Dirk Nowitzki vs. David Robinson: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Dirk Nowitzki and David Robinson all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?
Career comparison / Season by season / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other
This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Dirk Nowitzki, with a career spanning 21 seasons from 1999 to 2019, and David Robinson, with 14 seasons played from 1990 to 2003, 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.
Dirk Nowitzki vs. David Robinson | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | |
| Points | 6th | 46th | 18th | 55th |
| Rebounds | 27th | 35th | 24th | 31st |
| Assists | 163rd | +300th | 105th | 159th |
| Steals | 96th | 67th | 55th | 53rd |
| Blocks | 56th | 6th | 53rd | 5th |
| Years | 21 | 14 | 15 | 12 |
Dirk Nowitzki vs. David Robinson | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | |
| Points | 59th | 51st | 28th | 151st |
| Rebounds | 181st | 38th | 61st | 41st |
| Assists | +300th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
| Steals | +300th | 107th | 276th | 159th |
| Blocks | 228th | 4th | 188th | 6th |
Comparisons on this page: |
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Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 6th | 46th | 40 | 31,560 vs. 20,790 | 10,770 |
| Rebounds | 27th | 35th | 8 | 11,489 vs. 10,497 | 992 |
| Assists | 163rd | +300th | +137 | 3,651 vs. 2,441 | 1,210 |
| Steals | 96th | 67th | 29 | 1,210 vs. 1,388 | 178 |
| Blocks | 56th | 6th | 50 | 1,281 vs. 2,954 | 1,673 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 237th | 29th | 208 | 1,468 vs. 3,083 | 1,615 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 6th | 24th | 18 | 10,021 vs. 7,414 | 2,607 |
| Field Goals Made | 8th | 61st | 53 | 11,169 vs. 7,365 | 3,804 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 8th | 93rd | 85 | 23,734 vs. 14,221 | 9,513 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 20th | +300th | +280 | 1,982 vs. 25 | 1,957 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 23rd | +300th | +277 | 5,210 vs. 100 | 5,110 |
| Free Throws Made | 9th | 23rd | 14 | 7,240 vs. 6,035 | 1,205 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 18th | 19th | 1 | 8,239 vs. 8,201 | 38 |
Games and Years: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 5th | 164th | 159 | 1,522 vs. 987 | 535 |
| Seasons | 3rd | 194th | 191 | 21 vs. 14 | 7 |
Triple-Doubles: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 205th | 50th | 155 | 2 vs. 14 | 12 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 62nd | 55th | 7 | 20 vs. 22 | 2 |
| 50+ point games | 50th | 42nd | 8 | 2 vs. 3 | 1 |
| 60+ point games | - | 11th | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
| 70+ point games | - | 2nd | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 18th | 55th | 37 | 3,663 vs. 2,221 | 1,442 |
| Rebounds | 24th | 31st | 7 | 1,446 vs. 1,301 | 145 |
| Assists | 105th | 159th | 54 | 360 vs. 280 | 80 |
| Steals | 55th | 53rd | 2 | 149 vs. 151 | 2 |
| Blocks | 53rd | 5th | 48 | 129 vs. 312 | 183 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 83rd | 21st | 62 | 212 vs. 367 | 155 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 7th | 22nd | 15 | 1,234 vs. 934 | 300 |
| Field Goals Made | 21st | 63rd | 42 | 1,220 vs. 768 | 452 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 21st | 71st | 50 | 2,642 vs. 1,604 | 1,038 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 62nd | +300th | +238 | 149 vs. 1 | 148 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 63rd | +300th | +237 | 408 vs. 10 | 398 |
| Free Throws Made | 10th | 34th | 24 | 1,074 vs. 684 | 390 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 14th | 26th | 12 | 1,204 vs. 966 | 238 |
Games and Years: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 54th | 100th | 46 | 145 vs. 123 | 22 |
| Playoffs | 17th | 76th | 59 | 15 vs. 12 | 3 |
Triple-Doubles: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | +300th | 39th | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 20th | 78th | 58 | 7 vs. 1 | 6 |
| 50+ point games | 9th | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
| 60+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 59th | 51st | 8 | 20.74 vs. 21.06 | 0.33 |
| Rebounds per game | 181st | 38th | 143 | 7.55 vs. 10.64 | 3.09 |
| Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 2.40 vs. 2.47 | 0.07 | |
| Steals per game | +300th | 107th | +193 | 0.80 vs. 1.41 | 0.61 |
| Blocks per game | 228th | 4th | 224 | 0.84 vs. 2.99 | 2.15 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | 24th | +276 | 0.96 vs. 3.12 | 2.16 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 54th | 28th | 26 | 6.58 vs. 7.51 | 0.93 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 91st | 79th | 12 | 7.34 vs. 7.46 | 0.12 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 102nd | 160th | 58 | 15.59 vs. 14.41 | 1.19 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | 271st | +300th | +29 | 1.30 vs. 0.03 | 1.28 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | 216th | +300th | +84 | 3.42 vs. 0.10 | 3.32 |
| Free Throws Made per game | 69th | 21st | 48 | 4.76 vs. 6.11 | 1.36 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 107th | 17th | 90 | 5.41 vs. 8.31 | 2.90 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Dirk Nowitzki | David Robinson | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 28th | 151st | 123 | 25.26 vs. 18.06 | 7.21 |
| Rebounds per game | 61st | 41st | 20 | 9.97 vs. 10.58 | 0.60 |
| Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 2.48 vs. 2.28 | 0.21 | |
| Steals per game | 276th | 159th | 117 | 1.03 vs. 1.23 | 0.20 |
| Blocks per game | 188th | 6th | 182 | 0.89 vs. 2.54 | 1.65 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | 52nd | +248 | 1.46 vs. 2.98 | 1.52 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 11th | 28th | 17 | 8.51 vs. 7.59 | 0.92 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 51st | 185th | 134 | 8.41 vs. 6.24 | 2.17 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 58th | 236th | 178 | 18.22 vs. 13.04 | 5.18 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 1.03 vs. 0.01 | 1.02 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 2.81 vs. 0.08 | 2.73 | |
| Free Throws Made per game | 10th | 53rd | 43 | 7.41 vs. 5.56 | 1.85 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 23rd | 31st | 8 | 8.30 vs. 7.85 | 0.45 |
Note: the per game rankings on this page respect the minimums usually applied by the NBA for all-time leaders, this is 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 a minimum of 3 games is applied here for the Playoffs.