 | 1,275 | 34.0 | 1,115 | 1,283 | 86.9 | 16 | 173 |
| difference: | +959 | +190 | +519 | +1.4 | +142 | +435 | +0.8 | +437 | +477 | +2.8 | +8 | +52 |
| Jayson Tatum | 2,936 | 983 | 2,241 | 43.9 | 292 | 840 | 34.8 | 678 | 806 | 84.1 | 8 | 121 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
James Harden's additional seasons: | ||||
- James Harden played 9 seasons more than Jayson Tatum in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 9 to 17, from 2018 to 2026—he averaged 26.3 points in a total of 565 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 36.1 ppg and his lowest 16.6. In those 9 extra years over Jayson Tatum, James Harden won 3 scoring titles. |
Playoffs
James Harden's additional Playoffs: | ||||
- During his 9 additional NBA seasons, James Harden played in 8 Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 24.4 points in a total of 85 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 31.6 ppg and his lowest 18.6. |