Tim Hardaway vs. J.R. Smith: Career Scoring Comparison

We break down the scoring legacies of J.R. Smith and Tim Hardaway 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.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings

By taking a look at their career numbers for points, the first conclusion one can arrive at is that Tim Hardaway has better scoring averages both in the regular season and Playoffs and also scored more total points during the season while J.R. Smith scored more points in the postseason. 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.

Career Numbers
Who has the better scoring stats?

Points in the Regular Season

In his 13 NBA regular seasons played, Tim Hardaway averages 5.3 points more than J.R. Smith in his 16 seasons (17.7 points against 12.4), and he also scored a total of 3,225 points more (15,373 vs. 12,148).

Points Per Game

Seasons
Tim Hardaway 17.7
+5.3
13
J.R. Smith 12.4
16

Total Points

Seasons
Tim Hardaway 15,373
+3,225
13
J.R. Smith 12,148
16

Points in the Playoffs

In the NBA postseason Tim Hardaway has a better career point average than J.R. Smith (+6.1 points per game) while J.R. Smith scored more points (+550).

Points Per Game

Playoffs
Tim Hardaway 16.8
+6.1
9
J.R. Smith 10.7
12

Total Points

Playoffs
Tim Hardaway 943
9
J.R. Smith 1,493
+550
12

Points by Thresholds

Regular Season

40+ Point Games

Tim Hardaway 5
+1
J.R. Smith 4

30+ Point Games

Tim Hardaway 62
+38
J.R. Smith 24

20+ Point Games

Tim Hardaway 360
+200
J.R. Smith 160

10+ Point Games

Tim Hardaway 719
+115
J.R. Smith 604

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Tim Hardaway 853
J.R. Smith 932
+79

0 Point Games (games without points)

Tim Hardaway 14
J.R. Smith 45
+31

Playoffs

30+ Point Games

Tim Hardaway 7
+7
J.R. Smith 0

20+ Point Games

Tim Hardaway 24
+10
J.R. Smith 14

10+ Point Games

Tim Hardaway 42
J.R. Smith 77
+35

1+ Point Games (games with points)

Tim Hardaway 53
J.R. Smith 130
+77

0 Point Games (games without points)

Tim Hardaway 3
J.R. Smith 10
+7

Career Shooting Stats Comparison

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Regular Season

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Tim Hardaway 17.7 6.5 15.1 43.1 1.8 5.0 35.5 2.9 3.8 78.2 13 867
difference:+5.3+2.0+4.4+1.3+0.2+0.3+1.8+1.4+1.8+4.9+3+110
J.R. Smith 12.4 4.5 10.7 41.9 2.0 5.3 37.3 1.5 2.0 73.3 16 977

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Tim Hardaway 15,373 5,640 13,076 43.1 1,542 4,345 35.5 2,551 3,263 78.2 13 867
difference:+3,225+1,260+2,611+1.3+388+833+1.8+1,093+1,273+4.9+3+110
J.R. Smith 12,148 4,380 10,465 41.9 1,930 5,178 37.3 1,458 1,990 73.3 16 977

Playoffs

Stats Per Game

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Tim Hardaway 16.8 5.9 14.9 39.3 2.0 6.1 32.0 3.1 4.2 75.1 9 56
difference:+6.1+2.2+5.6+0.4+0.1+0.4+4.7+1.9+2.6+4.5+3+84
J.R. Smith 10.7 3.7 9.3 39.7 2.1 5.7 36.7 1.2 1.6 70.6 12 140

Total Stats

Pts FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A% Yrs Gms
Tim Hardaway 943 329 837 39.3 110 344 32.0 175 233 75.1 9 56
difference:+550+190+469+0.4+184+457+4.7+14+5+4.5+3+84
J.R. Smith 1,493 519 1,306 39.7 294 801 36.7 161 228 70.6 12 140

Year by Year Points Average Comparison

NBA Champion = NBA Champion

Regular Season

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 14.7
+4.4
199079
J.R. Smith 10.3
200576

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 22.9
+15.2
199182
J.R. Smith 7.7
200655

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 23.4
+10.4
199281
J.R. Smith 13.0
200763

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 21.5
+9.2
199366
J.R. Smith 12.3
200874

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 20.1
+4.9
199562
J.R. Smith 15.2
200981

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 15.2
199680
J.R. Smith 15.4
+0.2
201075

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 15.2
+2.9
199680
J.R. Smith 12.3
201179

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 20.3
+7.8
199781
J.R. Smith 12.5
201235

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 18.9
+0.8
199881
J.R. Smith 18.1
201380

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 17.4
+2.9
199948
J.R. Smith 14.5
201474

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 13.4
+1.3
200052
J.R. Smith 12.1
201570

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 14.9
+2.8
200177
J.R. Smith 12.1
201570

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 9.6
200268
J.R. Smith 12.4
+2.8
2016NBA Champion77

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 4.9
200310
J.R. Smith 8.6
+3.7
201741

J.R. Smith's additional seasons:

* J.R. Smith played 3 seasons more than Tim Hardaway in the NBA.

In those years—his seasons 15 to 17, from 2018 to 2020—he averaged 7.8 points in a total of 97 regular season games. During that period, his highest average was 8.3 ppg and his lowest 2.8.

Playoffs

Rookie Season

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway -
DNP
19900
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20050

Season 2

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 25.2
+25.2
19919
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20060

Season 3

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 24.5
+20.0
19924
J.R. Smith 4.5
20074

Season 4

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway -
DNP
19930
J.R. Smith 18.3
+18.3
20084

Season 5

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway -
DNP
19950
J.R. Smith 14.9
+14.9
200916

Season 6

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 17.7
+6.5
19963
J.R. Smith 11.2
20106

Season 7

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 17.7
+7.9
19963
J.R. Smith 9.8
20115

Season 8

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 18.7
+6.5
199717
J.R. Smith 12.2
20125

Season 9

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 26.0
+11.7
19985
J.R. Smith 14.3
201311

Season 10

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 9.0
+9.0
19995
J.R. Smith -
DNP
20140

Season 11

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 7.7
20007
J.R. Smith 12.8
+5.1
201518

Season 12

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 2.5
20012
J.R. Smith 12.8
+10.3
201518

Season 13

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway -
DNP
20020
J.R. Smith 11.5
+11.5
2016NBA Champion21

Season 14

Points per gameYearGames
Tim Hardaway 3.3
20034
J.R. Smith 8.1
+4.8
201718

J.R. Smith's additional Playoffs:

* During his 3 additional NBA seasons, J.R. Smith played in two Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those postseasons he averaged 6.6 points in a total of 32 games. His highest playoff average during that period was 8.7 ppg and his lowest 2.