Josh Giddey vs. James Harden: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of James Harden and Josh Giddey 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 Josh Giddey.
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 Josh Giddey 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 16 NBA regular seasons played, James Harden averages 10 points more than Josh Giddey in his 4 seasons (24.1 points against 14.1), and he also scored a total of 23,745 points more (27,687 vs. 3,942).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Josh Giddey | 14.1 | 4 | |
| James Harden | 24.1 | +10.0 | 16 |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Josh Giddey | 3,942 | 4 | |
| James Harden | 27,687 | +23,745 | 16 |
Scoring Titles | ||
| Josh Giddey | 0 | |
| James Harden | 3 |  +3 |
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 Josh Giddey (+13.8 points per game) and he also scored more points (+3,808).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Josh Giddey | 8.7 | 1 | |
| James Harden | 22.5 | +13.8 | 16 |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Josh Giddey | 87 | 1 | |
| James Harden | 3,895 | +3,808 | 16 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 0 | |||
| James Harden | 4 | +4 | ||
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 0 | |||
| James Harden | 24 | +24 | ||
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 0 | |||
| James Harden | 105 | +105 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 48 | |||
| James Harden | 736 | +688 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 215 | |||
| James Harden | 1,053 | +838 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 278 | |||
| James Harden | 1,150 | +872 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 2 | +1 | ||
| James Harden | 1 | |||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 0 | |||
| James Harden | 11 | +11 | ||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 0 | |||
| James Harden | 49 | +49 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 1 | |||
| James Harden | 101 | +100 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 4 | |||
| James Harden | 155 | +151 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 10 | |||
| James Harden | 170 | +160 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 0 | |||
| James Harden | 3 | +3 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 14.1 | 5.7 | 12.3 | 46.4 | 1.1 | 3.5 | 33.0 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 76.4 | 4 | 280 |
| difference: | +10.0 | +1.4 | +3.9 | +2.5 | +1.7 | +4.1 | +3.3 | +5.5 | +6.2 | +9.7 | +12 | +871 |
| James Harden | 24.1 | 7.1 | 16.2 | 43.9 | 2.8 | 7.6 | 36.3 | 7.1 | 8.2 | 86.1 | 16 | 1,151 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 3,942 | 1,593 | 3,433 | 46.4 | 319 | 968 | 33.0 | 437 | 572 | 76.4 | 4 | 280 |
| difference: | +23,745 | +6,581 | +15,177 | +2.5 | +2,856 | +7,782 | +3.3 | +7,727 | +8,906 | +9.7 | +12 | +871 |
| James Harden | 27,687 | 8,174 | 18,610 | 43.9 | 3,175 | 8,750 | 36.3 | 8,164 | 9,478 | 86.1 | 16 | 1,151 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 8.7 | 3.4 | 7.5 | 45.3 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 35.3 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 87.5 | 1 | 10 |
| difference: | +13.8 | +3.4 | +8.5 | +2.8 | +1.3 | +4.0 | +1.3 | +5.7 | +6.6 | +0.6 | +15 | +163 |
| James Harden | 22.5 | 6.8 | 16.0 | 42.5 | 2.5 | 7.4 | 34.0 | 6.4 | 7.4 | 86.9 | 16 | 173 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Josh Giddey | 87 | 34 | 75 | 45.3 | 12 | 34 | 35.3 | 7 | 8 | 87.5 | 1 | 10 |
| difference: | +3,808 | +1,139 | +2,685 | +2.8 | +422 | +1,241 | +1.3 | +1,108 | +1,275 | +0.6 | +15 | +163 |
| James Harden | 3,895 | 1,173 | 2,760 | 42.5 | 434 | 1,275 | 34.0 | 1,115 | 1,283 | 86.9 | 16 | 173 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring LeaderRegular Season
James Harden's additional seasons: | ||||
* James Harden played 14 seasons more than Josh Giddey in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 5 to 18, from 2014 to 2025—he averaged 26.6 points in a total of 941 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 36.1 ppg and his lowest 16.6. In those 14 extra years over Josh Giddey, James Harden won 3 scoring titles. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Josh Giddey | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
| James Harden | 7.7 | +7.7 | 2010 | 6 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Josh Giddey | - | DNP | 2023 | 0 |
| James Harden | 13.0 | +13.0 | 2011 | 17 |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Josh Giddey | - | DNP | 2025 | 0 |
| James Harden | 26.3 | +26.3 | 2013 | 6 |
James Harden's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 14 additional NBA seasons, James Harden played in 14 Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 24.7 points in a total of 142 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 31.6 ppg and his lowest 18.6. |