Joel Embiid vs. Al Horford: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Al Horford and Joel Embiid 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
Joel Embiid has one of the highest career point averages in NBA history, and here we compare his scoring stats with those recorded by Al Horford.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Joel Embiid has better scoring averages both in the regular season and Playoffs while Al Horford 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 9 NBA regular seasons played, Joel Embiid averages 14.8 points more than Al Horford in his 18 seasons (27.7 points against 12.9). On the other hand Al Horford scored a total of 2,182 points more than Joel Embiid (14,705 vs. 12,523).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Joel Embiid | 27.7 | +14.8 | 9 |
| Al Horford | 12.9 | 18 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Joel Embiid | 12,523 | 9 | |
| Al Horford | 14,705 | +2,182 | 18 |
Scoring Titles | ||
| Joel Embiid | 2 |  +2 |
| Al Horford | 0 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Joel Embiid has a better career point average than Al Horford (+13 points per game) while Al Horford scored more points (+884).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Joel Embiid | 24.9 | +13.0 | 7 |
| Al Horford | 11.9 | 16 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Joel Embiid | 1,469 | 7 | |
| Al Horford | 2,353 | +884 | 16 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
70+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 1 | +1 | ||
| Al Horford | 0 | |||
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 1 | +1 | ||
| Al Horford | 0 | |||
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 8 | +8 | ||
| Al Horford | 0 | |||
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 48 | +48 | ||
| Al Horford | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 362 | +193 | ||
| Al Horford | 169 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 443 | |||
| Al Horford | 793 | +350 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 451 | |||
| Al Horford | 1,130 | +679 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 1 | |||
| Al Horford | 8 | +7 | ||
Playoffs
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 1 | +1 | ||
| Al Horford | 0 | |||
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 2 | +2 | ||
| Al Horford | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 42 | +15 | ||
| Al Horford | 27 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 58 | |||
| Al Horford | 122 | +64 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 59 | |||
| Al Horford | 194 | +135 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 0 | |||
| Al Horford | 3 | +3 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 27.7 | 9.1 | 18.2 | 50.1 | 1.2 | 3.5 | 33.9 | 8.3 | 10.0 | 82.8 | 9 | 452 |
| difference: | +14.8 | +3.8 | +7.7 | +0.8 | +0.3 | +1.2 | +3.8 | +6.9 | +8.2 | +6.5 | +9 | +686 |
| Al Horford | 12.9 | 5.3 | 10.5 | 50.9 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 37.7 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 76.3 | 18 | 1,138 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 12,523 | 4,117 | 8,212 | 50.1 | 532 | 1,568 | 33.9 | 3,757 | 4,538 | 82.8 | 9 | 452 |
| difference: | +2,182 | +1,945 | +3,688 | +0.8 | +444 | +1,021 | +3.8 | +2,152 | +2,434 | +6.5 | +9 | +686 |
| Al Horford | 14,705 | 6,062 | 11,900 | 50.9 | 976 | 2,589 | 37.7 | 1,605 | 2,104 | 76.3 | 18 | 1,138 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 24.9 | 7.9 | 17.2 | 45.9 | 1.1 | 3.8 | 28.9 | 8.0 | 9.7 | 82.8 | 7 | 59 |
| difference: | +13.0 | +3.1 | +7.5 | +3.4 | +0.1 | +1.2 | +10.2 | +6.6 | +7.9 | +5.3 | +9 | +138 |
| Al Horford | 11.9 | 4.8 | 9.7 | 49.3 | 1.0 | 2.6 | 39.1 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 77.5 | 16 | 197 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Joel Embiid | 1,469 | 466 | 1,015 | 45.9 | 65 | 225 | 28.9 | 472 | 570 | 82.8 | 7 | 59 |
| difference: | +884 | +472 | +889 | +3.4 | +133 | +281 | +10.2 | +193 | +210 | +5.3 | +9 | +138 |
| Al Horford | 2,353 | 938 | 1,904 | 49.3 | 198 | 506 | 39.1 | 279 | 360 | 77.5 | 16 | 197 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Al Horford's additional seasons: | ||||
* Al Horford played 9 seasons more than Joel Embiid in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 10 to 18, from 2017 to 2025—he averaged 11.5 points in a total of 560 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 14.2 ppg and his lowest 8.6. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Joel Embiid | - | DNP | 2017 | 0 |
| Al Horford | 12.6 | +12.6 | 2008 | 7 |
Season 7 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Joel Embiid | 23.7 | +23.7 | 2023 | 9 |
| Al Horford | - | DNP | 2014 | 0 |
Season 9 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Joel Embiid | - | DNP | 2025 | 0 |
| Al Horford | 13.4 | +13.4 | 2016 | 10 |
Al Horford's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 9 additional NBA seasons, Al Horford played in 8 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those postseasons he averaged 11.3 points in a total of 123 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 15.7 ppg and his lowest 6.7. |