Kobe Bryant vs. Shaquille O'Neal: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Kobe Bryant 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?

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other
Filter: Career Stats - Lakers

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Kobe Bryant, with a career spanning 20 seasons from 1997 to 2016, 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.

Kobe Bryant vs. Shaquille O'Neal
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal
Points
4th
9th
4th
5th
Rebounds
117th
15th
42nd
5th
Assists
36th
235th
12th
53rd
Steals
17th
+300th
6th
92nd
Blocks
212nd
8th
42nd
4th
Years20191517

Kobe Bryant vs. Shaquille O'Neal
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal
Points
16th
29th
24th
36th
Rebounds
+300th
32nd
+300th
23rd
Assists
158th
+300th
125th
+300th
Steals
96th
+300th
97th
+300th
Blocks
+300th
15th
+300th
15th

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:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
4th
9th
5 33,643 vs. 28,5965,047
Rebounds
117th
15th
102 7,047 vs. 13,0996,052
Assists
36th
235th
199 6,306 vs. 3,0263,280
Steals
17th
+300th
+283 1,944 vs. 7391,205
Blocks
212nd
8th
204 640 vs. 2,7322,092
Offensive Rebounds
226th
6th
220 1,499 vs. 4,2092,710
Defensive Rebounds
62nd
11th
51 5,548 vs. 8,8903,342
Field Goals Made
6th
7th
1 11,719 vs. 11,330389
Field Goals Attempted
4th
23rd
19 26,200 vs. 19,4576,743
3-Pointers Made
30th
+300th
+270 1,827 vs. 11,826
3-Pointers Attempted
18th
+300th
+282 5,546 vs. 225,524
Free Throws Made
4th
25th
21 8,378 vs. 5,9352,443
Free Throws Attempted
6th
4th
2 10,011 vs. 11,2521,241

Games and Years:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
16th
47th
31 1,346 vs. 1,207139
Seasons
7th
12th
5 20 vs. 191

Triple-Doubles:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
24th
202nd
178 21 vs. 219

Rankings by Points Scored:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
3rd
21st
18 122 vs. 4973
50+ point games
3rd
40th
37 25 vs. 322
60+ point games
2nd
11th
9 6 vs. 15
70+ point games
2nd
-
1 vs. 01

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
4th
5th
1 5,640 vs. 5,250390
Rebounds
42nd
5th
37 1,119 vs. 2,5081,389
Assists
12th
53rd
41 1,040 vs. 582458
Steals
6th
92nd
86 310 vs. 117193
Blocks
42nd
4th
38 144 vs. 459315
Offensive Rebounds
68th
1st
67 230 vs. 866636
Defensive Rebounds
25th
3rd
22 889 vs. 1,642753
Field Goals Made
5th
4th
1 2,014 vs. 2,04127
Field Goals Attempted
2nd
7th
5 4,499 vs. 3,627872
3-Pointers Made
11th
+300th
+289 292 vs. 0292
3-Pointers Attempted
8th
+300th
+292 882 vs. 0882
Free Throws Made
3rd
8th
5 1,320 vs. 1,168152
Free Throws Attempted
7th
2nd
5 1,617 vs. 2,317700

Games and Years:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
7th
9th
2 220 vs. 2164
Playoffs
17th
6th
11 15 vs. 172

Triple-Doubles:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
+300th
+300th
0 vs. 00

Rankings by Points Scored:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
6th
8th
2 13 vs. 121
50+ point games
9th
-
1 vs. 01
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
16th
29th
13 24.99 vs. 23.691.30
Rebounds per game
+300th
32nd
+268 5.24 vs. 10.855.62
Assists per game
158th
+300th
+142 4.68 vs. 2.512.18
Steals per game
96th
+300th
+204 1.44 vs. 0.610.83
Blocks per game
+300th
15th
+285 0.48 vs. 2.261.79
Offensive Rebounds per game
+300th
10th
+290 1.11 vs. 3.492.37
Defensive Rebounds per game
274th
31st
243 4.12 vs. 7.373.24
Field Goals Made per game
26th
11th
15 8.71 vs. 9.390.68
Field Goals Attempted per game
16th
74th
58 19.47 vs. 16.123.34
3-Pointers Made per game
238th
+300th
+62 1.36 vs. 0.001.36
3-Pointers Attempted per game
122nd
+300th
+178 4.12 vs. 0.024.10
Free Throws Made per game
18th
58th
40 6.22 vs. 4.921.31
Free Throws Attempted per game
28th
5th
23 7.44 vs. 9.321.88

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Kobe Bryant Shaquille O'Neal Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
24th
36th
12 25.64 vs. 24.311.33
Rebounds per game
+300th
23rd
+277 5.09 vs. 11.616.52
Assists per game
125th
+300th
+175 4.73 vs. 2.692.03
Steals per game
97th
+300th
+203 1.41 vs. 0.540.87
Blocks per game
+300th
15th
+285 0.65 vs. 2.131.47
Offensive Rebounds per game
+300th
6th
+294 1.05 vs. 4.012.96
Defensive Rebounds per game
268th
27th
241 4.04 vs. 7.603.56
Field Goals Made per game
30th
22nd
8 9.15 vs. 9.450.29
Field Goals Attempted per game
20th
83rd
63 20.45 vs. 16.793.66
3-Pointers Made per game
197th
+300th
+103 1.33 vs. 0.001.33
3-Pointers Attempted per game
163rd
+300th
+137 4.01 vs. 0.004.01
Free Throws Made per game
34th
60th
26 6.00 vs. 5.410.59
Free Throws Attempted per game
41st
2nd
39 7.35 vs. 10.733.38

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.