Larry Bird vs. Tim Hardaway: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Larry Bird and Tim Hardaway 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

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 Hardaway, with 13 seasons played from 1990 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. Tim Hardaway
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Larry Bird Tim Hardaway
Points
40th
151st
13th
267th
Rebounds
58th
+300th
11th
+300th
Assists
49th
20th
9th
93rd
Steals
42nd
61st
8th
143rd
Blocks
167th
+300th
41st
+300th
Years1313129

Larry Bird vs. Tim Hardaway
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Larry Bird Tim Hardaway
Points
23rd
147th
41st
183rd
Rebounds
55th
+300th
50th
+300th
Assists
52nd
14th
40th
33rd
Steals
39th
49th
25th
57th
Blocks
227th
+300th
195th
+300th

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 Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
40th
151st
111 21,791 vs. 15,3736,418
Rebounds
58th
+300th
+242 8,974 vs. 2,8556,119
Assists
49th
20th
29 5,695 vs. 7,0951,400
Steals
42nd
61st
19 1,556 vs. 1,428128
Blocks
167th
+300th
+133 755 vs. 129626
Offensive Rebounds
159th
+300th
+141 1,757 vs. 5441,213
Defensive Rebounds
28th
+300th
+272 7,217 vs. 2,3114,906
Field Goals Made
30th
165th
135 8,591 vs. 5,6402,951
Field Goals Attempted
39th
127th
88 17,334 vs. 13,0764,258
3-Pointers Made
+300th
52nd
+248 649 vs. 1,542893
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
41st
+259 1,727 vs. 4,3452,618
Free Throws Made
84th
248th
164 3,960 vs. 2,5511,409
Free Throws Attempted
118th
267th
149 4,471 vs. 3,2631,208

Games and Years:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
274th
+300th
897 vs. 86730
Seasons
300th
300th
0 13 vs. 130

Triple-Doubles:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
11th
134th
123 59 vs. 455

Rankings by Points Scored:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
24th
152nd
128 47 vs. 542
50+ point games
30th
-
4 vs. 04
60+ point games
11th
-
1 vs. 01
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
13th
267th
254 3,897 vs. 9432,954
Rebounds
11th
+300th
+289 1,683 vs. 1721,511
Assists
9th
93rd
84 1,062 vs. 382680
Steals
8th
143rd
135 296 vs. 88208
Blocks
41st
+300th
+259 145 vs. 9136
Offensive Rebounds
22nd
+300th
+278 360 vs. 33327
Defensive Rebounds
5th
+300th
+295 1,323 vs. 1391,184
Field Goals Made
12th
283rd
271 1,458 vs. 3291,129
Field Goals Attempted
13th
249th
236 3,090 vs. 8372,253
3-Pointers Made
162nd
100th
62 80 vs. 11030
3-Pointers Attempted
140th
84th
56 249 vs. 34495
Free Throws Made
14th
286th
272 901 vs. 175726
Free Throws Attempted
22nd
281st
259 1,012 vs. 233779

Games and Years:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
36th
+300th
164 vs. 56108
Playoffs
76th
223rd
147 12 vs. 93

Triple-Doubles:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
6th
+300th
10 vs. 010

Rankings by Points Scored:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway 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 Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
23rd
147th
124 24.29 vs. 17.736.56
Rebounds per game
55th
+300th
+245 10.00 vs. 3.296.71
Assists per game
52nd
14th
38 6.35 vs. 8.181.83
Steals per game
39th
49th
10 1.73 vs. 1.650.09
Blocks per game
227th
+300th
+73 0.84 vs. 0.150.69
Offensive Rebounds per game
229th
+300th
+71 1.96 vs. 0.631.33
Defensive Rebounds per game
12th
+300th
+288 8.05 vs. 2.675.38
Field Goals Made per game
9th
177th
168 9.58 vs. 6.513.07
Field Goals Attempted per game
17th
117th
100 19.32 vs. 15.084.24
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
98th
+202 0.72 vs. 1.781.06
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
52nd
+248 1.93 vs. 5.013.09
Free Throws Made per game
90th
+300th
+210 4.41 vs. 2.941.47
Free Throws Attempted per game
138th
+300th
+162 4.98 vs. 3.761.22

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Larry Bird Tim Hardaway Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
41st
183rd
142 23.76 vs. 16.846.92
Rebounds per game
50th
+300th
+250 10.26 vs. 3.077.19
Assists per game
40th
33rd
7 6.48 vs. 6.820.35
Steals per game
25th
57th
32 1.80 vs. 1.570.23
Blocks per game
195th
+300th
+105 0.88 vs. 0.160.72
Offensive Rebounds per game
172nd
+300th
+128 2.20 vs. 0.591.61
Defensive Rebounds per game
19th
+300th
+281 8.07 vs. 2.485.58
Field Goals Made per game
37th
226th
189 8.89 vs. 5.883.02
Field Goals Attempted per game
47th
150th
103 18.84 vs. 14.953.90
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
64th
+236 0.49 vs. 1.961.48
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
34th
+266 1.52 vs. 6.144.62
Free Throws Made per game
56th
297th
241 5.49 vs. 3.132.37
Free Throws Attempted per game
93rd
293rd
200 6.17 vs. 4.162.01

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.