Kobe Bryant vs. Paul Pierce: Career Scoring Comparison

We break down the scoring legacies of Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant 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.

Kobe Bryant and Paul Pierce are among the all-time leaders in points in NBA history—combining for a total of 60,040 points—. Kobe Bryant is also one of the all-time leaders in points per game. Here we compare their scoring stats.

By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Kobe Bryant has better scoring stats than Paul Pierce 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 20 NBA regular seasons played, Kobe Bryant averages 5.3 points more than Paul Pierce in his 19 seasons (25.0 points against 19.7), and he also scored a total of 7,246 points more (33,643 vs. 26,397).

Points Per Game

Seasons
Kobe Bryant 25.0
+5.3
20
Paul Pierce 19.7
19

Total Points

Seasons
Kobe Bryant 33,643
+7,246
20
Paul Pierce 26,397
19

Scoring Titles

Kobe Bryant 2
Scoring leaderScoring leader
+2
Paul Pierce 0

Points in the Playoffs

Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Kobe Bryant has a better career point average than Paul Pierce (+6.9 points per game) and he also scored more points (+2,460).

Points Per Game

Playoffs
Kobe Bryant 25.6
+6.9
15
Paul Pierce 18.7
14

Total Points

Playoffs
Kobe Bryant 5,640
+2,460
15
Paul Pierce 3,180
14

Points by Thresholds

Regular Season

70+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 1
+1
Paul Pierce 0

60+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 6
+6
Paul Pierce 0

50+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 25
+24
Paul Pierce 1

40+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 122
+101
Paul Pierce 21

30+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 431
+233
Paul Pierce 198

20+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 941
+273
Paul Pierce 668

10+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 1,254
+93
Paul Pierce 1,161

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Kobe Bryant 1,331
+9
Paul Pierce 1,322

0 Point Games (games without points)

Kobe Bryant 15
Paul Pierce 21
+6

Playoffs

50+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 1
+1
Paul Pierce 0

40+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 13
+10
Paul Pierce 3

30+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 88
+72
Paul Pierce 16

20+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 167
+94
Paul Pierce 73

10+ Point Games

Kobe Bryant 204
+56
Paul Pierce 148

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Kobe Bryant 218
+53
Paul Pierce 165

0 Point Games (games without points)

Kobe Bryant 2
Paul Pierce 5
+3

Career Shooting Stats Comparison

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Regular Season

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Kobe Bryant 25.0 8.7 19.5 44.7 1.4 4.1 32.9 6.2 7.4 83.7 20 1,346
difference:+5.3+2.2+5.0+0.2+0.2+0.2+3.9+1.0+1.0+3.1+1+3
Paul Pierce 19.7 6.5 14.5 44.5 1.6 4.3 36.8 5.2 6.4 80.6 19 1,343

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Kobe Bryant 33,643 11,719 26,200 44.7 1,827 5,546 32.9 8,378 10,011 83.7 20 1,346
difference:+7,246+3,051+6,735+0.2+316+270+3.9+1,460+1,433+3.1+1+3
Paul Pierce 26,397 8,668 19,465 44.5 2,143 5,816 36.8 6,918 8,578 80.6 19 1,343

Playoffs

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Kobe Bryant 25.6 9.2 20.5 44.8 1.3 4.0 33.1 6.0 7.4 81.6 15 220
difference:+6.9+3.2+6.3+2.4+0.3+0.6+2.4+0.9+1.3+1.4+1+50
Paul Pierce 18.7 6.0 14.2 42.3 1.6 4.6 35.5 5.1 6.1 83.0 14 170

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Kobe Bryant 5,640 2,014 4,499 44.8 292 882 33.1 1,320 1,617 81.6 15 220
difference:+2,460+992+2,084+2.4+16+105+2.4+460+581+1.4+1+50
Paul Pierce 3,180 1,022 2,415 42.3 276 777 35.5 860 1,036 83.0 14 170

Year by Year Points Average Comparison

Scoring leader= NBA Scoring Leader
NBA Champion = NBA Champion

Regular Season

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 7.6
199771
Paul Pierce 16.5
+8.9
199948

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 15.4
199879
Paul Pierce 19.5
+4.1
200073

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 19.9
199950
Paul Pierce 25.3
+5.4
200182

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 22.5
2000NBA Champion66
Paul Pierce 26.1
+3.6
200282

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 28.5
+2.6
2001NBA Champion68
Paul Pierce 25.9
200379

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 25.2
+2.2
2002NBA Champion80
Paul Pierce 23.0
200480

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 30.0
+8.4
200382
Paul Pierce 21.6
200582

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 24.0
200465
Paul Pierce 26.8
+2.8
200679

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 27.6
+2.6
200566
Paul Pierce 25.0
200747

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant Scoring leader35.4
+15.8
200680
Paul Pierce 19.6
2008NBA Champion80

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant Scoring leader31.6
+11.1
200777
Paul Pierce 20.5
200981

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 28.3
+10.0
200882
Paul Pierce 18.3
201071

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 26.8
+7.9
2009NBA Champion82
Paul Pierce 18.9
201180

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 27.0
+7.6
2010NBA Champion73
Paul Pierce 19.4
201261

Season 15

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 25.3
+6.7
201182
Paul Pierce 18.6
201377

Season 16

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 27.9
+14.4
201258
Paul Pierce 13.5
201475

Season 17

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 27.3
+15.4
201378
Paul Pierce 11.9
201573

Season 18

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 13.8
+7.7
20146
Paul Pierce 6.1
201668

Season 19

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 22.3
+19.1
201535
Paul Pierce 3.2
201725

Kobe Bryant's additional seasons:

* Kobe Bryant played 1 season more than Paul Pierce in the NBA.

In that year—his season 20 in 2016—he averaged 17.6 points in a total of 66 regular season games.

Playoffs

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 8.2
+8.2
19979
Paul Pierce -
DNP
19990

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 8.7
+8.7
199811
Paul Pierce -
DNP
20000

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 19.8
+19.8
19998
Paul Pierce -
DNP
20010

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 21.1
2000NBA Champion22
Paul Pierce 24.6
+3.5
200216

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 29.4
+2.3
2001NBA Champion16
Paul Pierce 27.1
200310

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 26.6
+5.8
2002NBA Champion19
Paul Pierce 20.8
20044

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 32.1
+9.2
200312
Paul Pierce 22.9
20057

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 24.5
+24.5
200422
Paul Pierce -
DNP
20060

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant -
DNP
20050
Paul Pierce -
DNP
20070

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 27.9
+8.2
20067
Paul Pierce 19.7
2008NBA Champion26

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 32.8
+11.8
20075
Paul Pierce 21.0
200914

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 30.1
+11.3
200821
Paul Pierce 18.8
201024

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 30.2
+9.4
2009NBA Champion23
Paul Pierce 20.8
20119

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 29.2
+10.3
2010NBA Champion23
Paul Pierce 18.9
201220

Season 15

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 22.8
+3.6
201110
Paul Pierce 19.2
20136

Season 16

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant 30.0
+16.3
201212
Paul Pierce 13.7
201412

Season 17

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant -
DNP
20130
Paul Pierce 14.6
+14.6
201510

Season 18

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant -
DNP
20140
Paul Pierce 1.2
+1.2
20165

Season 19

Points per gameYearGames
Kobe Bryant -
DNP
20150
Paul Pierce 3.0
+3.0
20177

Kobe Bryant's additional Playoffs:

* In his additional NBA year, Kobe Bryant didn't play in the postseason.