Lauri Markkanen vs. Jayson Tatum: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Jayson Tatum and Lauri Markkanen 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
Jayson Tatum has one of the highest career point averages in NBA history, and here we compare his scoring stats with those recorded by Lauri Markkanen.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Jayson Tatum has better scoring average and totals in the regular season, and since Lauri Markkanen didn't play in the postseason, you could also say that Jayson Tatum 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.
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, Jayson Tatum averages 4.8 points more than Lauri Markkanen in his 9 seasons (23.6 points against 18.8), and he also scored a total of 4,831 points more (13,784 vs. 8,953).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Lauri Markkanen | 18.8 | 9 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 23.6 | +4.8 | 8 |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Lauri Markkanen | 8,953 | 9 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 13,784 | +4,831 | 8 |
Points in the Playoffs
Lauri Markkanen didn't play in the NBA postseason, so obviously Jayson Tatum has better playoff stats in points per game and total points scored.
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Lauri Markkanen | 0 | 0 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 24.3 | +24.3 | 8 |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Lauri Markkanen | 0 | 0 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 2,936 | +2,936 | 8 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | 0 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 1 | +1 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | 207 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 375 | +168 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | 422 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 550 | +128 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | 476 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 584 | +108 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | 1 | |||
| Jayson Tatum | 1 | |||
Playoffs
Lauri Markkanen didn't play in the NBA postseason, so Jayson Tatum's point thresholds are omited here.
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | 18.8 | 6.4 | 14.1 | 45.7 | 2.6 | 6.9 | 37.1 | 3.3 | 3.8 | 87.1 | 9 | 477 |
| difference: | +4.8 | +1.8 | +3.7 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +1.2 | +1.6 | +3.1 | +1 | +108 | |
| Jayson Tatum | 23.6 | 8.2 | 17.8 | 45.9 | 2.6 | 7.1 | 37.0 | 4.5 | 5.4 | 84.0 | 8 | 585 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | 8,953 | 3,076 | 6,736 | 45.7 | 1,223 | 3,296 | 37.1 | 1,578 | 1,812 | 87.1 | 9 | 477 |
| difference: | +4,831 | +1,713 | +3,693 | +0.3 | +323 | +885 | +0.1 | +1,082 | +1,355 | +3.1 | +1 | +108 |
| Jayson Tatum | 13,784 | 4,789 | 10,429 | 45.9 | 1,546 | 4,181 | 37.0 | 2,660 | 3,167 | 84.0 | 8 | 585 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| difference: | +24.3 | +8.1 | +18.5 | +43.9 | +2.4 | +6.9 | +34.8 | +5.6 | +6.7 | +84.1 | +8 | +121 |
| Jayson Tatum | 24.3 | 8.1 | 18.5 | 43.9 | 2.4 | 6.9 | 34.8 | 5.6 | 6.7 | 84.1 | 8 | 121 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Lauri Markkanen | DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 | 0 |
| difference: | +2,936 | +983 | +2,241 | +43.9 | +292 | +840 | +34.8 | +678 | +806 | +84.1 | +8 | +121 |
| Jayson Tatum | 2,936 | 983 | 2,241 | 43.9 | 292 | 840 | 34.8 | 678 | 806 | 84.1 | 8 | 121 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Lauri Markkanen's additional seasons: | ||||
- Lauri Markkanen played 1 season more than Jayson Tatum in the NBA. In that year—his season 9 in 2026—he averaged 27.9 points in a total of 27 regular season games. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2018 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 18.5 | +18.5 | 2018 | 19 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2019 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 15.2 | +15.2 | 2019 | 9 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2020 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 25.7 | +25.7 | 2020 | 17 |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2021 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 30.6 | +30.6 | 2021 | 5 |
Season 5 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 25.6 | +25.6 | 2022 | 24 |
Season 6 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2023 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 27.2 | +27.2 | 2023 | 20 |
Season 7 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2024 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 25.0 | +25.0 | 2024 | 19 |
Season 8 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Lauri Markkanen | - | DNP | 2025 | 0 |
| Jayson Tatum | 28.1 | +28.1 | 2025 | 8 |
Lauri Markkanen's additional Playoffs: | ||||
- In his additional NBA year, Lauri Markkanen didn't play in the postseason (2026 season yet in progress). |