Shaquille O'Neal vs. David Robinson: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of David Robinson and Shaquille O'Neal 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
Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson are among the all-time leaders in points in NBA history—combining for a total of 49,386 points—. Here we compare their scoring stats.
By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Shaquille O'Neal has better scoring stats than David Robinson 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, Shaquille O'Neal averages 2.6 points more than David Robinson in his 14 seasons (23.7 points against 21.1), and he also scored a total of 7,806 points more (28,596 vs. 20,790).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 23.7 | +2.6 | 19 |
| David Robinson | 21.1 | 14 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 28,596 | +7,806 | 19 |
| David Robinson | 20,790 | 14 | |
Scoring Titles | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 2 |  +1 |
| David Robinson | 1 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Shaquille O'Neal has a better career point average than David Robinson (+6.2 points per game) and he also scored more points (+3,029).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 24.3 | +6.2 | 17 |
| David Robinson | 18.1 | 12 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 5,250 | +3,029 | 17 |
| David Robinson | 2,221 | 12 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
70+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 0 | |||
| David Robinson | 1 | +1 | ||
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1 | |||
| David Robinson | 1 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 826 | +278 | ||
| David Robinson | 548 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1,132 | +243 | ||
| David Robinson | 889 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1,205 | +220 | ||
| David Robinson | 985 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 2 | |||
| David Robinson | 2 | |||
Playoffs
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 148 | +93 | ||
| David Robinson | 55 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 206 | +104 | ||
| David Robinson | 102 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 215 | +95 | ||
| David Robinson | 120 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1 | |||
| David Robinson | 3 | +2 | ||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 23.7 | 9.4 | 16.1 | 58.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 9.3 | 52.7 | 19 | 1,207 |
| difference: | +2.6 | +1.9 | +1.7 | +6.4 | +0.1 | +20.5 | +1.2 | +1.0 | +20.9 | +5 | +220 | |
| David Robinson | 21.1 | 7.5 | 14.4 | 51.8 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 25.0 | 6.1 | 8.3 | 73.6 | 14 | 987 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 28,596 | 11,330 | 19,457 | 58.2 | 1 | 22 | 4.5 | 5,935 | 11,252 | 52.7 | 19 | 1,207 |
| difference: | +7,806 | +3,965 | +5,236 | +6.4 | +24 | +78 | +20.5 | +100 | +3,051 | +20.9 | +5 | +220 |
| David Robinson | 20,790 | 7,365 | 14,221 | 51.8 | 25 | 100 | 25.0 | 6,035 | 8,201 | 73.6 | 14 | 987 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 24.3 | 9.4 | 16.8 | 56.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | 5.4 | 10.7 | 50.4 | 17 | 216 |
| difference: | +6.2 | +3.2 | +3.8 | +8.4 | +0.1 | +10.0 | +0.2 | +2.8 | +20.4 | +5 | +93 | |
| David Robinson | 18.1 | 6.2 | 13.0 | 47.9 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 10.0 | 5.6 | 7.9 | 70.8 | 12 | 123 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 5,250 | 2,041 | 3,627 | 56.3 | 0 | 0 | - | 1,168 | 2,317 | 50.4 | 17 | 216 |
| difference: | +3,029 | +1,273 | +2,023 | +8.4 | +1 | +10 | +10.0 | +484 | +1,351 | +20.4 | +5 | +93 |
| David Robinson | 2,221 | 768 | 1,604 | 47.9 | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 684 | 966 | 70.8 | 12 | 123 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Shaquille O'Neal's additional seasons: | ||||
- Shaquille O'Neal played 5 seasons more than David Robinson in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 15 to 19, from 2007 to 2011—he averaged 14.4 points in a total of 266 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 17.8 ppg and his lowest 9.2. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | - | DNP | 1993 | 0 |
| David Robinson | 24.3 | +24.3 | 1990 | 10 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 25.7 | +25.7 | 1995 | 21 |
| David Robinson | - | DNP | 1992 | 0 |
Season 8 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 30.7 | +30.7 | 2000 | 23 |
| David Robinson | - | DNP | 1997 | 0 |
Shaquille O'Neal's additional Playoffs: | ||||
- During his 5 additional NBA seasons, Shaquille O'Neal played in 4 Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 12.7 points in a total of 22 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 18.8 ppg and his lowest 1. |