Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Michael Jordan: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Jordan 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
Ever wondered how Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Jordan truly stack up against each other? This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, with a career spanning 20 seasons from 1970 to 1989, and Michael Jordan, with 15 seasons played from 1985 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.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Michael Jordan | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | |
Points | 2nd | 5th | 3rd | 2nd |
Rebounds | 3rd | 141st | 6th | 40th |
Assists | 50th | 52nd | 32nd | 13th |
Steals | 112nd | 4th | 36th | 3rd |
Blocks | 3rd | 126th | 2nd | 34th |
Years | 20 | 15 | 18 | 13 |
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Michael Jordan | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | |
Points | 20th | 1st | 36th | 1st |
Rebounds | 25th | +300th | 45th | 278th |
Assists | 296th | 108th | 296th | 69th |
Steals | +300th | 3rd | +300th | 11th |
Blocks | 8th | 233rd | 9th | 195th |
Steals, blocks, offensive and defensive rebounds started to be recorded in the 1973-74 season. The 3-point shot was implemented in the 1979-80 season.
* Some years in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's career don't have data for these stats.
Comparisons on this page: |
Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 2nd | 5th | 3 | 38,387 vs. 32,292 | 6,095 |
Rebounds | 3rd | 141st | 138 | 17,440 vs. 6,672 | 10,768 |
Assists | 50th | 52nd | 2 | 5,660 vs. 5,633 | 27 |
Steals | 112nd | 4th | 108 | 1,160 vs. 2,514 | 1,354 |
Blocks | 3rd | 126th | 123 | 3,189 vs. 893 | 2,296 |
Offensive Rebounds | 32nd | 177th | 145 | 2,975 vs. 1,668 | 1,307 |
Defensive Rebounds | 10th | 93rd | 83 | 9,394 vs. 5,004 | 4,390 |
Field Goals Made | 1st | 5th | 4 | 15,837 vs. 12,192 | 3,645 |
Field Goals Attempted | 2nd | 5th | 3 | 28,307 vs. 24,537 | 3,770 |
3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 1 vs. 581 | 580 | |
3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 18 vs. 1,778 | 1,760 | |
Free Throws Made | 13th | 7th | 6 | 6,712 vs. 7,327 | 615 |
Free Throws Attempted | 9th | 12th | 3 | 9,304 vs. 8,772 | 532 |
Games and Years: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 3rd | 108th | 105 | 1,560 vs. 1,072 | 488 |
Seasons | 7th | 133rd | 126 | 20 vs. 15 | 5 |
Triple-Doubles: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 24th | 20th | 4 | 21 vs. 28 | 7 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 11th | 2nd | 9 | 70 vs. 173 | 103 |
50+ point games | 11th | 2nd | 9 | 10 vs. 31 | 21 |
60+ point games | - | 4th | 0 vs. 4 | 4 | |
70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 3rd | 2nd | 1 | 5,762 vs. 5,987 | 225 |
Rebounds | 6th | 40th | 34 | 2,481 vs. 1,152 | 1,329 |
Assists | 32nd | 13th | 19 | 767 vs. 1,022 | 255 |
Steals | 36th | 3rd | 33 | 189 vs. 376 | 187 |
Blocks | 2nd | 34th | 32 | 476 vs. 158 | 318 |
Offensive Rebounds | 9th | 36th | 27 | 505 vs. 305 | 200 |
Defensive Rebounds | 6th | 32nd | 26 | 1,273 vs. 847 | 426 |
Field Goals Made | 2nd | 3rd | 1 | 2,356 vs. 2,188 | 168 |
Field Goals Attempted | 4th | 3rd | 1 | 4,422 vs. 4,497 | 75 |
3-Pointers Made | +300th | 63rd | +237 | 0 vs. 148 | 148 |
3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | 52nd | +248 | 4 vs. 446 | 442 |
Free Throws Made | 12th | 2nd | 10 | 1,050 vs. 1,463 | 413 |
Free Throws Attempted | 10th | 3rd | 7 | 1,419 vs. 1,766 | 347 |
Games and Years: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 5th | 19th | 14 | 237 vs. 179 | 58 |
Playoffs | 3rd | 45th | 42 | 18 vs. 13 | 5 |
Triple-Doubles: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 38th | 31st | 7 | 1 vs. 2 | 1 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 12th | 1st | 11 | 9 vs. 38 | 29 |
50+ point games | - | 1st | 0 vs. 8 | 8 | |
60+ point games | - | 1st | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 20th | 1st | 19 | 24.61 vs. 30.12 | 5.52 |
Rebounds per game | 25th | +300th | +275 | 11.18 vs. 6.22 | 4.96 |
Assists per game | 296th | 108th | 188 | 3.63 vs. 5.25 | 1.63 |
Steals per game | +300th | 3rd | +297 | 0.94 vs. 2.35 | 1.41 |
Blocks per game | 8th | 233rd | 225 | 2.57 vs. 0.83 | 1.74 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 114th | +300th | +186 | 2.40 vs. 1.56 | 0.85 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 27th | 186th | 159 | 7.58 vs. 4.67 | 2.91 |
Field Goals Made per game | 5th | 2nd | 3 | 10.15 vs. 11.37 | 1.22 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 29th | 2nd | 27 | 18.15 vs. 22.89 | 4.74 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.54 | 0.54 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.02 vs. 1.66 | 1.64 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 100th | 10th | 90 | 4.30 vs. 6.83 | 2.53 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 76th | 19th | 57 | 5.96 vs. 8.18 | 2.22 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Michael Jordan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 36th | 1st | 35 | 24.31 vs. 33.45 | 9.13 |
Rebounds per game | 45th | 278th | 233 | 10.47 vs. 6.44 | 4.03 |
Assists per game | 296th | 69th | 227 | 3.24 vs. 5.71 | 2.47 |
Steals per game | +300th | 11th | +289 | 0.96 vs. 2.10 | 1.14 |
Blocks per game | 9th | 195th | 186 | 2.43 vs. 0.88 | 1.55 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 101st | +300th | +199 | 2.58 vs. 1.70 | 0.87 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 66th | 184th | 118 | 6.49 vs. 4.73 | 1.76 |
Field Goals Made per game | 14th | 1st | 13 | 9.94 vs. 12.22 | 2.28 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 50th | 2nd | 48 | 18.66 vs. 25.12 | 6.46 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.83 | 0.83 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.03 vs. 2.49 | 2.47 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 116th | 3rd | 113 | 4.43 vs. 8.17 | 3.74 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 104th | 8th | 96 | 5.99 vs. 9.87 | 3.88 |
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.