LaMelo Ball vs. Tim Duncan: Career Scoring Comparison

We break down the scoring legacies of Tim Duncan and LaMelo Ball 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.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings

Tim Duncan is among the NBA's all-time leaders in points and here we compare his scoring stats with those recorded by LaMelo Ball.

By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that in the regular season LaMelo Ball has a better scoring average and Tim Duncan scored more points, and since LaMelo Ball didn't play in the postseason, you could also say that Tim Duncan has better playoff stats. 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 5 NBA regular seasons played, LaMelo Ball averages 2 points more than Tim Duncan in his 19 seasons (21.0 points against 19.0). On the other hand Tim Duncan scored a total of 21,637 points more than LaMelo Ball (26,496 vs. 4,859).

Points Per Game

Seasons
LaMelo Ball 21.0
+2.0
5
Tim Duncan 19.0
19

Total Points

Seasons
LaMelo Ball 4,859
5
Tim Duncan 26,496
+21,637
19

Points in the Playoffs

LaMelo Ball didn't play in the NBA postseason, so obviously Tim Duncan has better playoff stats in points per game and total points scored.

Points Per Game

Playoffs
LaMelo Ball 0
0
Tim Duncan 20.6
+20.6
18

Total Points

Playoffs
LaMelo Ball 0
0
Tim Duncan 5,172
+5,172
18

Points by Thresholds

Regular Season

50+ Point Games

LaMelo Ball 1
Tim Duncan 1

40+ Point Games

LaMelo Ball 2
Tim Duncan 5
+3

30+ Point Games

LaMelo Ball 39
Tim Duncan 122
+83

20+ Point Games

LaMelo Ball 130
Tim Duncan 639
+509

10+ Point Games

LaMelo Ball 210
Tim Duncan 1,256
+1046

1+ Point Games (games with points)

LaMelo Ball 230
Tim Duncan 1,390
+1160

0 Point Games (games without points)

LaMelo Ball 1
Tim Duncan 2
+1

Playoffs

LaMelo Ball didn't play in the NBA postseason, so Tim Duncan's point thresholds are omited here.

Career Shooting Stats Comparison

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Regular Season

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
LaMelo Ball 21.0 7.4 17.6 42.1 3.1 8.4 36.5 3.1 3.7 83.7 5 231
difference:+2.0+3.0+8.4+3.1+8.3+18.6+1.1+2.4+14.1+14+1,161
Tim Duncan 19.0 7.4 14.6 50.6 0.0 0.1 17.9 4.2 6.1 69.6 19 1,392

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
LaMelo Ball 4,859 1,716 4,073 42.1 705 1,934 36.5 722 863 83.7 5 231
difference:+21,637+8,569+16,261+8.4+675+1,766+18.6+5,174+7,605+14.1+14+1,161
Tim Duncan 26,496 10,285 20,334 50.6 30 168 17.9 5,896 8,468 69.6 19 1,392

Playoffs

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
LaMelo Ball DNP - - - - - - - - - 0 0
difference:+20.6+7.9+15.7+50.1+0.1+14.3+4.8+7.0+68.9+18+251
Tim Duncan 20.6 7.9 15.7 50.1 0.0 0.1 14.3 4.8 7.0 68.9 18 251

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
LaMelo Ball DNP - - - - - - - - - 0 0
difference:+5,172+1,975+3,939+50.1+5+35+14.3+1,217+1,766+68.9+18+251
Tim Duncan 5,172 1,975 3,939 50.1 5 35 14.3 1,217 1,766 68.9 18 251

Year by Year Points Average Comparison

NBA Champion = NBA Champion

Regular Season

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball 15.7
202151
Tim Duncan 21.1
+5.4
199882

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball 20.1
202275
Tim Duncan 21.7
+1.6
1999NBA Champion50

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball 23.3
+0.1
202336
Tim Duncan 23.2
200074

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball 23.9
+1.7
202422
Tim Duncan 22.2
200182

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball 25.2
202547
Tim Duncan 25.5
+0.3
200282

Tim Duncan's additional seasons:

* Tim Duncan played 14 seasons more than LaMelo Ball in the NBA.

In those years—his seasons 6 to 19, from 2003 to 2016—he averaged 17.7 points in a total of 1,022 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 23.3 ppg and his lowest 8.6.

Playoffs

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball -
DNP
20210
Tim Duncan 20.7
+20.7
19989

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball -
DNP
20220
Tim Duncan 23.2
+23.2
1999NBA Champion17

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball -
DNP
20230
Tim Duncan -
DNP
20000

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball -
DNP
20240
Tim Duncan 24.4
+24.4
200113

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
LaMelo Ball -
DNP
20250
Tim Duncan 27.6
+27.6
20029

Tim Duncan's additional Playoffs:

* During his 14 additional NBA seasons, Tim Duncan played in 14 Playoffs and won 4 NBA Championships. In those postseasons he averaged 19.8 points in a total of 203 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 25.8 ppg and his lowest 5.9.