Steve Nash vs. Arvydas Sabonis: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Arvydas Sabonis and Steve Nash 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 Steve Nash has better scoring stats than Arvydas 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 18 NBA regular seasons played, Steve Nash averages 2.3 points more than Arvydas Sabonis in his 7 seasons (14.3 points against 12.0), and he also scored a total of 11,758 points more (17,387 vs. 5,629).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Steve Nash | 14.3 | +2.3 | 18 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 12.0 | 7 | |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Steve Nash | 17,387 | +11,758 | 18 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 5,629 | 7 | |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Steve Nash has a better career point average than Arvydas Sabonis (+5.2 points per game) and he also scored more points (+1,455).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Steve Nash | 17.3 | +5.2 | 12 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 12.1 | 7 | |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Steve Nash | 2,072 | +1,455 | 12 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 617 | 7 | |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Steve Nash | 2 | +2 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Steve Nash | 309 | +243 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 66 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Steve Nash | 875 | +578 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 297 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Steve Nash | 1,177 | +718 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 459 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Steve Nash | 40 | +29 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 11 | |||
Playoffs
40+ Point Games | ||||
| Steve Nash | 1 | +1 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 0 | |||
30+ Point Games | ||||
| Steve Nash | 9 | +9 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 0 | |||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Steve Nash | 48 | +42 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 6 | |||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Steve Nash | 103 | +68 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 35 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Steve Nash | 115 | +66 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 49 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Steve Nash | 5 | +3 | ||
| Arvydas Sabonis | 2 | |||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Steve Nash | 14.3 | 5.2 | 10.6 | 49.0 | 1.4 | 3.2 | 42.8 | 2.5 | 2.8 | 90.4 | 18 | 1,217 |
| difference: | +2.3 | +0.8 | +1.7 | +1.0 | +1.1 | +2.3 | +10.0 | +0.3 | +0.8 | +11.8 | +11 | +747 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 12.0 | 4.4 | 8.9 | 50.0 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 32.8 | 2.8 | 3.6 | 78.6 | 7 | 470 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Steve Nash | 17,387 | 6,321 | 12,892 | 49.0 | 1,685 | 3,939 | 42.8 | 3,060 | 3,384 | 90.4 | 18 | 1,217 |
| difference: | +11,758 | +4,239 | +8,732 | +1.0 | +1,549 | +3,524 | +10.0 | +1,731 | +1,694 | +11.8 | +11 | +747 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 5,629 | 2,082 | 4,160 | 50.0 | 136 | 415 | 32.8 | 1,329 | 1,690 | 78.6 | 7 | 470 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Steve Nash | 17.3 | 6.2 | 13.2 | 47.3 | 1.5 | 3.7 | 40.6 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 90.0 | 12 | 120 |
| difference: | +5.2 | +1.8 | +3.6 | +2.1 | +1.2 | +2.8 | +8.7 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +9.8 | +5 | +69 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 12.1 | 4.4 | 9.6 | 45.2 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 31.9 | 3.1 | 3.9 | 80.2 | 7 | 51 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Steve Nash | 2,072 | 749 | 1,584 | 47.3 | 178 | 438 | 40.6 | 396 | 440 | 90.0 | 12 | 120 |
| difference: | +1,455 | +527 | +1,093 | +2.1 | +163 | +391 | +8.7 | +238 | +243 | +9.8 | +5 | +69 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 617 | 222 | 491 | 45.2 | 15 | 47 | 31.9 | 158 | 197 | 80.2 | 7 | 51 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
Regular Season
Steve Nash's additional seasons: | ||||
* Steve Nash played 11 seasons more than Arvydas Sabonis in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 8 to 18, from 2004 to 2014—he averaged 15.6 points in a total of 746 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 18.8 ppg and his lowest 6.8. |
Playoffs
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Steve Nash | - | DNP | 1999 | 0 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 12.3 | +12.3 | 1998 | 4 |
Season 4 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Steve Nash | - | DNP | 2000 | 0 |
| Arvydas Sabonis | 10.0 | +10.0 | 1999 | 13 |
Steve Nash's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 11 additional NBA seasons, Steve Nash played in 7 Playoffs. In those postseasons he averaged 19.3 points in a total of 74 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 23.9 ppg and his lowest 12.5. |