Hakeem Olajuwon vs. Shaquille O'Neal: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Hakeem Olajuwon and Shaquille O'Neal 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 Hakeem Olajuwon, with a career spanning 18 seasons from 1985 to 2002, and Shaquille O'Neal, with 19 seasons played from 1993 to 2011, 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.

Hakeem Olajuwon vs. Shaquille O'Neal
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal
Points
14th
9th
16th
5th
Rebounds
14th
15th
13th
5th
Assists
230th
235th
73rd
53rd
Steals
10th
+300th
21st
92nd
Blocks
1st
8th
3rd
4th
Years18191517

Hakeem Olajuwon vs. Shaquille O'Neal
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal
Points
44th
29th
22nd
36th
Rebounds
27th
32nd
27th
23rd
Assists
+300th
+300th
+300th
+300th
Steals
35th
+300th
37th
+300th
Blocks
3rd
15th
1st
15th

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:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
14th
9th
5 26,946 vs. 28,5961,650
Rebounds
14th
15th
1 13,748 vs. 13,099649
Assists
230th
235th
5 3,058 vs. 3,02632
Steals
10th
+300th
+290 2,162 vs. 7391,423
Blocks
1st
8th
7 3,830 vs. 2,7321,098
Offensive Rebounds
9th
6th
3 4,034 vs. 4,209175
Defensive Rebounds
8th
11th
3 9,714 vs. 8,890824
Field Goals Made
10th
7th
3 10,749 vs. 11,330581
Field Goals Attempted
17th
23rd
6 20,991 vs. 19,4571,534
3-Pointers Made
+300th
+300th
25 vs. 124
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
+300th
124 vs. 22102
Free Throws Made
29th
25th
4 5,423 vs. 5,935512
Free Throws Attempted
28th
4th
24 7,621 vs. 11,2523,631

Games and Years:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
38th
47th
9 1,238 vs. 1,20731
Seasons
27th
12th
15 18 vs. 191

Triple-Doubles:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
49th
202nd
153 14 vs. 212

Rankings by Points Scored:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
39th
21st
18 32 vs. 4917
50+ point games
49th
40th
9 2 vs. 31
60+ point games
-
11th
0 vs. 11
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
16th
5th
11 3,755 vs. 5,2501,495
Rebounds
13th
5th
8 1,621 vs. 2,508887
Assists
73rd
53rd
20 458 vs. 582124
Steals
21st
92nd
71 245 vs. 117128
Blocks
3rd
4th
1 472 vs. 45913
Offensive Rebounds
11th
1st
10 471 vs. 866395
Defensive Rebounds
13th
3rd
10 1,150 vs. 1,642492
Field Goals Made
11th
4th
7 1,504 vs. 2,041537
Field Goals Attempted
17th
7th
10 2,847 vs. 3,627780
3-Pointers Made
+300th
+300th
4 vs. 04
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
+300th
18 vs. 018
Free Throws Made
26th
8th
18 743 vs. 1,168425
Free Throws Attempted
21st
2nd
19 1,034 vs. 2,3171,283

Games and Years:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
54th
9th
45 145 vs. 21671
Playoffs
17th
6th
11 15 vs. 172

Triple-Doubles:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
38th
+300th
1 vs. 01

Rankings by Points Scored:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
9th
8th
1 11 vs. 121
50+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
44th
29th
15 21.77 vs. 23.691.93
Rebounds per game
27th
32nd
5 11.11 vs. 10.850.25
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
2.47 vs. 2.510.04
Steals per game
35th
+300th
+265 1.75 vs. 0.611.13
Blocks per game
3rd
15th
12 3.09 vs. 2.260.83
Offensive Rebounds per game
16th
10th
6 3.26 vs. 3.490.23
Defensive Rebounds per game
17th
31st
14 7.85 vs. 7.370.48
Field Goals Made per game
29th
11th
18 8.68 vs. 9.390.70
Field Goals Attempted per game
50th
74th
24 16.96 vs. 16.120.84
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.02 vs. 0.000.02
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
0.10 vs. 0.020.08
Free Throws Made per game
93rd
58th
35 4.38 vs. 4.920.54
Free Throws Attempted per game
66th
5th
61 6.16 vs. 9.323.17

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
22nd
36th
14 25.90 vs. 24.311.59
Rebounds per game
27th
23rd
4 11.18 vs. 11.610.43
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
3.16 vs. 2.690.46
Steals per game
37th
+300th
+263 1.69 vs. 0.541.15
Blocks per game
1st
15th
14 3.26 vs. 2.131.13
Offensive Rebounds per game
25th
6th
19 3.25 vs. 4.010.76
Defensive Rebounds per game
22nd
27th
5 7.93 vs. 7.600.33
Field Goals Made per game
8th
22nd
14 10.37 vs. 9.450.92
Field Goals Attempted per game
34th
83rd
49 19.63 vs. 16.792.84
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.03 vs. 0.000.03
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
0.12 vs. 0.000.12
Free Throws Made per game
73rd
60th
13 5.12 vs. 5.410.28
Free Throws Attempted per game
46th
2nd
44 7.13 vs. 10.733.60

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.