Karl Malone vs. Isaiah Thomas: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Karl Malone and Isaiah Thomas 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 Rankings
Filter: Career Stats - Lakers

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Karl Malone, with a career spanning 19 seasons from 1986 to 2004, and Isaiah Thomas, with 12 seasons played from 2012 to 2024, 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.

Karl Malone vs. Isaiah Thomas
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas
Points
3rd
+300th
8th
+300th
Rebounds
7th
+300th
7th
+300th
Assists
63rd
+300th
45th
+300th
Steals
12th
+300th
17th
+300th
Blocks
74th
+300th
50th
+300th
Years1912194

Karl Malone vs. Isaiah Thomas
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas
Points
15th
157th
33rd
64th
Rebounds
51st
+300th
38th
+300th
Assists
+300th
155th
+300th
58th
Steals
107th
+300th
118th
+300th
Blocks
254th
+300th
299th
+300th

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:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
3rd
+300th
+297 36,928 vs. 9,72327,205
Rebounds
7th
+300th
+293 14,968 vs. 1,32113,647
Assists
63rd
+300th
+237 5,248 vs. 2,6412,607
Steals
12th
+300th
+288 2,085 vs. 4721,613
Blocks
74th
+300th
+226 1,145 vs. 611,084
Offensive Rebounds
14th
+300th
+286 3,562 vs. 2843,278
Defensive Rebounds
2nd
+300th
+298 11,406 vs. 1,03710,369
Field Goals Made
3rd
+300th
+297 13,528 vs. 3,17010,358
Field Goals Attempted
3rd
+300th
+297 26,210 vs. 7,30118,909
3-Pointers Made
+300th
153rd
+147 85 vs. 1,044959
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
154th
+146 310 vs. 2,8802,570
Free Throws Made
1st
+300th
+299 9,787 vs. 2,3397,448
Free Throws Attempted
1st
+300th
+299 13,188 vs. 2,68210,506

Games and Years:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
7th
+300th
1,476 vs. 556920
Seasons
12th
+300th
19 vs. 127

Triple-Doubles:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
134th
275th
141 4 vs. 13

Rankings by Points Scored:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
29th
152nd
123 44 vs. 539
50+ point games
29th
76th
47 4 vs. 13
60+ point games
11th
-
1 vs. 01
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
8th
+300th
+292 4,761 vs. 5644,197
Rebounds
7th
+300th
+293 2,062 vs. 771,985
Assists
45th
+300th
+255 610 vs. 158452
Steals
17th
+300th
+283 258 vs. 20238
Blocks
50th
+300th
+250 135 vs. 7128
Offensive Rebounds
10th
+300th
+290 502 vs. 8494
Defensive Rebounds
4th
+300th
+296 1,560 vs. 691,491
Field Goals Made
7th
+300th
+293 1,743 vs. 1761,567
Field Goals Attempted
6th
+300th
+294 3,768 vs. 4363,332
3-Pointers Made
+300th
269th
+31 6 vs. 5246
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
230th
+70 37 vs. 173136
Free Throws Made
4th
+300th
+296 1,269 vs. 1601,109
Free Throws Attempted
5th
+300th
+295 1,725 vs. 1901,535

Games and Years:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
12th
+300th
193 vs. 26167
Playoffs
1st
+300th
19 vs. 415

Triple-Doubles:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
+300th
+300th
0 vs. 00

Rankings by Points Scored:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
36th
55th
19 4 vs. 22
50+ point games
9th
9th
0 1 vs. 10
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
15th
157th
142 25.02 vs. 17.497.53
Rebounds per game
51st
+300th
+249 10.14 vs. 2.387.77
Assists per game
+300th
155th
+145 3.56 vs. 4.751.19
Steals per game
107th
+300th
+193 1.41 vs. 0.850.56
Blocks per game
254th
+300th
+46 0.78 vs. 0.110.67
Offensive Rebounds per game
111st
+300th
+189 2.41 vs. 0.511.90
Defensive Rebounds per game
20th
+300th
+280 7.73 vs. 1.875.86
Field Goals Made per game
16th
277th
261 9.17 vs. 5.703.46
Field Goals Attempted per game
36th
228th
192 17.76 vs. 13.134.63
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
81st
+219 0.06 vs. 1.881.82
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
42nd
+258 0.21 vs. 5.184.97
Free Throws Made per game
14th
108th
94 6.63 vs. 4.212.42
Free Throws Attempted per game
6th
151st
145 8.93 vs. 4.824.11

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Karl Malone Isaiah Thomas Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
33rd
64th
31 24.67 vs. 21.692.98
Rebounds per game
38th
+300th
+262 10.68 vs. 2.967.72
Assists per game
+300th
58th
+242 3.16 vs. 6.082.92
Steals per game
118th
+300th
+182 1.34 vs. 0.770.57
Blocks per game
299th
+300th
+1 0.70 vs. 0.270.43
Offensive Rebounds per game
98th
+300th
+202 2.60 vs. 0.312.29
Defensive Rebounds per game
18th
+300th
+282 8.08 vs. 2.655.43
Field Goals Made per game
33rd
145th
112 9.03 vs. 6.772.26
Field Goals Attempted per game
37th
84th
47 19.52 vs. 16.772.75
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
57th
+243 0.03 vs. 2.001.97
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
20th
+280 0.19 vs. 6.656.46
Free Throws Made per game
17th
29th
12 6.58 vs. 6.150.42
Free Throws Attempted per game
14th
43rd
29 8.94 vs. 7.311.63

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.