Paul George vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith and Paul George 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
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Paul George 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: |
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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 15 NBA regular seasons played, Paul George averages 8.2 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (20.6 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 6,549 points more (18,697 vs. 12,148).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Paul George | 20.6 | +8.2 | 15 |
| J.R. Smith | 12.4 | 16 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Paul George | 18,697 | +6,549 | 15 |
| J.R. Smith | 12,148 | 16 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Paul George has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+10.5 points per game) and he also scored more points (+923).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Paul George | 21.2 | +10.5 | 11 |
| J.R. Smith | 10.7 | 12 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Paul George | 2,416 | +923 | 11 |
| J.R. Smith | 1,493 | 12 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul George | 493 | +333 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 160 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul George | 802 | +198 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 604 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Paul George | 901 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 932 | +31 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Paul George | 7 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 45 | +38 | ||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul George | 1 | +1 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul George | 21 | +21 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul George | 69 | +55 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 14 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul George | 99 | +22 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 77 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Paul George | 114 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 130 | +16 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Paul George | 0 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 10 | +10 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Paul George | 20.6 | 7.0 | 16.0 | 44.0 | 2.6 | 6.7 | 38.3 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 85.3 | 15 | 908 |
| difference: | +8.2 | +2.5 | +5.3 | +2.1 | +0.6 | +1.4 | +1.0 | +2.4 | +2.6 | +12.0 | +1 | +69 |
| 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 | ||||
| Paul George | 18,697 | 6,400 | 14,553 | 44.0 | 2,349 | 6,127 | 38.3 | 3,548 | 4,160 | 85.3 | 15 | 908 |
| difference: | +6,549 | +2,020 | +4,088 | +2.1 | +419 | +949 | +1.0 | +2,090 | +2,170 | +12.0 | +1 | +69 |
| 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 | ||||
| Paul George | 21.2 | 6.8 | 16.2 | 42.3 | 2.4 | 6.9 | 35.2 | 5.1 | 6.2 | 82.6 | 11 | 114 |
| difference: | +10.5 | +3.1 | +6.9 | +2.6 | +0.3 | +1.2 | +1.5 | +3.9 | +4.6 | +12.0 | +1 | +26 |
| 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 | ||||
| Paul George | 2,416 | 779 | 1,842 | 42.3 | 276 | 783 | 35.2 | 582 | 705 | 82.6 | 11 | 114 |
| difference: | +923 | +260 | +536 | +2.6 | +18 | +18 | +1.5 | +421 | +477 | +12.0 | +1 | +26 |
| 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 Paul George in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 16 to 17, 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 | |
| Paul George | 6.0 | +6.0 | 2011 | 5 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2005 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul George | 9.7 | +9.7 | 2012 | 11 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
Season 5 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul George | - | DNP | 2015 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 14.9 | +14.9 | 2009 | 16 |
Season 10 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul George | 20.2 | +20.2 | 2020 | 13 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2014 | 0 |
Season 12 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul George | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 12.8 | +12.8 | 2015 | 18 |
Season 13 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul George | - | DNP | 2023 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 11.5 | +11.5 | 2016 | 21 |
Season 15 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul George | - | 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. |