LaMelo Ball vs. Dirk Nowitzki: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare LaMelo Ball and Dirk Nowitzki 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

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where LaMelo Ball, with a career spanning 6 seasons from 2021 to 2026, and Dirk Nowitzki, with 21 seasons played from 1999 to 2019, 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.

LaMelo Ball vs. Dirk Nowitzki
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki
Points
+300th
6th
DNP
18th
Rebounds
+300th
27th
DNP
24th
Assists
+300th
163rd
DNP
105th
Steals
+300th
96th
DNP
55th
Blocks
+300th
56th
DNP
53rd
Years621015

LaMelo Ball vs. Dirk Nowitzki
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki
Points
--
59th
DNP
28th
Rebounds
--
181st
DNP
61st
Assists
--
+300th
DNP
+300th
Steals
--
+300th
DNP
276th
Blocks
--
228th
DNP
188th

Note: the season per game rankings on this page respect the minimums usually applied by the NBA for all-time leaders: 400 games with some exceptions for some stats; for the Playoffs a minimum of 3 games is used.

Comparisons on this page:

Their rankings for:
Season Totals - Playoffs Totals /
Season Per Game - Playoffs Per Game

Career Totals,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
+300th
6th
+294 5,299 vs. 31,56026,261
Rebounds
+300th
27th
+273 1,495 vs. 11,4899,994
Assists
+300th
163rd
+137 1,895 vs. 3,6511,756
Steals
+300th
96th
+204 364 vs. 1,210846
Blocks
+300th
56th
+244 82 vs. 1,2811,199
Offensive Rebounds
+300th
237th
+63 310 vs. 1,4681,158
Defensive Rebounds
+300th
6th
+294 1,185 vs. 10,0218,836
Field Goals Made
+300th
8th
+292 1,867 vs. 11,1699,302
Field Goals Attempted
+300th
8th
+292 4,451 vs. 23,73419,283
3-Pointers Made
277th
20th
257 774 vs. 1,9821,208
3-Pointers Attempted
277th
23rd
254 2,131 vs. 5,2103,079
Free Throws Made
+300th
9th
+291 791 vs. 7,2406,449
Free Throws Attempted
+300th
18th
+282 943 vs. 8,2397,296

Games and Years:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
+300th
5th
+295 253 vs. 1,5221,269
Seasons
+300th
3rd
+297 6 vs. 2115

Triple-Doubles:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
60th
205th
145 11 vs. 29

Rankings by Points Scored:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
278th
62nd
216 2 vs. 2018
50+ point games
76th
50th
26 1 vs. 21
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
DNP
18th
0 vs. 3,6633,663
Rebounds
DNP
24th
0 vs. 1,4461,446
Assists
DNP
105th
0 vs. 360360
Steals
DNP
55th
0 vs. 149149
Blocks
DNP
53rd
0 vs. 129129
Offensive Rebounds
DNP
83rd
0 vs. 212212
Defensive Rebounds
DNP
7th
0 vs. 1,2341,234
Field Goals Made
DNP
21st
0 vs. 1,2201,220
Field Goals Attempted
DNP
21st
0 vs. 2,6422,642
3-Pointers Made
DNP
62nd
0 vs. 149149
3-Pointers Attempted
DNP
63rd
0 vs. 408408
Free Throws Made
DNP
10th
0 vs. 1,0741,074
Free Throws Attempted
DNP
14th
0 vs. 1,2041,204

Games and Years:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
DNP
54th
0 vs. 145145
Playoffs
DNP
17th
0 vs. 1515

Triple-Doubles:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
DNP
+300th
0 vs. 00

Rankings by Points Scored:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
DNP
20th
0 vs. 77
50+ point games
DNP
9th
0 vs. 11
60+ point games
DNP
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
--
59th
20.94 vs. 20.740.21
Rebounds per game
--
181st
5.91 vs. 7.551.64
Assists per game
--
+300th
7.49 vs. 2.405.09
Steals per game
--
+300th
1.44 vs. 0.800.64
Blocks per game
--
228th
0.32 vs. 0.840.52
Offensive Rebounds per game
--
+300th
1.23 vs. 0.960.26
Defensive Rebounds per game
--
54th
4.68 vs. 6.581.90
Field Goals Made per game
--
91st
7.38 vs. 7.340.04
Field Goals Attempted per game
--
102nd
17.59 vs. 15.592.00
3-Pointers Made per game
5th
271st
266 3.06 vs. 1.301.76
3-Pointers Attempted per game
--
216th
8.42 vs. 3.425.00
Free Throws Made per game
--
69th
3.13 vs. 4.761.63
Free Throws Attempted per game
--
107th
3.73 vs. 5.411.69

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

LaMelo Ball Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
DNP
28th
0.00 vs. 25.2625.26
Rebounds per game
DNP
61st
0.00 vs. 9.979.97
Assists per game
DNP
+300th
0.00 vs. 2.482.48
Steals per game
DNP
276th
0.00 vs. 1.031.03
Blocks per game
DNP
188th
0.00 vs. 0.890.89
Offensive Rebounds per game
DNP
+300th
0.00 vs. 1.461.46
Defensive Rebounds per game
DNP
11th
0.00 vs. 8.518.51
Field Goals Made per game
DNP
51st
0.00 vs. 8.418.41
Field Goals Attempted per game
DNP
58th
0.00 vs. 18.2218.22
3-Pointers Made per game
DNP
+300th
0.00 vs. 1.031.03
3-Pointers Attempted per game
DNP
+300th
0.00 vs. 2.812.81
Free Throws Made per game
DNP
10th
0.00 vs. 7.417.41
Free Throws Attempted per game
DNP
23rd
0.00 vs. 8.308.30

Note: Even if they don't have the minimum of 400 season games, the players are also included in the all-time rankings in some stats if they reach certain thresholds: 10,000 points; 4,000 rebounds; 2,000 assists; 625 steals; 500 blocks; 250 3-pointers made.