Kyrie Irving vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith and Kyrie Irving 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
Kyrie Irving 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 Kyrie Irving 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: |
|
Who has better scoring stats? Career Numbers |
Career Numbers
Who has the better scoring stats?
Points in the Regular Season
In his 14 NBA regular seasons played, Kyrie Irving averages 11.3 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (23.7 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 6,285 points more (18,433 vs. 12,148).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Kyrie Irving | 23.7 | +11.3 | 14 |
| J.R. Smith | 12.4 | 16 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Kyrie Irving | 18,433 | +6,285 | 14 |
| J.R. Smith | 12,148 | 16 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Kyrie Irving has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+12.3 points per game) and he also scored more points (+718).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Kyrie Irving | 23.0 | +12.3 | 7 |
| J.R. Smith | 10.7 | 12 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Kyrie Irving | 2,211 | +718 | 7 |
| J.R. Smith | 1,493 | 12 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 1 | +1 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 6 | +6 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 535 | +375 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 160 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 739 | +135 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 604 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 777 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 932 | +155 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 2 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 45 | +43 | ||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 4 | +4 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 22 | +22 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 66 | +52 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 14 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 92 | +15 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 77 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 96 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 130 | +34 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 0 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 10 | +10 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 23.7 | 8.7 | 18.4 | 47.4 | 2.4 | 6.1 | 39.4 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 88.8 | 14 | 779 |
| difference: | +11.3 | +4.2 | +7.7 | +5.6 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +2.1 | +2.3 | +2.3 | +15.5 | +2 | +198 |
| 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 | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 18,433 | 6,787 | 14,313 | 47.4 | 1,876 | 4,763 | 39.4 | 2,983 | 3,360 | 88.8 | 14 | 779 |
| difference: | +6,285 | +2,407 | +3,848 | +5.6 | +54 | +415 | +2.1 | +1,525 | +1,370 | +15.5 | +2 | +198 |
| 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 | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 23.0 | 8.5 | 18.6 | 45.8 | 2.3 | 6.0 | 39.2 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 88.3 | 7 | 96 |
| difference: | +12.3 | +4.8 | +9.3 | +6.0 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +2.5 | +2.5 | +2.6 | +17.7 | +5 | +44 |
| 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 | ||||
| Kyrie Irving | 2,211 | 815 | 1,781 | 45.8 | 225 | 574 | 39.2 | 356 | 403 | 88.3 | 7 | 96 |
| difference: | +718 | +296 | +475 | +6.0 | +69 | +227 | +2.5 | +195 | +175 | +17.7 | +5 | +44 |
| 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
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
J.R. Smith's additional seasons: | ||||
* J.R. Smith played 2 seasons more than Kyrie Irving in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 15 to 16, from 2019 to 2020—he averaged 5.4 points in a total of 17 regular season games. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | - | DNP | 2012 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2005 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | - | DNP | 2013 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | - | DNP | 2014 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 4.5 | +4.5 | 2007 | 4 |
Season 7 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | - | DNP | 2018 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 9.8 | +9.8 | 2011 | 5 |
Season 9 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | - | DNP | 2020 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 14.3 | +14.3 | 2013 | 11 |
Season 10 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | 22.7 | +22.7 | 2021 | 9 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2014 | 0 |
Season 12 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | - | DNP | 2023 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 11.5 | +11.5 | 2016 | 21 |
Season 14 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Kyrie Irving | - | DNP | 2025 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 8.7 | +8.7 | 2018 | 22 |
J.R. Smith's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 2 additional NBA seasons, J.R. Smith played in one postseason and won the NBA Championship. In those postseasons he averaged 2.0 points in a total of 10 games. |