Paul Pierce vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith and Paul Pierce 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
Paul Pierce is among the NBA's all-time leaders in points 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 Paul Pierce 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 19 NBA regular seasons played, Paul Pierce averages 7.3 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (19.7 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 14,249 points more (26,397 vs. 12,148).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Paul Pierce | 19.7 | +7.3 | 19 |
| J.R. Smith | 12.4 | 16 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Paul Pierce | 26,397 | +14,249 | 19 |
| J.R. Smith | 12,148 | 16 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Paul Pierce has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+8 points per game) and he also scored more points (+1,687).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Paul Pierce | 18.7 | +8.0 | 14 |
| J.R. Smith | 10.7 | 12 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Paul Pierce | 3,180 | +1,687 | 14 |
| J.R. Smith | 1,493 | 12 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 1 | +1 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 668 | +508 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 160 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 1,161 | +557 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 604 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 1,322 | +390 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 932 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 21 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 45 | +24 | ||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 3 | +3 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 16 | +16 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 73 | +59 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 14 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 148 | +71 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 77 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 165 | +35 | ||
| J.R. Smith | 130 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Paul Pierce | 5 | |||
| J.R. Smith | 10 | +5 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| 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 |
| difference: | +7.3 | +2.0 | +3.8 | +2.7 | +0.4 | +1.0 | +0.5 | +3.7 | +4.4 | +7.3 | +3 | +366 |
| 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 Pierce | 26,397 | 8,668 | 19,465 | 44.5 | 2,143 | 5,816 | 36.8 | 6,918 | 8,578 | 80.6 | 19 | 1,343 |
| difference: | +14,249 | +4,288 | +9,000 | +2.7 | +213 | +638 | +0.5 | +5,460 | +6,588 | +7.3 | +3 | +366 |
| 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 Pierce | 18.7 | 6.0 | 14.2 | 42.3 | 1.6 | 4.6 | 35.5 | 5.1 | 6.1 | 83.0 | 14 | 170 |
| difference: | +8.0 | +2.3 | +4.9 | +2.6 | +0.5 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +3.9 | +4.5 | +12.4 | +2 | +30 |
| 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 Pierce | 3,180 | 1,022 | 2,415 | 42.3 | 276 | 777 | 35.5 | 860 | 1,036 | 83.0 | 14 | 170 |
| difference: | +1,687 | +503 | +1,109 | +2.6 | +18 | +24 | +1.2 | +699 | +808 | +12.4 | +2 | +30 |
| 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
Paul Pierce's additional seasons: | ||||
* Paul Pierce played 3 seasons more than J.R. Smith in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 17 to 19, from 2015 to 2017—he averaged 8.2 points in a total of 166 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 11.9 ppg and his lowest 3.2. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul Pierce | - | DNP | 1999 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2005 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul Pierce | - | DNP | 2000 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul Pierce | - | DNP | 2001 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 4.5 | +4.5 | 2007 | 4 |
Season 8 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul Pierce | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 12.2 | +12.2 | 2012 | 5 |
Season 9 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul Pierce | - | DNP | 2007 | 0 |
| J.R. Smith | 14.3 | +14.3 | 2013 | 11 |
Season 10 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul Pierce | 19.7 | +19.7 | 2008 | 26 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2014 | 0 |
Season 15 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Paul Pierce | 19.2 | +19.2 | 2013 | 6 |
| J.R. Smith | - | DNP | 2019 | 0 |
Paul Pierce's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 3 additional NBA seasons, Paul Pierce played in 3 Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 7.9 points in a total of 22 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 14.6 ppg and his lowest 1.2. |