Charles Barkley vs. Karl Malone: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Charles Barkley and Karl Malone all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Charles Barkley, with a career spanning 16 seasons from 1985 to 2000, and Karl Malone, with 19 seasons played from 1986 to 2004, stand among the league's historical elite..

Dive into a meticulous breakdown of their positions in every major statistical category—from scoring, rebounding and assists to steals, blocks, triple-doubles, and rankings by points thresholds—across both regular season and their entire playoff careers. Our comprehensive tables offer side-by-side rankings, value comparisons, and key differences, ensuring you have all the definitive data to assess their historical impact.

First, review a concise summary of how they rank in NBA history in the main categories (points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks) for both total and per-game stats, and below, you can then explore in detail all their stats and their historical rankings.

Charles Barkley vs. Karl Malone
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Charles Barkley Karl Malone Charles Barkley Karl Malone
Points
31st
3rd
36th
8th
Rebounds
19th
7th
15th
7th
Assists
111st
63rd
63rd
45th
Steals
28th
12th
35th
17th
Blocks
129th
74th
68th
50th
Years16191319

Charles Barkley vs. Karl Malone
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Charles Barkley Karl Malone Charles Barkley Karl Malone
Points
38th
15th
44th
33rd
Rebounds
22nd
51st
13th
38th
Assists
239th
+300th
197th
+300th
Steals
72nd
107th
57th
118th
Blocks
233rd
254th
195th
299th

Comparisons on this page:

Their rankings for:
Season Totals - Playoffs Totals /
Season Per Game - Playoffs Per Game

Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played

Career Totals,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
31st
3rd
28 23,757 vs. 36,92813,171
Rebounds
19th
7th
12 12,546 vs. 14,9682,422
Assists
111st
63rd
48 4,215 vs. 5,2481,033
Steals
28th
12th
16 1,648 vs. 2,085437
Blocks
129th
74th
55 888 vs. 1,145257
Offensive Rebounds
5th
14th
9 4,260 vs. 3,562698
Defensive Rebounds
15th
2nd
13 8,286 vs. 11,4063,120
Field Goals Made
35th
3rd
32 8,435 vs. 13,5285,093
Field Goals Attempted
61st
3rd
58 15,605 vs. 26,21010,605
3-Pointers Made
+300th
+300th
538 vs. 85453
3-Pointers Attempted
289th
+300th
+11 2,020 vs. 3101,710
Free Throws Made
17th
1st
16 6,349 vs. 9,7873,438
Free Throws Attempted
13th
1st
12 8,643 vs. 13,1884,545

Games and Years:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
106th
7th
99 1,073 vs. 1,476403
Seasons
87th
12th
75 16 vs. 193

Triple-Doubles:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
29th
134th
105 20 vs. 416

Rankings by Points Scored:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
57th
29th
28 21 vs. 4423
50+ point games
-
29th
0 vs. 44
60+ point games
-
11th
0 vs. 11
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
36th
8th
28 2,833 vs. 4,7611,928
Rebounds
15th
7th
8 1,582 vs. 2,062480
Assists
63rd
45th
18 482 vs. 610128
Steals
35th
17th
18 193 vs. 25865
Blocks
68th
50th
18 108 vs. 13527
Offensive Rebounds
7th
10th
3 510 vs. 5028
Defensive Rebounds
17th
4th
13 1,072 vs. 1,560488
Field Goals Made
36th
7th
29 1,009 vs. 1,743734
Field Goals Attempted
47th
6th
41 1,965 vs. 3,7681,803
3-Pointers Made
215th
+300th
+85 64 vs. 658
3-Pointers Attempted
138th
+300th
+162 251 vs. 37214
Free Throws Made
25th
4th
21 751 vs. 1,269518
Free Throws Attempted
18th
5th
13 1,048 vs. 1,725677

Games and Years:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
100th
12th
88 123 vs. 19370
Playoffs
45th
1st
44 13 vs. 196

Triple-Doubles:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
13th
+300th
4 vs. 04

Rankings by Points Scored:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
28th
36th
8 5 vs. 41
50+ point games
9th
9th
0 1 vs. 10
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
38th
15th
23 22.14 vs. 25.022.88
Rebounds per game
22nd
51st
29 11.69 vs. 10.141.55
Assists per game
239th
+300th
+61 3.93 vs. 3.560.37
Steals per game
72nd
107th
35 1.54 vs. 1.410.12
Blocks per game
233rd
254th
21 0.83 vs. 0.780.05
Offensive Rebounds per game
4th
111st
107 3.97 vs. 2.411.56
Defensive Rebounds per game
21st
20th
1 7.72 vs. 7.730.01
Field Goals Made per game
56th
16th
40 7.86 vs. 9.171.30
Field Goals Attempted per game
149th
36th
113 14.54 vs. 17.763.21
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.50 vs. 0.060.44
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
1.88 vs. 0.211.67
Free Throws Made per game
22nd
14th
8 5.92 vs. 6.630.71
Free Throws Attempted per game
20th
6th
14 8.05 vs. 8.930.88

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Charles Barkley Karl Malone Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
44th
33rd
11 23.03 vs. 24.671.64
Rebounds per game
13th
38th
25 12.86 vs. 10.682.18
Assists per game
197th
+300th
+103 3.92 vs. 3.160.76
Steals per game
57th
118th
61 1.57 vs. 1.340.23
Blocks per game
195th
299th
104 0.88 vs. 0.700.18
Offensive Rebounds per game
4th
98th
94 4.15 vs. 2.601.55
Defensive Rebounds per game
8th
18th
10 8.72 vs. 8.080.63
Field Goals Made per game
58th
33rd
25 8.20 vs. 9.030.83
Field Goals Attempted per game
108th
37th
71 15.98 vs. 19.523.55
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.52 vs. 0.030.49
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
2.04 vs. 0.191.85
Free Throws Made per game
31st
17th
14 6.11 vs. 6.580.47
Free Throws Attempted per game
19th
14th
5 8.52 vs. 8.940.42

Note: the per game rankings on this page respect the minimums usually applied by the NBA for all-time leaders, 400 games for regular season stats unless the player reached these thresholds before: 10,000 points; 4,000 rebounds; 2,000 assists; 625 steals; 500 blocks; 250 3-pointers made. Also 3 minimum games for the Playoffs are applied.