Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Franz Wagner: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Franz Wagner and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 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.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 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 Franz Wagner.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has better scoring stats than Franz Wagner 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 20 NBA regular seasons played, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar averages 5.5 points more than Franz Wagner in his 5 seasons (24.6 points against 19.1), and he also scored a total of 32,702 points more (38,387 vs. 5,685).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 24.6 | +5.5 | 20 |
| Franz Wagner | 19.1 | 5 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 38,387 | +32,702 | 20 |
| Franz Wagner | 5,685 | 5 | |
Scoring Titles | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 2 |  +2 |
| Franz Wagner | 0 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has a better career point average than Franz Wagner (+2.5 points per game) and he also scored more points (+5,501).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 24.3 | +2.5 | 18 |
| Franz Wagner | 21.8 | 2 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 5,762 | +5,501 | 18 |
| Franz Wagner | 261 | 2 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 10 | +10 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 0 | |||
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 70 | +70 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 1,122 | +983 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 139 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 1,509 | +1238 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 271 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 1,559 | +1264 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 295 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 1 | |||
| Franz Wagner | 2 | +1 | ||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 9 | +9 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 169 | +162 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 7 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 223 | +212 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 11 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 237 | +225 | ||
| Franz Wagner | 12 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 0 | |||
| Franz Wagner | 0 | |||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 24.6 | 10.2 | 18.1 | 55.9 | * 0.0 | * 0.0 | * 5.6 | 4.3 | 6.0 | 72.1 | 20 | 1,560 |
| difference: | +5.5 | +3.1 | +3.1 | +8.4 | +1.5 | +4.5 | +26.8 | +0.8 | +1.9 | +13.1 | +15 | +1,263 |
| Franz Wagner | 19.1 | 7.1 | 15.0 | 47.5 | 1.5 | 4.5 | 32.4 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 85.2 | 5 | 297 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 38,387 | 15,837 | 28,307 | 55.9 | * 1 | * 18 | * 5.6 | 6,712 | 9,304 | 72.1 | 20 | 1,560 |
| difference: | +32,702 | +13,726 | +23,866 | +8.4 | +434 | +1,324 | +26.8 | +5,684 | +8,097 | +13.1 | +15 | +1,263 |
| Franz Wagner | 5,685 | 2,111 | 4,441 | 47.5 | 435 | 1,342 | 32.4 | 1,028 | 1,207 | 85.2 | 5 | 297 |
Notes: Three-point shots were implemented in 1979-80.
* = some years in his career didn't have the stat.
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 24.3 | 9.9 | 18.7 | 53.3 | * 0.0 | * 0.0 | * 0.0 | 4.4 | 6.0 | 74.0 | 18 | 237 |
| difference: | +2.5 | +2.1 | +0.5 | +10.6 | +1.3 | +5.9 | +22.5 | +0.5 | +0.2 | +10.3 | +16 | +225 |
| Franz Wagner | 21.8 | 7.8 | 18.2 | 42.7 | 1.3 | 5.9 | 22.5 | 4.9 | 5.8 | 84.3 | 2 | 12 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 5,762 | 2,356 | 4,422 | 53.3 | * 0 | * 4 | * 0.0 | 1,050 | 1,419 | 74.0 | 18 | 237 |
| difference: | +5,501 | +2,263 | +4,204 | +10.6 | +16 | +67 | +22.5 | +991 | +1,349 | +10.3 | +16 | +225 |
| Franz Wagner | 261 | 93 | 218 | 42.7 | 16 | 71 | 22.5 | 59 | 70 | 84.3 | 2 | 12 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 28.8 | +13.6 | 1970 | 82 |
| Franz Wagner | 15.2 | 2022 | 79 | |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 31.7 | +13.1 | 1971 | 82 |
| Franz Wagner | 18.6 | 2023 | 80 | |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 34.8 | +15.1 | 1972 | 81 |
| Franz Wagner | 19.7 | 2024 | 72 | |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 30.2 | +6.0 | 1973 | 76 |
| Franz Wagner | 24.2 | 2025 | 60 | |
Season 5 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 27.0 | +4.8 | 1974 | 81 |
| Franz Wagner | 22.2 | 2026 | 6 | |
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's additional seasons: | ||||
* Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played 15 seasons more than Franz Wagner in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 6 to 20, from 1975 to 1989—he averaged 22.6 points in a total of 1,158 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 30 ppg and his lowest 10.1. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 35.2 | +35.2 | 1970 | 10 |
| Franz Wagner | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 26.6 | +26.6 | 1971 | 14 |
| Franz Wagner | - | DNP | 2023 | 0 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 28.7 | +9.8 | 1972 | 11 |
| Franz Wagner | 18.9 | 2024 | 7 | |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 22.8 | 1973 | 6 | |
| Franz Wagner | 25.8 | +3.0 | 2025 | 5 |
Season 5 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 32.2 | +32.2 | 1974 | 16 |
| Franz Wagner | - | DNP * | 2026 | 0 |
| * season in progress | ||||
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 15 additional NBA seasons, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played in 13 Playoffs and won 5 NBA Championships. In those postseasons he averaged 22.6 points in a total of 180 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 34.6 ppg and his lowest 11.1. |