Joel Embiid vs. Karl Malone: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Joel Embiid and Karl Malone all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?
This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Joel Embiid, with a career spanning 9 seasons from 2017 to 2025, 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.
Joel Embiid vs. Karl Malone | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | |
Points | 258th | 3rd | 136th | 8th |
Rebounds | 285th | 7th | 131st | 7th |
Assists | +300th | 63rd | 293rd | 45th |
Steals | +300th | 12th | +300th | 17th |
Blocks | 177th | 74th | 77th | 50th |
Years | 9 | 19 | 7 | 19 |
Joel Embiid vs. Karl Malone | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | |
Points | 4th | 15th | 31st | 33rd |
Rebounds | 29th | 51st | 34th | 38th |
Assists | 290th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
Steals | +300th | 107th | +300th | 118th |
Blocks | 52nd | 254th | 36th | 299th |
Comparisons on this page: |
Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 258th | 3rd | 255 | 12,523 vs. 36,928 | 24,405 |
Rebounds | 285th | 7th | 278 | 4,987 vs. 14,968 | 9,981 |
Assists | +300th | 63rd | +237 | 1,658 vs. 5,248 | 3,590 |
Steals | +300th | 12th | +288 | 411 vs. 2,085 | 1,674 |
Blocks | 177th | 74th | 103 | 738 vs. 1,145 | 407 |
Offensive Rebounds | +300th | 14th | +286 | 1,008 vs. 3,562 | 2,554 |
Defensive Rebounds | 171st | 2nd | 169 | 3,979 vs. 11,406 | 7,427 |
Field Goals Made | +300th | 3rd | +297 | 4,117 vs. 13,528 | 9,411 |
Field Goals Attempted | +300th | 3rd | +297 | 8,212 vs. 26,210 | 17,998 |
3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 532 vs. 85 | 447 | |
3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 1,568 vs. 310 | 1,258 | |
Free Throws Made | 94th | 1st | 93 | 3,757 vs. 9,787 | 6,030 |
Free Throws Attempted | 111st | 1st | 110 | 4,538 vs. 13,188 | 8,650 |
Games and Years: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | +300th | 7th | +293 | 452 vs. 1,476 | 1,024 |
Seasons | +300th | 12th | +288 | 9 vs. 19 | 10 |
Triple-Doubles: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 75th | 134th | 59 | 8 vs. 4 | 4 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 22nd | 29th | 7 | 48 vs. 44 | 4 |
50+ point games | 14th | 29th | 15 | 8 vs. 4 | 4 |
60+ point games | 11th | 11th | 0 | 1 vs. 1 | 0 |
70+ point games | 2nd | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 136th | 8th | 128 | 1,469 vs. 4,761 | 3,292 |
Rebounds | 131st | 7th | 124 | 641 vs. 2,062 | 1,421 |
Assists | 293rd | 45th | 248 | 182 vs. 610 | 428 |
Steals | +300th | 17th | +283 | 49 vs. 258 | 209 |
Blocks | 77th | 50th | 27 | 102 vs. 135 | 33 |
Offensive Rebounds | 193rd | 10th | 183 | 127 vs. 502 | 375 |
Defensive Rebounds | 84th | 4th | 80 | 514 vs. 1,560 | 1,046 |
Field Goals Made | 180th | 7th | 173 | 466 vs. 1,743 | 1,277 |
Field Goals Attempted | 184th | 6th | 178 | 1,015 vs. 3,768 | 2,753 |
3-Pointers Made | 209th | +300th | +91 | 65 vs. 6 | 59 |
3-Pointers Attempted | 166th | +300th | +134 | 225 vs. 37 | 188 |
Free Throws Made | 63rd | 4th | 59 | 472 vs. 1,269 | 797 |
Free Throws Attempted | 67th | 5th | 62 | 570 vs. 1,725 | 1,155 |
Games and Years: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | +300th | 12th | +288 | 59 vs. 193 | 134 |
Playoffs | +300th | 1st | +299 | 7 vs. 19 | 12 |
Triple-Doubles: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 39th | +300th | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 55th | 36th | 19 | 2 vs. 4 | 2 |
50+ point games | 9th | 9th | 0 | 1 vs. 1 | 0 |
60+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 4th | 15th | 11 | 27.71 vs. 25.02 | 2.69 |
Rebounds per game | 29th | 51st | 22 | 11.03 vs. 10.14 | 0.89 |
Assists per game | 290th | +300th | +10 | 3.67 vs. 3.56 | 0.11 |
Steals per game | +300th | 107th | +193 | 0.91 vs. 1.41 | 0.50 |
Blocks per game | 52nd | 254th | 202 | 1.63 vs. 0.78 | 0.86 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 156th | 111st | 45 | 2.23 vs. 2.41 | 0.18 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 2nd | 20th | 18 | 8.80 vs. 7.73 | 1.08 |
Field Goals Made per game | 19th | 16th | 3 | 9.11 vs. 9.17 | 0.06 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 28th | 36th | 8 | 18.17 vs. 17.76 | 0.41 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 1.18 vs. 0.06 | 1.12 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | 200th | +300th | +100 | 3.47 vs. 0.21 | 3.26 |
Free Throws Made per game | 1st | 14th | 13 | 8.31 vs. 6.63 | 1.68 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 3rd | 6th | 3 | 10.04 vs. 8.93 | 1.10 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Joel Embiid | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 31st | 33rd | 2 | 24.90 vs. 24.67 | 0.23 |
Rebounds per game | 34th | 38th | 4 | 10.86 vs. 10.68 | 0.18 |
Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 3.08 vs. 3.16 | 0.08 | |
Steals per game | +300th | 118th | +182 | 0.83 vs. 1.34 | 0.51 |
Blocks per game | 36th | 299th | 263 | 1.73 vs. 0.70 | 1.03 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 186th | 98th | 88 | 2.15 vs. 2.60 | 0.45 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 9th | 18th | 9 | 8.71 vs. 8.08 | 0.63 |
Field Goals Made per game | 69th | 33rd | 36 | 7.90 vs. 9.03 | 1.13 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 74th | 37th | 37 | 17.20 vs. 19.52 | 2.32 |
3-Pointers Made per game | 279th | +300th | +21 | 1.10 vs. 0.03 | 1.07 |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | 182nd | +300th | +118 | 3.81 vs. 0.19 | 3.62 |
Free Throws Made per game | 5th | 17th | 12 | 8.00 vs. 6.58 | 1.42 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 10th | 14th | 4 | 9.66 vs. 8.94 | 0.72 |
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.