Shaquille O'Neal vs. Domantas Sabonis: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Domantas Sabonis 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.
Shaquille O'Neal is among the NBA's all-time leaders in points and also has one of the highest career averages in league history, and here we compare his scoring stats with those recorded by Domantas Sabonis.
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 Domantas Sabonis 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 7.6 points more than Domantas Sabonis in his 10 seasons (23.7 points against 16.1), and he also scored a total of 18,145 points more (28,596 vs. 10,451).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 23.7 | +7.6 | 19 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 16.1 | 10 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 28,596 | +18,145 | 19 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 10,451 | 10 | |
Scoring Titles | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 2 |  +2 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 0 | |
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 Domantas Sabonis (+12.3 points per game) and he also scored more points (+5,010).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 24.3 | +12.3 | 17 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 12.0 | 4 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 5,250 | +5,010 | 17 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 240 | 4 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1 | +1 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 0 | |||
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 3 | +3 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 826 | +619 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 207 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1,132 | +616 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 516 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1,205 | +563 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 642 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 2 | |||
| Domantas Sabonis | 8 | +6 | ||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 12 | +12 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 0 | |||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 55 | +55 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 148 | +144 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 4 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 206 | +194 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 12 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 215 | +196 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | 19 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Shaquille O'Neal | 1 | |||
| Domantas Sabonis | 1 | |||
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: | +7.6 | +3.1 | +4.9 | +2.3 | +0.5 | +1.4 | +30.1 | +1.9 | +5.2 | +20.2 | +9 | +557 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 16.1 | 6.3 | 11.2 | 55.9 | 0.5 | 1.4 | 34.6 | 3.0 | 4.1 | 72.9 | 10 | 650 |
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: | +18,145 | +7,239 | +12,145 | +2.3 | +311 | +880 | +30.1 | +3,978 | +8,567 | +20.2 | +9 | +557 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 10,451 | 4,091 | 7,312 | 55.9 | 312 | 902 | 34.6 | 1,957 | 2,685 | 72.9 | 10 | 650 |
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: | +12.3 | +4.5 | +7.1 | +6.0 | +0.2 | +0.9 | +17.6 | +3.2 | +7.5 | +16.8 | +13 | +196 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 12.0 | 4.9 | 9.7 | 50.3 | 0.2 | 0.9 | 17.6 | 2.2 | 3.2 | 67.2 | 4 | 20 |
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: | +5,010 | +1,944 | +3,434 | +6.0 | +3 | +17 | +17.6 | +1,125 | +2,253 | +16.8 | +13 | +196 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 240 | 97 | 193 | 50.3 | 3 | 17 | 17.6 | 43 | 64 | 67.2 | 4 | 20 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Shaquille O'Neal's additional seasons: | ||||
* Shaquille O'Neal played 9 seasons more than Domantas Sabonis in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 13 to 21, from 2005 to 2011—he averaged 16.1 points in a total of 520 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 22.9 ppg and his lowest 9.2. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | - | DNP | 1993 | 0 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 2.0 | +2.0 | 2017 | 2 |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 25.8 | +25.8 | 1996 | 12 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP | 2020 | 0 |
Season 5 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 26.9 | +26.9 | 1997 | 9 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP | 2021 | 0 |
Season 6 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 30.5 | +30.5 | 1998 | 13 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
Season 7 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 26.6 | +26.6 | 1999 | 8 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
Season 8 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 30.7 | +30.7 | 2000 | 23 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP | 2022 | 0 |
Season 10 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 28.5 | +28.5 | 2002 | 19 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP | 2024 | 0 |
Season 11 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 27.0 | +27.0 | 2003 | 12 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP | 2025 | 0 |
Season 12 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 21.5 | +21.5 | 2004 | 22 |
| Domantas Sabonis | - | DNP * | 2026 | 0 |
| * season in progress | ||||
Shaquille O'Neal's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 9 additional NBA seasons, Shaquille O'Neal played in 8 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those postseasons he averaged 16.3 points in a total of 68 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 19.4 ppg and his lowest 1. |