Tim Duncan vs. Michael Jordan: Career Scoring Comparison
We break down the scoring legacies of Michael Jordan and Tim Duncan 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
Michael Jordan and Tim Duncan are among the all-time leaders in points in NBA history—combining for a total of 58,788 points—. MJ is also the all-time leader in points per game. 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 Michael Jordan has better scoring stats than Tim Duncan 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 15 NBA regular seasons played, Michael Jordan averages 11.1 points more than Tim Duncan in his 19 seasons (30.1 points against 19.0), and he also scored a total of 5,796 points more (32,292 vs. 26,496).
Points Per Game | Seasons | ||
| Tim Duncan | 19.0 | 19 | |
| Michael Jordan | 30.1 | +11.1 | 15 |
Total Points | Seasons | ||
| Tim Duncan | 26,496 | 19 | |
| Michael Jordan | 32,292 | +5,796 | 15 |
Scoring Titles | ||
| Tim Duncan | 0 | |
| Michael Jordan | 10 |  +10 |
Points in the Playoffs
Similar to what happens in the regular season, in the NBA postseason Michael Jordan has a better career point average than Tim Duncan (+12.8 points per game) and he also scored more points (+815).
Points Per Game | Playoffs | ||
| Tim Duncan | 20.6 | 18 | |
| Michael Jordan | 33.4 | +12.8 | 13 |
Total Points | Playoffs | ||
| Tim Duncan | 5,172 | 18 | |
| Michael Jordan | 5,987 | +815 | 13 |
Points by Thresholds
Regular Season
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 0 | |||
| Michael Jordan | 4 | +4 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 639 | |||
| Michael Jordan | 926 | +287 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 1,256 | +197 | ||
| Michael Jordan | 1,059 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 1,390 | +318 | ||
| Michael Jordan | 1,072 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 2 | +2 | ||
| Michael Jordan | 0 | |||
Playoffs
60+ Point Games | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 0 | |||
| Michael Jordan | 1 | +1 | ||
50+ Point Games | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 0 | |||
| Michael Jordan | 8 | +8 | ||
20+ Point Games | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 137 | |||
| Michael Jordan | 173 | +36 | ||
10+ Point Games | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 232 | +53 | ||
| Michael Jordan | 179 | |||
1+ Point Games (games with points) | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 250 | +71 | ||
| Michael Jordan | 179 | |||
0 Point Games (games without points) | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 1 | +1 | ||
| Michael Jordan | 0 | |||
Career Shooting Stats Comparison
Regular Season
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 19.0 | 7.4 | 14.6 | 50.6 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 17.9 | 4.2 | 6.1 | 69.6 | 19 | 1,392 |
| difference: | +11.1 | +4.0 | +8.3 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +1.6 | +14.8 | +2.6 | +2.1 | +13.9 | +4 | +320 |
| Michael Jordan | 30.1 | 11.4 | 22.9 | 49.7 | 0.5 | 1.7 | 32.7 | 6.8 | 8.2 | 83.5 | 15 | 1,072 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 26,496 | 10,285 | 20,334 | 50.6 | 30 | 168 | 17.9 | 5,896 | 8,468 | 69.6 | 19 | 1,392 |
| difference: | +5,796 | +1,907 | +4,203 | +0.9 | +551 | +1,610 | +14.8 | +1,431 | +304 | +13.9 | +4 | +320 |
| Michael Jordan | 32,292 | 12,192 | 24,537 | 49.7 | 581 | 1,778 | 32.7 | 7,327 | 8,772 | 83.5 | 15 | 1,072 |
Playoffs
Stats Per Game
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 20.6 | 7.9 | 15.7 | 50.1 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 14.3 | 4.8 | 7.0 | 68.9 | 18 | 251 |
| difference: | +12.8 | +4.3 | +9.4 | +1.5 | +0.8 | +2.4 | +18.9 | +3.4 | +2.9 | +13.9 | +5 | +72 |
| Michael Jordan | 33.4 | 12.2 | 25.1 | 48.7 | 0.8 | 2.5 | 33.2 | 8.2 | 9.9 | 82.8 | 13 | 179 |
Total Stats
| Pts | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | Yrs | Gms | ||||
| Tim Duncan | 5,172 | 1,975 | 3,939 | 50.1 | 5 | 35 | 14.3 | 1,217 | 1,766 | 68.9 | 18 | 251 |
| difference: | +815 | +213 | +558 | +1.5 | +143 | +411 | +18.9 | +246 | +13.9 | +5 | +72 | |
| Michael Jordan | 5,987 | 2,188 | 4,497 | 48.7 | 148 | 446 | 33.2 | 1,463 | 1,766 | 82.8 | 13 | 179 |
Year by Year Points Average Comparison
= NBA Scoring Leader
= NBA ChampionRegular Season
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | 21.1 | 1998 | 82 | |
| Michael Jordan | 28.2 | +7.1 | 1985 | 82 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | 21.7 | 1999 | 50 | |
| Michael Jordan | 22.7 | +1.0 | 1986 | 18 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | 23.2 | 2000 | 74 | |
| Michael Jordan | 37.1 | +13.9 | 1987 | 82 |
Tim Duncan's additional seasons: | ||||
* Tim Duncan played 4 seasons more than Michael Jordan in the NBA. In those years—his seasons 16 to 19, from 2013 to 2016—he averaged 14.0 points in a total of 281 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 17.8 ppg and his lowest 8.6. |
Playoffs
Rookie Season | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | 20.7 | 1998 | 9 | |
| Michael Jordan | 29.3 | +8.6 | 1985 | 4 |
Season 2 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | 23.2 | 1999 | 17 | |
| Michael Jordan | 43.7 | +20.5 | 1986 | 3 |
Season 3 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | - | DNP | 2000 | 0 |
| Michael Jordan | 35.7 | +35.7 | 1987 | 3 |
Season 14 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | 12.7 | +12.7 | 2011 | 6 |
| Michael Jordan | - | DNP | 2002 | 0 |
Season 15 | Points per game | Year | Games | |
| Tim Duncan | 17.4 | +17.4 | 2012 | 14 |
| Michael Jordan | - | DNP | 2003 | 0 |
Tim Duncan's additional Playoffs: | ||||
* During his 4 additional NBA seasons, Tim Duncan played in 4 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those postseasons he averaged 15.4 points in a total of 61 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 18.1 ppg and his lowest 5.9. |