Kevin Durant vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison

We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith and Kevin Durant 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.

Kevin Durant 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 Kevin Durant 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.

Career Numbers
Who has the better scoring stats?

Points in the Regular Season

In his 18 NBA regular seasons played, Kevin Durant averages 14.8 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (27.2 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 18,767 points more (30,915 vs. 12,148).

Points Per Game

Seasons
Kevin Durant 27.2
+14.8
18
J.R. Smith 12.4
16

Total Points

Seasons
Kevin Durant 30,915
+18,767
18
J.R. Smith 12,148
16

Scoring Titles

Kevin Durant 4
Scoring leaderScoring leaderScoring leaderScoring leader
+4
J.R. Smith 0

Points in the Playoffs

Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Kevin Durant has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+18.6 points per game) and he also scored more points (+3,492).

Points Per Game

Playoffs
Kevin Durant 29.3
+18.6
13
J.R. Smith 10.7
12

Total Points

Playoffs
Kevin Durant 4,985
+3,492
13
J.R. Smith 1,493
12

Points by Thresholds

Regular Season

50+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 9
+9
J.R. Smith 0

40+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 72
+68
J.R. Smith 4

30+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 414
+390
J.R. Smith 24

20+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 971
+811
J.R. Smith 160

10+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 1,126
+522
J.R. Smith 604

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Kevin Durant 1,136
+204
J.R. Smith 932

0 Point Games (games without points)

Kevin Durant 1
J.R. Smith 45
+44

Playoffs

50+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 1
+1
J.R. Smith 0

40+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 14
+14
J.R. Smith 0

30+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 77
+77
J.R. Smith 0

20+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 156
+142
J.R. Smith 14

10+ Point Games

Kevin Durant 170
+93
J.R. Smith 77

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Kevin Durant 170
+40
J.R. Smith 130

0 Point Games (games without points)

Kevin Durant 0
J.R. Smith 10
+10

Career Shooting Stats Comparison

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Regular Season

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Kevin Durant 27.2 9.4 18.7 50.2 1.9 5.0 39.0 6.5 7.4 88.2 18 1,137
difference:+14.8+4.9+8.0+8.3+0.1+0.3+1.7+5.0+5.4+14.9+2+160
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
Kevin Durant 30,915 10,658 21,238 50.2 2,215 5,686 39.0 7,384 8,371 88.2 18 1,137
difference:+18,767+6,278+10,773+8.3+285+508+1.7+5,926+6,381+14.9+2+160
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
Kevin Durant 29.3 9.9 20.8 47.7 2.2 6.1 35.6 7.4 8.5 86.8 13 170
difference:+18.6+6.2+11.5+8.0+0.1+0.4+1.1+6.2+6.9+16.2+1+30
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
Kevin Durant 4,985 1,684 3,528 47.7 366 1,029 35.6 1,251 1,441 86.8 13 170
difference:+3,492+1,165+2,222+8.0+72+228+1.1+1,090+1,213+16.2+1+30
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

Scoring leader= NBA Scoring Leader
NBA Champion = NBA Champion

Regular Season

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 20.3
+10.0
200880
J.R. Smith 10.3
200576

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 25.3
+17.6
200974
J.R. Smith 7.7
200655

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant Scoring leader30.1
+17.1
201082
J.R. Smith 13.0
200763

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant Scoring leader27.7
+15.4
201178
J.R. Smith 12.3
200874

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant Scoring leader28.0
+12.8
201266
J.R. Smith 15.2
200981

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 28.1
+12.7
201381
J.R. Smith 15.4
201075

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant Scoring leader32.0
+19.7
201481
J.R. Smith 12.3
201179

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 25.4
+12.9
201527
J.R. Smith 12.5
201235

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 28.2
+10.1
201672
J.R. Smith 18.1
201380

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 25.1
+10.6
2017NBA Champion62
J.R. Smith 14.5
201474

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 26.4
+14.3
2018NBA Champion68
J.R. Smith 12.1
201570

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 26.0
+13.9
201978
J.R. Smith 12.1
201570

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 26.9
+14.5
202135
J.R. Smith 12.4
2016NBA Champion77

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 29.9
+21.3
202255
J.R. Smith 8.6
201741

Season 15

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 29.1
+20.8
202347
J.R. Smith 8.3
201880

Season 16

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 27.1
+20.4
202475
J.R. Smith 6.7
201911

Season 17

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 26.6
+23.8
202562
J.R. Smith 2.8
2020NBA Champion6

Kevin Durant's additional seasons:

* Kevin Durant played 1 season more than J.R. Smith in the NBA.

In that year—his season 18 in 2026—he averaged 24.6 points in a total of 14 regular season games.

Playoffs

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant -
DNP
20080
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20050

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant -
DNP
20090
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20060

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 25.0
+20.5
20106
J.R. Smith 4.5
20074

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 28.6
+10.3
201117
J.R. Smith 18.3
20084

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 28.5
+13.6
201220
J.R. Smith 14.9
200916

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 30.8
+19.6
201311
J.R. Smith 11.2
20106

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 29.6
+19.8
201419
J.R. Smith 9.8
20115

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant -
DNP
20150
J.R. Smith 12.2
+12.2
20125

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 28.4
+14.1
201618
J.R. Smith 14.3
201311

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 28.5
+28.5
2017NBA Champion15
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20140

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 29.0
+16.2
2018NBA Champion21
J.R. Smith 12.8
201518

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 32.3
+19.5
201912
J.R. Smith 12.8
201518

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 34.3
+22.8
202112
J.R. Smith 11.5
2016NBA Champion21

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 26.3
+18.2
20224
J.R. Smith 8.1
201718

Season 15

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 29.0
+20.3
202311
J.R. Smith 8.7
201822

Season 16

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant 26.8
+26.8
20244
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20190

Season 17

Points per gameYearGames
Kevin Durant -
DNP
20250
J.R. Smith 2.0
+2.0
2020NBA Champion10

Kevin Durant's additional Playoffs:

* In his additional NBA year, Kevin Durant didn't play in the postseason (2026 season yet in progress).