Larry Bird vs. Karl-Anthony Towns: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Larry Bird and Karl-Anthony Towns 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 Larry Bird, with a career spanning 13 seasons from 1980 to 1992, and Karl-Anthony Towns, with 11 seasons played from 2016 to 2026, 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.

Larry Bird vs. Karl-Anthony Towns
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns
Points
40th
150th
13th
250th
Rebounds
59th
99th
11th
181st
Assists
49th
+300th
9th
+300th
Steals
42nd
+300th
8th
+300th
Blocks
168th
161st
41st
272nd
Years1311125

Larry Bird vs. Karl-Anthony Towns
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns
Points
23rd
35th
41st
97th
Rebounds
55th
28th
50th
37th
Assists
51st
+300th
40th
+300th
Steals
39th
+300th
25th
+300th
Blocks
228th
128th
195th
288th

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:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
40th
150th
110 21,791 vs. 15,4176,374
Rebounds
59th
99th
40 8,974 vs. 7,4211,553
Assists
49th
+300th
+251 5,695 vs. 2,1143,581
Steals
42nd
+300th
+258 1,556 vs. 5421,014
Blocks
168th
161st
7 755 vs. 79035
Offensive Rebounds
159th
130th
29 1,757 vs. 1,876119
Defensive Rebounds
28th
63rd
35 7,217 vs. 5,5451,672
Field Goals Made
30th
166th
136 8,591 vs. 5,6352,956
Field Goals Attempted
39th
237th
198 17,334 vs. 10,7936,541
3-Pointers Made
+300th
121st
+179 649 vs. 1,162513
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
151st
+149 1,727 vs. 2,9151,188
Free Throws Made
84th
183rd
99 3,960 vs. 2,985975
Free Throws Attempted
119th
217th
98 4,471 vs. 3,556915

Games and Years:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
275th
+300th
897 vs. 669228
Seasons
300th
+300th
13 vs. 112

Triple-Doubles:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
11th
165th
154 59 vs. 356

Rankings by Points Scored:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
24th
65th
41 47 vs. 1829
50+ point games
30th
42nd
12 4 vs. 31
60+ point games
11th
7th
4 1 vs. 21
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
13th
250th
237 3,897 vs. 9892,908
Rebounds
11th
181st
170 1,683 vs. 5361,147
Assists
9th
+300th
+291 1,062 vs. 100962
Steals
8th
+300th
+292 296 vs. 34262
Blocks
41st
272nd
231 145 vs. 36109
Offensive Rebounds
22nd
242nd
220 360 vs. 105255
Defensive Rebounds
5th
116th
111 1,323 vs. 431892
Field Goals Made
12th
272nd
260 1,458 vs. 3461,112
Field Goals Attempted
13th
293rd
280 3,090 vs. 7272,363
3-Pointers Made
162nd
173rd
11 80 vs. 755
3-Pointers Attempted
140th
177th
37 249 vs. 21435
Free Throws Made
14th
219th
205 901 vs. 222679
Free Throws Attempted
22nd
243rd
221 1,012 vs. 267745

Games and Years:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
36th
+300th
164 vs. 50114
Playoffs
76th
+300th
12 vs. 57

Triple-Doubles:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
6th
+300th
10 vs. 010

Rankings by Points Scored:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
28th
-
5 vs. 05
50+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
23rd
35th
12 24.29 vs. 23.041.25
Rebounds per game
55th
28th
27 10.00 vs. 11.091.09
Assists per game
51st
+300th
+249 6.35 vs. 3.163.19
Steals per game
39th
+300th
+261 1.73 vs. 0.810.92
Blocks per game
228th
128th
100 0.84 vs. 1.180.34
Offensive Rebounds per game
230th
52nd
178 1.96 vs. 2.800.85
Defensive Rebounds per game
11th
7th
4 8.05 vs. 8.290.24
Field Goals Made per game
9th
38th
29 9.58 vs. 8.421.15
Field Goals Attempted per game
17th
73rd
56 19.32 vs. 16.133.19
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
108th
+192 0.72 vs. 1.741.01
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
99th
+201 1.93 vs. 4.362.43
Free Throws Made per game
90th
86th
4 4.41 vs. 4.460.05
Free Throws Attempted per game
139th
113rd
26 4.98 vs. 5.320.33

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Karl-Anthony Towns Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
41st
97th
56 23.76 vs. 19.783.98
Rebounds per game
50th
37th
13 10.26 vs. 10.720.46
Assists per game
40th
+300th
+260 6.48 vs. 2.004.48
Steals per game
25th
+300th
+275 1.80 vs. 0.681.12
Blocks per game
195th
288th
93 0.88 vs. 0.720.16
Offensive Rebounds per game
172nd
198th
26 2.20 vs. 2.100.10
Defensive Rebounds per game
19th
10th
9 8.07 vs. 8.620.55
Field Goals Made per game
37th
133rd
96 8.89 vs. 6.921.97
Field Goals Attempted per game
47th
162nd
115 18.84 vs. 14.544.30
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
155th
+145 0.49 vs. 1.501.01
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
140th
+160 1.52 vs. 4.282.76
Free Throws Made per game
56th
113rd
57 5.49 vs. 4.441.05
Free Throws Attempted per game
93rd
144th
51 6.17 vs. 5.340.83

Note: the per game rankings on this page respect the minimums usually applied by the NBA for all-time leaders, this is 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 a minimum of 3 games is applied here for the Playoffs.