Larry Bird vs. Tim Duncan: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Larry Bird and Tim Duncan all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?
Ever wondered how Larry Bird and Tim Duncan 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 Tim Duncan, with 19 seasons played from 1998 to 2016, 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. Tim Duncan | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | |
Points | 40th | 17th | 13th | 6th |
Rebounds | 58th | 6th | 11th | 3rd |
Assists | 49th | 110th | 9th | 33rd |
Steals | 41st | 172nd | 8th | 48th |
Blocks | 167th | 5th | 41st | 1st |
Years | 13 | 19 | 12 | 18 |
Larry Bird vs. Tim Duncan | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | |
Points | 23rd | 98th | 41st | 81st |
Rebounds | 55th | 33rd | 50th | 26th |
Assists | 52nd | +300th | 40th | +300th |
Steals | 39th | +300th | 25th | +300th |
Blocks | 226th | 21st | 195th | 10th |
Comparisons on this page: |
Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 40th | 17th | 23 | 21,791 vs. 26,496 | 4,705 |
Rebounds | 58th | 6th | 52 | 8,974 vs. 15,091 | 6,117 |
Assists | 49th | 110th | 61 | 5,695 vs. 4,225 | 1,470 |
Steals | 41st | 172nd | 131 | 1,556 vs. 1,025 | 531 |
Blocks | 167th | 5th | 162 | 755 vs. 3,020 | 2,265 |
Offensive Rebounds | 158th | 11th | 147 | 1,757 vs. 3,859 | 2,102 |
Defensive Rebounds | 27th | 3rd | 24 | 7,217 vs. 11,232 | 4,015 |
Field Goals Made | 30th | 15th | 15 | 8,591 vs. 10,285 | 1,694 |
Field Goals Attempted | 39th | 18th | 21 | 17,334 vs. 20,334 | 3,000 |
3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 649 vs. 30 | 619 | |
3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 1,727 vs. 168 | 1,559 | |
Free Throws Made | 84th | 26th | 58 | 3,960 vs. 5,896 | 1,936 |
Free Throws Attempted | 118th | 15th | 103 | 4,471 vs. 8,468 | 3,997 |
Games and Years: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 274th | 11th | 263 | 897 vs. 1,392 | 495 |
Seasons | 292nd | 12th | 280 | 13 vs. 19 | 6 |
Triple-Doubles: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 11th | 134th | 123 | 59 vs. 4 | 55 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 23rd | 152nd | 129 | 47 vs. 5 | 42 |
50+ point games | 29th | 76th | 47 | 4 vs. 1 | 3 |
60+ point games | 11th | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 13th | 6th | 7 | 3,897 vs. 5,172 | 1,275 |
Rebounds | 11th | 3rd | 8 | 1,683 vs. 2,859 | 1,176 |
Assists | 9th | 33rd | 24 | 1,062 vs. 764 | 298 |
Steals | 8th | 48th | 40 | 296 vs. 168 | 128 |
Blocks | 41st | 1st | 40 | 145 vs. 568 | 423 |
Offensive Rebounds | 22nd | 2nd | 20 | 360 vs. 778 | 418 |
Defensive Rebounds | 5th | 2nd | 3 | 1,323 vs. 2,081 | 758 |
Field Goals Made | 12th | 6th | 6 | 1,458 vs. 1,975 | 517 |
Field Goals Attempted | 13th | 5th | 8 | 3,090 vs. 3,939 | 849 |
3-Pointers Made | 162nd | +300th | +138 | 80 vs. 5 | 75 |
3-Pointers Attempted | 140th | +300th | +160 | 249 vs. 35 | 214 |
Free Throws Made | 14th | 6th | 8 | 901 vs. 1,217 | 316 |
Free Throws Attempted | 22nd | 3rd | 19 | 1,012 vs. 1,766 | 754 |
Games and Years: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 36th | 3rd | 33 | 164 vs. 251 | 87 |
Playoffs | 76th | 3rd | 73 | 12 vs. 18 | 6 |
Triple-Doubles: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 6th | 13th | 7 | 10 vs. 4 | 6 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 28th | 36th | 8 | 5 vs. 4 | 1 |
50+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 23rd | 98th | 75 | 24.29 vs. 19.03 | 5.26 |
Rebounds per game | 55th | 33rd | 22 | 10.00 vs. 10.84 | 0.84 |
Assists per game | 52nd | +300th | +248 | 6.35 vs. 3.04 | 3.31 |
Steals per game | 39th | +300th | +261 | 1.73 vs. 0.74 | 1.00 |
Blocks per game | 226th | 21st | 205 | 0.84 vs. 2.17 | 1.33 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 228th | 53rd | 175 | 1.96 vs. 2.77 | 0.81 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 12th | 10th | 2 | 8.05 vs. 8.07 | 0.02 |
Field Goals Made per game | 9th | 85th | 76 | 9.58 vs. 7.39 | 2.19 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 17th | 139th | 122 | 19.32 vs. 14.61 | 4.72 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.72 vs. 0.02 | 0.70 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 1.93 vs. 0.12 | 1.80 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 89th | 104th | 15 | 4.41 vs. 4.24 | 0.18 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 139th | 73rd | 66 | 4.98 vs. 6.08 | 1.10 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Larry Bird | Tim Duncan | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 41st | 81st | 40 | 23.76 vs. 20.61 | 3.16 |
Rebounds per game | 50th | 26th | 24 | 10.26 vs. 11.39 | 1.13 |
Assists per game | 40th | +300th | +260 | 6.48 vs. 3.04 | 3.43 |
Steals per game | 25th | +300th | +275 | 1.80 vs. 0.67 | 1.14 |
Blocks per game | 195th | 10th | 185 | 0.88 vs. 2.26 | 1.38 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 172nd | 39th | 133 | 2.20 vs. 3.10 | 0.90 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 19th | 15th | 4 | 8.07 vs. 8.29 | 0.22 |
Field Goals Made per game | 37th | 71st | 34 | 8.89 vs. 7.87 | 1.02 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 47th | 118th | 71 | 18.84 vs. 15.69 | 3.15 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.49 vs. 0.02 | 0.47 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 1.52 vs. 0.14 | 1.38 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 56th | 87th | 31 | 5.49 vs. 4.85 | 0.65 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 93rd | 51st | 42 | 6.17 vs. 7.04 | 0.87 |
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.