Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Shaquille O'Neal: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 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?
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 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.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Shaquille O'Neal | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | |
| Points | 2nd | 9th | 3rd | 5th |
| Rebounds | 3rd | 15th | 6th | 5th |
| Assists | 50th | 236th | 32nd | 53rd |
| Steals | 112nd | +300th | 36th | 92nd |
| Blocks | 3rd | 8th | 2nd | 4th |
| Years | 20 | 19 | 18 | 17 |
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Shaquille O'Neal | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | |
| Points | 20th | 29th | 36th | 36th |
| Rebounds | 25th | 32nd | 45th | 23rd |
| Assists | 296th | +300th | 296th | +300th |
| Steals | +300th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
| Blocks | 8th | 15th | 9th | 15th |
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: |
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Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 2nd | 9th | 7 | 38,387 vs. 28,596 | 9,791 |
| Rebounds | 3rd | 15th | 12 | 17,440 vs. 13,099 | 4,341 |
| Assists | 50th | 236th | 186 | 5,660 vs. 3,026 | 2,634 |
| Steals | 112nd | +300th | +188 | 1,160 vs. 739 | 421 |
| Blocks | 3rd | 8th | 5 | 3,189 vs. 2,732 | 457 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 32nd | 6th | 26 | 2,975 vs. 4,209 | 1,234 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 10th | 11th | 1 | 9,394 vs. 8,890 | 504 |
| Field Goals Made | 1st | 7th | 6 | 15,837 vs. 11,330 | 4,507 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 2nd | 23rd | 21 | 28,307 vs. 19,457 | 8,850 |
| 3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 1 vs. 1 | 0 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 18 vs. 22 | 4 | |
| Free Throws Made | 13th | 25th | 12 | 6,712 vs. 5,935 | 777 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 9th | 4th | 5 | 9,304 vs. 11,252 | 1,948 |
Games and Years: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 3rd | 47th | 44 | 1,560 vs. 1,207 | 353 |
| Seasons | 8th | 12th | 4 | 20 vs. 19 | 1 |
Triple-Doubles: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 24th | 202nd | 178 | 21 vs. 2 | 19 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 11th | 21st | 10 | 70 vs. 49 | 21 |
| 50+ point games | 11th | 40th | 29 | 10 vs. 3 | 7 |
| 60+ point games | - | 11th | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
| 70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 3rd | 5th | 2 | 5,762 vs. 5,250 | 512 |
| Rebounds | 6th | 5th | 1 | 2,481 vs. 2,508 | 27 |
| Assists | 32nd | 53rd | 21 | 767 vs. 582 | 185 |
| Steals | 36th | 92nd | 56 | 189 vs. 117 | 72 |
| Blocks | 2nd | 4th | 2 | 476 vs. 459 | 17 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 9th | 1st | 8 | 505 vs. 866 | 361 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 6th | 3rd | 3 | 1,273 vs. 1,642 | 369 |
| Field Goals Made | 2nd | 4th | 2 | 2,356 vs. 2,041 | 315 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 4th | 7th | 3 | 4,422 vs. 3,627 | 795 |
| 3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 4 vs. 0 | 4 | |
| Free Throws Made | 12th | 8th | 4 | 1,050 vs. 1,168 | 118 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 10th | 2nd | 8 | 1,419 vs. 2,317 | 898 |
Games and Years: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 5th | 9th | 4 | 237 vs. 216 | 21 |
| Playoffs | 3rd | 6th | 3 | 18 vs. 17 | 1 |
Triple-Doubles: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 38th | +300th | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 12th | 8th | 4 | 9 vs. 12 | 3 |
| 50+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 20th | 29th | 9 | 24.61 vs. 23.69 | 0.92 |
| Rebounds per game | 25th | 32nd | 7 | 11.18 vs. 10.85 | 0.33 |
| Assists per game | 296th | +300th | +4 | 3.63 vs. 2.51 | 1.12 |
| Steals per game | +300th | +300th | 0.94 vs. 0.61 | 0.32 | |
| Blocks per game | 8th | 15th | 7 | 2.57 vs. 2.26 | 0.31 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | 115th | 10th | 105 | 2.40 vs. 3.49 | 1.09 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 27th | 32nd | 5 | 7.58 vs. 7.37 | 0.22 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 5th | 11th | 6 | 10.15 vs. 9.39 | 0.77 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 28th | 74th | 46 | 18.15 vs. 16.12 | 2.03 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | 0.00 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.02 vs. 0.02 | 0.00 | |
| Free Throws Made per game | 100th | 58th | 42 | 4.30 vs. 4.92 | 0.61 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 76th | 5th | 71 | 5.96 vs. 9.32 | 3.36 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 36th | 36th | 0 | 24.31 vs. 24.31 | 0.01 |
| Rebounds per game | 45th | 23rd | 22 | 10.47 vs. 11.61 | 1.14 |
| Assists per game | 296th | +300th | +4 | 3.24 vs. 2.69 | 0.54 |
| Steals per game | +300th | +300th | 0.96 vs. 0.54 | 0.42 | |
| Blocks per game | 9th | 15th | 6 | 2.43 vs. 2.13 | 0.30 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | 101st | 6th | 95 | 2.58 vs. 4.01 | 1.43 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 66th | 27th | 39 | 6.49 vs. 7.60 | 1.11 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 14th | 22nd | 8 | 9.94 vs. 9.45 | 0.49 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 50th | 83rd | 33 | 18.66 vs. 16.79 | 1.87 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | 0.00 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.03 vs. 0.00 | 0.03 | |
| Free Throws Made per game | 116th | 60th | 56 | 4.43 vs. 5.41 | 0.98 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 104th | 2nd | 102 | 5.99 vs. 10.73 | 4.74 |
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.