Kevin Garnett vs. Yao Ming: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Yao Ming and Kevin Garnett 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
Kevin Garnett is among the NBA's all-time leaders in points and here we compare his scoring stats with those recorded by Yao Ming.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Yao Ming has better scoring averages both in the regular season and Playoffs while Kevin Garnett 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 8 NBA regular seasons played, Yao Ming averages 1.2 points more than Kevin Garnett in his 21 seasons (19.0 points against 17.8). On the other hand Kevin Garnett scored a total of 16,824 points more than Yao Ming (26,071 vs. 9,247).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Kevin Garnett | 17.8 | 21 | |
| Yao Ming | 19.0 | +1.2 | 8 |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Kevin Garnett | 26,071 | +16,824 | 21 |
| Yao Ming | 9,247 | 8 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Yao Ming has a better career point average than Kevin Garnett (+1.6 points per game) while Kevin Garnett scored more points (+2,046).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Kevin Garnett | 18.2 | 14 | |
| Yao Ming | 19.8 | +1.6 | 4 |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Kevin Garnett | 2,601 | +2,046 | 14 |
| Yao Ming | 555 | 4 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 631 | +399 | ||
| Yao Ming | 232 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 1,260 | +820 | ||
| Yao Ming | 440 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 1,449 | +966 | ||
| Yao Ming | 483 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 13 | +10 | ||
| Yao Ming | 3 | |||
Playoffs
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 58 | +43 | ||
| Yao Ming | 15 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 128 | +102 | ||
| Yao Ming | 26 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 142 | +114 | ||
| Yao Ming | 28 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 1 | +1 | ||
| Yao Ming | 0 | |||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 17.8 | 7.2 | 14.5 | 49.7 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 27.5 | 3.3 | 4.2 | 78.9 | 21 | 1,462 |
| difference: | +1.2 | +0.2 | +1.2 | +2.8 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +7.5 | +1.8 | +1.9 | +4.4 | +13 | +976 |
| Yao Ming | 19.0 | 7.0 | 13.3 | 52.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 20.0 | 5.1 | 6.1 | 83.3 | 8 | 486 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 26,071 | 10,505 | 21,142 | 49.7 | 174 | 632 | 27.5 | 4,887 | 6,190 | 78.9 | 21 | 1,462 |
| difference: | +16,824 | +7,125 | +14,697 | +2.8 | +172 | +622 | +7.5 | +2,402 | +3,206 | +4.4 | +13 | +976 |
| Yao Ming | 9,247 | 3,380 | 6,445 | 52.4 | 2 | 10 | 20.0 | 2,485 | 2,984 | 83.3 | 8 | 486 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 18.2 | 7.4 | 15.5 | 47.8 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 27.3 | 3.3 | 4.1 | 78.9 | 14 | 143 |
| difference: | +1.6 | +0.4 | +2.1 | +4.1 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +27.3 | +2.6 | +3.0 | +4.4 | +10 | +115 |
| Yao Ming | 19.8 | 7.0 | 13.4 | 51.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | 5.9 | 7.1 | 83.3 | 4 | 28 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kevin Garnett | 2,601 | 1,059 | 2,216 | 47.8 | 15 | 55 | 27.3 | 468 | 593 | 78.9 | 14 | 143 |
| difference: | +2,046 | +864 | +1,840 | +4.1 | +15 | +55 | +27.3 | +303 | +395 | +4.4 | +10 | +115 |
| Yao Ming | 555 | 195 | 376 | 51.9 | 0 | 0 | - | 165 | 198 | 83.3 | 4 | 28 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Kevin Garnett's additional seasons: | ||||
- Kevin Garnett played 13 seasons more than Yao Ming in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 9 to 21, from 2004 to 2016—he averaged 16.7 points in a total of 851 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 24.2 ppg and his lowest 3.2. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kevin Garnett | - | DNP | 1996 | 0 |
| Yao Ming | - | DNP | 2003 | 0 |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kevin Garnett | 21.8 | +21.8 | 1999 | 4 |
| Yao Ming | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
Season 6 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kevin Garnett | 21.0 | +21.0 | 2001 | 4 |
| Yao Ming | - | DNP | 2008 | 0 |
Season 8 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kevin Garnett | 27.0 | +27.0 | 2003 | 6 |
| Yao Ming | - | DNP | 2011 | 0 |
Kevin Garnett's additional Playoffs: | ||||
- During his 13 additional NBA seasons, Kevin Garnett played in 7 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those postseasons he averaged 17.5 points in a total of 114 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 24.3 ppg and his lowest 6.9. |