Larry Bird vs. Michael Jordan: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Larry Bird and Michael Jordan 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

Ever wondered how Larry Bird and Michael Jordan truly stack up against each other? 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 Michael Jordan, with 15 seasons played from 1985 to 2003, 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. Michael Jordan
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Larry Bird Michael Jordan Larry Bird Michael Jordan
Points
40th
5th
13th
2nd
Rebounds
58th
141st
11th
40th
Assists
49th
52nd
9th
13th
Steals
41st
4th
8th
3rd
Blocks
167th
126th
41st
34th
Years13151213

Larry Bird vs. Michael Jordan
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Larry Bird Michael Jordan Larry Bird Michael Jordan
Points
23rd
1st
41st
1st
Rebounds
55th
+300th
50th
278th
Assists
52nd
108th
40th
69th
Steals
39th
3rd
25th
11th
Blocks
226th
233rd
195th
195th

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 Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
40th
5th
35 21,791 vs. 32,29210,501
Rebounds
58th
141st
83 8,974 vs. 6,6722,302
Assists
49th
52nd
3 5,695 vs. 5,63362
Steals
41st
4th
37 1,556 vs. 2,514958
Blocks
167th
126th
41 755 vs. 893138
Offensive Rebounds
158th
177th
19 1,757 vs. 1,66889
Defensive Rebounds
27th
93rd
66 7,217 vs. 5,0042,213
Field Goals Made
30th
5th
25 8,591 vs. 12,1923,601
Field Goals Attempted
39th
5th
34 17,334 vs. 24,5377,203
3-Pointers Made
+300th
+300th
649 vs. 58168
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
+300th
1,727 vs. 1,77851
Free Throws Made
84th
7th
77 3,960 vs. 7,3273,367
Free Throws Attempted
118th
12th
106 4,471 vs. 8,7724,301

Games and Years:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
274th
108th
166 897 vs. 1,072175
Seasons
292nd
133rd
159 13 vs. 152

Triple-Doubles:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
11th
20th
9 59 vs. 2831

Rankings by Points Scored:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
23rd
2nd
21 47 vs. 173126
50+ point games
29th
2nd
27 4 vs. 3127
60+ point games
11th
4th
7 1 vs. 43
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
13th
2nd
11 3,897 vs. 5,9872,090
Rebounds
11th
40th
29 1,683 vs. 1,152531
Assists
9th
13th
4 1,062 vs. 1,02240
Steals
8th
3rd
5 296 vs. 37680
Blocks
41st
34th
7 145 vs. 15813
Offensive Rebounds
22nd
36th
14 360 vs. 30555
Defensive Rebounds
5th
32nd
27 1,323 vs. 847476
Field Goals Made
12th
3rd
9 1,458 vs. 2,188730
Field Goals Attempted
13th
3rd
10 3,090 vs. 4,4971,407
3-Pointers Made
162nd
63rd
99 80 vs. 14868
3-Pointers Attempted
140th
52nd
88 249 vs. 446197
Free Throws Made
14th
2nd
12 901 vs. 1,463562
Free Throws Attempted
22nd
3rd
19 1,012 vs. 1,766754

Games and Years:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
36th
19th
17 164 vs. 17915
Playoffs
76th
45th
31 12 vs. 131

Triple-Doubles:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
6th
31st
25 10 vs. 28

Rankings by Points Scored:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
28th
1st
27 5 vs. 3833
50+ point games
-
1st
0 vs. 88
60+ point games
-
1st
0 vs. 11
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
23rd
1st
22 24.29 vs. 30.125.83
Rebounds per game
55th
+300th
+245 10.00 vs. 6.223.78
Assists per game
52nd
108th
56 6.35 vs. 5.251.09
Steals per game
39th
3rd
36 1.73 vs. 2.350.61
Blocks per game
226th
233rd
7 0.84 vs. 0.830.01
Offensive Rebounds per game
228th
+300th
+72 1.96 vs. 1.560.40
Defensive Rebounds per game
12th
186th
174 8.05 vs. 4.673.38
Field Goals Made per game
9th
2nd
7 9.58 vs. 11.371.80
Field Goals Attempted per game
17th
2nd
15 19.32 vs. 22.893.56
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.72 vs. 0.540.18
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
1.93 vs. 1.660.27
Free Throws Made per game
89th
10th
79 4.41 vs. 6.832.42
Free Throws Attempted per game
139th
19th
120 4.98 vs. 8.183.20

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Michael Jordan Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
41st
1st
40 23.76 vs. 33.459.68
Rebounds per game
50th
278th
228 10.26 vs. 6.443.83
Assists per game
40th
69th
29 6.48 vs. 5.710.77
Steals per game
25th
11th
14 1.80 vs. 2.100.30
Blocks per game
195th
195th
0 0.88 vs. 0.880.00
Offensive Rebounds per game
172nd
+300th
+128 2.20 vs. 1.700.49
Defensive Rebounds per game
19th
184th
165 8.07 vs. 4.733.34
Field Goals Made per game
37th
1st
36 8.89 vs. 12.223.33
Field Goals Attempted per game
47th
2nd
45 18.84 vs. 25.126.28
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.49 vs. 0.830.34
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
1.52 vs. 2.490.97
Free Throws Made per game
56th
3rd
53 5.49 vs. 8.172.68
Free Throws Attempted per game
93rd
8th
85 6.17 vs. 9.873.70

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.