James Harden vs. Paul Pierce: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare James Harden and Paul Pierce 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 James Harden, with a career spanning 17 seasons from 2010 to 2026, and Paul Pierce, with 19 seasons played from 1999 to 2017, 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, and 3-pointers made as a bonus) for both total and per-game stats, and below, you can then explore in detail all their stats and their historical rankings.
James Harden vs. Paul Pierce | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| James Harden | Paul Pierce | James Harden | Paul Pierce | |
| Points | 11th | 18th | 14th | 23rd |
| Rebounds | 161st | 94th | 60th | 55th |
| Assists | 13th | 84th | 8th | 54th |
| Steals | 25th | 22nd | 12th | 31st |
| Blocks | 202nd | 175th | 84th | 75th |
| 3-Pointers Made | 2nd | 15th | 4th | 14th |
| Years | 17 | 19 | 16 | 14 |
James Harden vs. Paul Pierce | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| James Harden | Paul Pierce | James Harden | Paul Pierce | |
| Points | 27th | 77th | 51st | 127th |
| Rebounds | +300th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
| Assists | 31st | +300th | 39th | 266th |
| Steals | 84th | 149th | 47th | 178th |
| Blocks | +300th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
| 3-Pointers Made | 11th | 142nd | 15th | 124th |
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: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 11th | 18th | 7 | 27,772 vs. 26,397 | 1,375 |
| Rebounds | 161st | 94th | 67 | 6,492 vs. 7,527 | 1,035 |
| Assists | 13th | 84th | 71 | 8,348 vs. 4,708 | 3,640 |
| Steals | 25th | 22nd | 3 | 1,720 vs. 1,752 | 32 |
| Blocks | 202nd | 175th | 27 | 656 vs. 745 | 89 |
| Offensive Rebounds | +300th | +300th | 871 vs. 1,092 | 221 | |
| Defensive Rebounds | 59th | 43rd | 16 | 5,621 vs. 6,435 | 814 |
| Field Goals Made | 39th | 29th | 10 | 8,199 vs. 8,668 | 469 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 31st | 22nd | 9 | 18,661 vs. 19,465 | 804 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 2nd | 15th | 13 | 3,185 vs. 2,143 | 1,042 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 2nd | 13th | 11 | 8,778 vs. 5,816 | 2,962 |
| Free Throws Made | 5th | 11th | 6 | 8,189 vs. 6,918 | 1,271 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 7th | 14th | 7 | 9,505 vs. 8,578 | 927 |
Games and Years: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 66th | 17th | 49 | 1,155 vs. 1,343 | 188 |
| Seasons | 58th | 12th | 46 | 17 vs. 19 | 2 |
Triple-Doubles: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 8th | 69th | 61 | 80 vs. 9 | 71 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 4th | 57th | 53 | 105 vs. 21 | 84 |
| 50+ point games | 4th | 76th | 72 | 24 vs. 1 | 23 |
| 60+ point games | 4th | - | 4 vs. 0 | 4 | |
| 70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 14th | 23rd | 9 | 3,895 vs. 3,180 | 715 |
| Rebounds | 60th | 55th | 5 | 948 vs. 985 | 37 |
| Assists | 8th | 54th | 46 | 1,125 vs. 579 | 546 |
| Steals | 12th | 31st | 19 | 282 vs. 204 | 78 |
| Blocks | 84th | 75th | 9 | 98 vs. 105 | 7 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 195th | 198th | 3 | 126 vs. 125 | 1 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 35th | 31st | 4 | 822 vs. 860 | 38 |
| Field Goals Made | 24th | 35th | 11 | 1,173 vs. 1,022 | 151 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 18th | 27th | 9 | 2,760 vs. 2,415 | 345 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 4th | 14th | 10 | 434 vs. 276 | 158 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 3rd | 14th | 11 | 1,275 vs. 777 | 498 |
| Free Throws Made | 9th | 16th | 7 | 1,115 vs. 860 | 255 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 11th | 20th | 9 | 1,283 vs. 1,036 | 247 |
Games and Years: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 23rd | 26th | 3 | 173 vs. 170 | 3 |
| Playoffs | 10th | 30th | 20 | 16 vs. 14 | 2 |
Triple-Doubles: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 13th | 39th | 26 | 4 vs. 1 | 3 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 9th | 49th | 40 | 11 vs. 3 | 8 |
| 50+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 27th | 77th | 50 | 24.05 vs. 19.66 | 4.39 |
| Rebounds per game | +300th | +300th | 5.62 vs. 5.60 | 0.02 | |
| Assists per game | 31st | +300th | +269 | 7.23 vs. 3.51 | 3.72 |
| Steals per game | 84th | 149th | 65 | 1.49 vs. 1.30 | 0.18 |
| Blocks per game | +300th | +300th | 0.57 vs. 0.55 | 0.01 | |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | +300th | 0.75 vs. 0.81 | 0.06 | |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 165th | 173rd | 8 | 4.87 vs. 4.79 | 0.08 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 107th | 183rd | 76 | 7.10 vs. 6.45 | 0.64 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 70th | 151st | 81 | 16.16 vs. 14.49 | 1.66 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | 11th | 142nd | 131 | 2.76 vs. 1.60 | 1.16 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | 5th | 98th | 93 | 7.60 vs. 4.33 | 3.27 |
| Free Throws Made per game | 6th | 47th | 41 | 7.09 vs. 5.15 | 1.94 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 18th | 56th | 38 | 8.23 vs. 6.39 | 1.84 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | James Harden | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 51st | 127th | 76 | 22.51 vs. 18.71 | 3.81 |
| Rebounds per game | +300th | +300th | 5.48 vs. 5.79 | 0.31 | |
| Assists per game | 39th | 266th | 227 | 6.50 vs. 3.41 | 3.10 |
| Steals per game | 47th | 178th | 131 | 1.63 vs. 1.20 | 0.43 |
| Blocks per game | +300th | +300th | 0.57 vs. 0.62 | 0.05 | |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | +300th | 0.73 vs. 0.74 | 0.01 | |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 181st | 149th | 32 | 4.75 vs. 5.06 | 0.31 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 143rd | 208th | 65 | 6.78 vs. 6.01 | 0.77 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 109th | 177th | 68 | 15.95 vs. 14.21 | 1.75 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | 15th | 124th | 109 | 2.51 vs. 1.62 | 0.89 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | 10th | 117th | 107 | 7.37 vs. 4.57 | 2.80 |
| Free Throws Made per game | 21st | 79th | 58 | 6.45 vs. 5.06 | 1.39 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 39th | 96th | 57 | 7.42 vs. 6.09 | 1.32 |
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.