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?

Player comparisons:
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
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

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
Years21141512

Dirk Nowitzki vs. David Robinson
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

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:

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:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
6th
46th
40 31,560 vs. 20,79010,770
Rebounds
27th
35th
8 11,489 vs. 10,497992
Assists
163rd
+300th
+137 3,651 vs. 2,4411,210
Steals
96th
67th
29 1,210 vs. 1,388178
Blocks
56th
6th
50 1,281 vs. 2,9541,673
Offensive Rebounds
237th
29th
208 1,468 vs. 3,0831,615
Defensive Rebounds
6th
24th
18 10,021 vs. 7,4142,607
Field Goals Made
8th
61st
53 11,169 vs. 7,3653,804
Field Goals Attempted
8th
93rd
85 23,734 vs. 14,2219,513
3-Pointers Made
20th
+300th
+280 1,982 vs. 251,957
3-Pointers Attempted
23rd
+300th
+277 5,210 vs. 1005,110
Free Throws Made
9th
23rd
14 7,240 vs. 6,0351,205
Free Throws Attempted
18th
19th
1 8,239 vs. 8,20138

Games and Years:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
5th
164th
159 1,522 vs. 987535
Seasons
3rd
194th
191 21 vs. 147

Triple-Doubles:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
205th
50th
155 2 vs. 1412

Rankings by Points Scored:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
62nd
55th
7 20 vs. 222
50+ point games
50th
42nd
8 2 vs. 31
60+ point games
-
11th
0 vs. 11
70+ point games
-
2nd
0 vs. 11

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
18th
55th
37 3,663 vs. 2,2211,442
Rebounds
24th
31st
7 1,446 vs. 1,301145
Assists
105th
159th
54 360 vs. 28080
Steals
55th
53rd
2 149 vs. 1512
Blocks
53rd
5th
48 129 vs. 312183
Offensive Rebounds
83rd
21st
62 212 vs. 367155
Defensive Rebounds
7th
22nd
15 1,234 vs. 934300
Field Goals Made
21st
63rd
42 1,220 vs. 768452
Field Goals Attempted
21st
71st
50 2,642 vs. 1,6041,038
3-Pointers Made
62nd
+300th
+238 149 vs. 1148
3-Pointers Attempted
63rd
+300th
+237 408 vs. 10398
Free Throws Made
10th
34th
24 1,074 vs. 684390
Free Throws Attempted
14th
26th
12 1,204 vs. 966238

Games and Years:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
54th
100th
46 145 vs. 12322
Playoffs
17th
76th
59 15 vs. 123

Triple-Doubles:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
+300th
39th
0 vs. 11

Rankings by Points Scored:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
20th
78th
58 7 vs. 16
50+ point games
9th
-
1 vs. 01
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
59th
51st
8 20.74 vs. 21.060.33
Rebounds per game
181st
38th
143 7.55 vs. 10.643.09
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
2.40 vs. 2.470.07
Steals per game
+300th
107th
+193 0.80 vs. 1.410.61
Blocks per game
228th
4th
224 0.84 vs. 2.992.15
Offensive Rebounds per game
+300th
24th
+276 0.96 vs. 3.122.16
Defensive Rebounds per game
54th
28th
26 6.58 vs. 7.510.93
Field Goals Made per game
91st
79th
12 7.34 vs. 7.460.12
Field Goals Attempted per game
102nd
160th
58 15.59 vs. 14.411.19
3-Pointers Made per game
271st
+300th
+29 1.30 vs. 0.031.28
3-Pointers Attempted per game
216th
+300th
+84 3.42 vs. 0.103.32
Free Throws Made per game
69th
21st
48 4.76 vs. 6.111.36
Free Throws Attempted per game
107th
17th
90 5.41 vs. 8.312.90

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Dirk Nowitzki David Robinson Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
28th
151st
123 25.26 vs. 18.067.21
Rebounds per game
61st
41st
20 9.97 vs. 10.580.60
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
2.48 vs. 2.280.21
Steals per game
276th
159th
117 1.03 vs. 1.230.20
Blocks per game
188th
6th
182 0.89 vs. 2.541.65
Offensive Rebounds per game
+300th
52nd
+248 1.46 vs. 2.981.52
Defensive Rebounds per game
11th
28th
17 8.51 vs. 7.590.92
Field Goals Made per game
51st
185th
134 8.41 vs. 6.242.17
Field Goals Attempted per game
58th
236th
178 18.22 vs. 13.045.18
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
1.03 vs. 0.011.02
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
2.81 vs. 0.082.73
Free Throws Made per game
10th
53rd
43 7.41 vs. 5.561.85
Free Throws Attempted per game
23rd
31st
8 8.30 vs. 7.850.45

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.