J.R. Smith vs. Jayson Tatum: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Jayson Tatum and J.R. Smith 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
Jayson Tatum has one of the highest career point averages in NBA 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 Jayson Tatum 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 8 NBA regular seasons played, Jayson Tatum averages 11.2 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (23.6 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 1,636 points more (13,784 vs. 12,148).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| J.R. Smith | 12.4 | 16 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 23.6 | +11.2 | 8 |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| J.R. Smith | 12,148 | 16 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 13,784 | +1,636 | 8 |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Jayson Tatum has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+13.6 points per game) and he also scored more points (+1,443).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| J.R. Smith | 10.7 | 12 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 24.3 | +13.6 | 8 |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| J.R. Smith | 1,493 | 12 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 2,936 | +1,443 | 8 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 1 | +1 | ||
50+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 5 | +5 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 160 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 375 | +215 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 604 | +54 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 550 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 932 | +348 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 584 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 45 | +44 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 1 | |||
Playoffs
50+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 2 | +2 | ||
40+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 5 | +5 | ||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 34 | +34 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 14 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 84 | +70 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 77 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 115 | +38 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 130 | +9 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 121 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 10 | +10 | ||
| Jayson Tatum | 0 | |||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| 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 |
| difference: | +11.2 | +3.7 | +7.1 | +4.1 | +0.6 | +1.8 | +0.3 | +3.0 | +3.4 | +10.7 | +8 | +392 |
| 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 | ||||
| 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 |
| difference: | +1,636 | +409 | +36 | +4.1 | +384 | +997 | +0.3 | +1,202 | +1,177 | +10.7 | +8 | +392 |
| 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 | ||||
| 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 |
| difference: | +13.6 | +4.4 | +9.2 | +4.1 | +0.3 | +1.2 | +1.9 | +4.4 | +5.1 | +13.5 | +4 | +19 |
| 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 | ||||
| J.R. Smith | 1,493 | 519 | 1,306 | 39.7 | 294 | 801 | 36.7 | 161 | 228 | 70.6 | 12 | 140 |
| difference: | +1,443 | +464 | +935 | +4.1 | +2 | +39 | +1.9 | +517 | +578 | +13.5 | +4 | +19 |
| 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 ChampionRegular Season
J.R. Smith's additional seasons: | ||||
* J.R. Smith played 8 seasons more than Jayson Tatum in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 9 to 16, from 2013 to 2020—he averaged 12.4 points in a total of 439 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 18.1 ppg and his lowest 2.8. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2005 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 18.5 | +18.5 | 2018 | 19 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 15.2 | +15.2 | 2019 | 9 |
J.R. Smith's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 8 additional NBA seasons, J.R. Smith played in 6 Playoffs and won two NBA Championships. In those postseasons he averaged 9.9 points in a total of 100 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 14.3 ppg and his lowest 2. |