James Harden vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith 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 is among the NBA's all-time leaders in points and also has one of the highest career averages in league history, and here we compare his scoring stats with those recorded by J.R. Smith.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that James Harden has better scoring stats than J.R. Smith in averages and totals, both in the regular season and Playoffs. 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 11.7 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (24.1 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 15,984 points more (28,132 vs. 12,148).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| James Harden | 24.1 | +11.7 | 17 |
| J.R. Smith | 12.4 | 16 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| James Harden | 28,132 | +15,984 | 17 |
| J.R. Smith | 12,148 | 16 | |
Scoring Titles | ||
| James Harden | 3 |  +3 |
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason James Harden has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+11.8 points per game) and he also scored more points (+2,402).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| James Harden | 22.5 | +11.8 | 16 |
| J.R. Smith | 10.7 | 12 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| James Harden | 3,895 | +2,402 | 16 |
| J.R. Smith | 1,493 | 12 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 4 | +4 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
50+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 25 | +25 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 749 | +589 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 160 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 1,069 | +465 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 604 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| James Harden | 1,166 | +234 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 932 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| James Harden | 1 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 45 | +44 | ||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 11 | +11 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 49 | +49 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 101 | +87 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 14 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| James Harden | 155 | +78 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 77 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| James Harden | 170 | +40 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 130 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| James Harden | 3 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 10 | +7 | ||
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 | 1,167 |
| difference: | +11.7 | +2.6 | +5.5 | +2.1 | +0.8 | +2.3 | +1.0 | +5.6 | +6.2 | +12.9 | +1 | +190 |
| 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 | ||||
| James Harden | 28,132 | 8,303 | 18,895 | 43.9 | 3,237 | 8,910 | 36.3 | 8,289 | 9,617 | 86.2 | 17 | 1,167 |
| difference: | +15,984 | +3,923 | +8,430 | +2.1 | +1,307 | +3,732 | +1.0 | +6,831 | +7,627 | +12.9 | +1 | +190 |
| 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 | ||||
| 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: | +11.8 | +3.1 | +6.7 | +2.8 | +0.4 | +1.7 | +2.7 | +5.2 | +5.8 | +16.3 | +4 | +33 |
| 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 | ||||
| James Harden | 3,895 | 1,173 | 2,760 | 42.5 | 434 | 1,275 | 34.0 | 1,115 | 1,283 | 86.9 | 16 | 173 |
| difference: | +2,402 | +654 | +1,454 | +2.8 | +140 | +474 | +2.7 | +954 | +1,055 | +16.3 | +4 | +33 |
| 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 Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
James Harden's additional seasons: | ||||
* James Harden played 1 season more than J.R. Smith in the NBA. In that year—his season 18 in 2026—he averaged 27.8 points in a total of 16 regular season games. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| James Harden | 7.7 | +7.7 | 2010 | 6 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2005 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| James Harden | 13.0 | +13.0 | 2011 | 17 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
Season 10 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| James Harden | 31.6 | +31.6 | 2019 | 11 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2014 | 0 |
Season 16 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| James Harden | 21.2 | +21.2 | 2024 | 6 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2019 | 0 |
James Harden's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* In his additional NBA year, James Harden didn't play in the postseason (2026 season yet in progress). |