Shai Gilgeous-Alexander vs. Dwight Howard: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Dwight Howard and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 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
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has one of the highest career point averages in NBA history, and here we compare his scoring stats with those recorded by Dwight Howard.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has better scoring averages both in the regular season and Playoffs while Dwight Howard scored more total points in both stages. 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, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander averages 9.1 points more than Dwight Howard in his 18 seasons (24.8 points against 15.7). On the other hand Dwight Howard scored a total of 7,470 points more than Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (19,485 vs. 12,015).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 24.8 | +9.1 | 8 |
| Dwight Howard | 15.7 | 18 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 12,015 | 8 | |
| Dwight Howard | 19,485 | +7,470 | 18 |
Scoring Titles | ||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 1 |  +1 |
| Dwight Howard | 0 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has a better career point average than Dwight Howard (+10.5 points per game) while Dwight Howard scored more points (+723).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 25.8 | +10.5 | 4 |
| Dwight Howard | 15.3 | 12 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 1,186 | 4 | |
| Dwight Howard | 1,909 | +723 | 12 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
50+ Point Games | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 5 | +5 | ||
| Dwight Howard | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 335 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 391 | +56 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 443 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 955 | +512 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 482 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 1,227 | +745 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 2 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 15 | +13 | ||
Playoffs
20+ Point Games | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 34 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 42 | +8 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 41 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 86 | +45 | ||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 46 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 121 | +75 | ||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 0 | |||
| Dwight Howard | 4 | +4 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 24.8 | 8.6 | 17.2 | 50.3 | 1.4 | 3.8 | 36.0 | 6.2 | 7.2 | 86.3 | 8 | 484 |
| difference: | +9.1 | +2.9 | +7.5 | +8.3 | +1.4 | +3.7 | +14.6 | +1.9 | +0.4 | +29.6 | +10 | +758 |
| Dwight Howard | 15.7 | 5.7 | 9.7 | 58.7 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 21.4 | 4.3 | 7.6 | 56.7 | 18 | 1,242 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 12,015 | 4,181 | 8,306 | 50.3 | 663 | 1,842 | 36.0 | 2,990 | 3,466 | 86.3 | 8 | 484 |
| difference: | +7,470 | +2,870 | +3,710 | +8.3 | +641 | +1,739 | +14.6 | +2,371 | +5,989 | +29.6 | +10 | +758 |
| Dwight Howard | 19,485 | 7,051 | 12,016 | 58.7 | 22 | 103 | 21.4 | 5,361 | 9,455 | 56.7 | 18 | 1,242 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 25.8 | 8.9 | 19.1 | 46.8 | 1.5 | 4.4 | 35.0 | 6.4 | 7.4 | 85.9 | 4 | 46 |
| difference: | +10.5 | +3.5 | +9.9 | +12.1 | +1.5 | +4.3 | +20.7 | +2.0 | +0.6 | +31.1 | +8 | +79 |
| Dwight Howard | 15.3 | 5.4 | 9.2 | 58.9 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 14.3 | 4.4 | 8.0 | 54.8 | 12 | 125 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 1,186 | 411 | 878 | 46.8 | 71 | 203 | 35.0 | 293 | 341 | 85.9 | 4 | 46 |
| difference: | +723 | +270 | +278 | +12.1 | +70 | +196 | +20.7 | +253 | +656 | +31.1 | +8 | +79 |
| Dwight Howard | 1,909 | 681 | 1,156 | 58.9 | 1 | 7 | 14.3 | 546 | 997 | 54.8 | 12 | 125 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 10.8 | 2019 | 82 | |
| Dwight Howard | 12.0 | +1.2 | 2005 | 82 |
Dwight Howard's additional seasons: | ||||
* Dwight Howard played 10 seasons more than Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 9 to 18, from 2013 to 2022—he averaged 13.0 points in a total of 621 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 18.3 ppg and his lowest 6.2. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 13.7 | +13.7 | 2019 | 6 |
| Dwight Howard | - | DNP | 2005 | 0 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | 16.3 | +16.3 | 2020 | 7 |
| Dwight Howard | - | DNP | 2006 | 0 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | - | DNP | 2021 | 0 |
| Dwight Howard | 15.3 | +15.3 | 2007 | 4 |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
| Dwight Howard | 18.9 | +18.9 | 2008 | 10 |
Season 5 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | - | DNP | 2023 | 0 |
| Dwight Howard | 20.3 | +20.3 | 2009 | 23 |
Season 8 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| S. Gilgeous-Alexander | - | DNP * | 2026 | 0 |
| Dwight Howard | - | DNP | 2012 | 0 |
| * season in progress | ||||
Dwight Howard's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 10 additional NBA seasons, Dwight Howard played in 7 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those postseasons he averaged 11.4 points in a total of 68 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 26 ppg and his lowest 4.7. |