LeBron James vs. Shaquille O'Neal: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare LeBron James and Shaquille O'Neal all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?
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 LeBron James, with a career spanning 23 seasons from 2004 to 2026, and Shaquille O'Neal, with 19 seasons played from 1993 to 2011, 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.
LeBron James vs. Shaquille O'Neal | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | |
| Points | 1st | 9th | 1st | 5th |
| Rebounds | 25th | 15th | 4th | 5th |
| Assists | 4th | 237th | 2nd | 53rd |
| Steals | 6th | +300th | 1st | 92nd |
| Blocks | 71st | 8th | 9th | 4th |
| Years | 23 | 19 | 18 | 17 |
LeBron James vs. Shaquille O'Neal | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | |
| Points | 8th | 30th | 6th | 36th |
| Rebounds | 190th | 32nd | 103rd | 23rd |
| Assists | 25th | +300th | 25th | +300th |
| Steals | 82nd | +300th | 37th | +300th |
| Blocks | 270th | 15th | 164th | 15th |
Comparisons on this page: |
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Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 1st | 9th | 8 | 42,316 vs. 28,596 | 13,720 |
| Rebounds | 25th | 15th | 10 | 11,779 vs. 13,099 | 1,320 |
| Assists | 4th | 237th | 233 | 11,645 vs. 3,026 | 8,619 |
| Steals | 6th | +300th | +294 | 2,350 vs. 739 | 1,611 |
| Blocks | 71st | 8th | 63 | 1,155 vs. 2,732 | 1,577 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 146th | 6th | 140 | 1,805 vs. 4,209 | 2,404 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 7th | 11th | 4 | 9,974 vs. 8,890 | 1,084 |
| Field Goals Made | 2nd | 7th | 5 | 15,540 vs. 11,330 | 4,210 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 1st | 24th | 23 | 30,694 vs. 19,457 | 11,237 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 6th | +300th | +294 | 2,570 vs. 1 | 2,569 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 5th | +300th | +295 | 7,358 vs. 22 | 7,336 |
| Free Throws Made | 2nd | 25th | 23 | 8,666 vs. 5,935 | 2,731 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 3rd | 4th | 1 | 11,763 vs. 11,252 | 511 |
Games and Years: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 2nd | 48th | 46 | 1,570 vs. 1,207 | 363 |
| Seasons | 1st | 13th | 12 | 23 vs. 19 | 4 |
Triple-Doubles: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 5th | 204th | 199 | 122 vs. 2 | 120 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 6th | 22nd | 16 | 79 vs. 49 | 30 |
| 50+ point games | 8th | 42nd | 34 | 14 vs. 3 | 11 |
| 60+ point games | 11th | 11th | 0 | 1 vs. 1 | 0 |
| 70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 1st | 5th | 4 | 8,289 vs. 5,250 | 3,039 |
| Rebounds | 4th | 5th | 1 | 2,628 vs. 2,508 | 120 |
| Assists | 2nd | 53rd | 51 | 2,095 vs. 582 | 1,513 |
| Steals | 1st | 92nd | 91 | 493 vs. 117 | 376 |
| Blocks | 9th | 4th | 5 | 284 vs. 459 | 175 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 15th | 1st | 14 | 442 vs. 866 | 424 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 1st | 3rd | 2 | 2,186 vs. 1,642 | 544 |
| Field Goals Made | 1st | 4th | 3 | 2,971 vs. 2,041 | 930 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 1st | 7th | 6 | 5,984 vs. 3,627 | 2,357 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 3rd | +300th | +297 | 480 vs. 0 | 480 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 2nd | +300th | +298 | 1,443 vs. 0 | 1,443 |
| Free Throws Made | 1st | 8th | 7 | 1,867 vs. 1,168 | 699 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 1st | 2nd | 1 | 2,519 vs. 2,317 | 202 |
Games and Years: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 1st | 9th | 8 | 292 vs. 216 | 76 |
| Playoffs | 3rd | 6th | 3 | 18 vs. 17 | 1 |
Triple-Doubles: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 2nd | +300th | 28 vs. 0 | 28 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 2nd | 8th | 6 | 29 vs. 12 | 17 |
| 50+ point games | 9th | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
| 60+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 8th | 30th | 22 | 26.95 vs. 23.69 | 3.26 |
| Rebounds per game | 190th | 32nd | 158 | 7.50 vs. 10.85 | 3.35 |
| Assists per game | 25th | +300th | +275 | 7.42 vs. 2.51 | 4.91 |
| Steals per game | 82nd | +300th | +218 | 1.50 vs. 0.61 | 0.88 |
| Blocks per game | 270th | 15th | 255 | 0.74 vs. 2.26 | 1.53 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | 10th | +290 | 1.15 vs. 3.49 | 2.34 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 64th | 31st | 33 | 6.35 vs. 7.37 | 1.01 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 6th | 11th | 5 | 9.90 vs. 9.39 | 0.51 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 14th | 75th | 61 | 19.55 vs. 16.12 | 3.43 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | 133rd | +300th | +167 | 1.64 vs. 0.00 | 1.64 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | 77th | +300th | +223 | 4.69 vs. 0.02 | 4.67 |
| Free Throws Made per game | 35th | 58th | 23 | 5.52 vs. 4.92 | 0.60 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 27th | 5th | 22 | 7.49 vs. 9.32 | 1.83 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | LeBron James | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 6th | 36th | 30 | 28.39 vs. 24.31 | 4.08 |
| Rebounds per game | 103rd | 23rd | 80 | 9.00 vs. 11.61 | 2.61 |
| Assists per game | 25th | +300th | +275 | 7.17 vs. 2.69 | 4.48 |
| Steals per game | 37th | +300th | +263 | 1.69 vs. 0.54 | 1.15 |
| Blocks per game | 164th | 15th | 149 | 0.97 vs. 2.13 | 1.15 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | 6th | +294 | 1.51 vs. 4.01 | 2.50 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 30th | 27th | 3 | 7.49 vs. 7.60 | 0.12 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 10th | 22nd | 12 | 10.17 vs. 9.45 | 0.73 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 19th | 83rd | 64 | 20.49 vs. 16.79 | 3.70 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | 120th | +300th | +180 | 1.64 vs. 0.00 | 1.64 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | 95th | +300th | +205 | 4.94 vs. 0.00 | 4.94 |
| Free Throws Made per game | 22nd | 60th | 38 | 6.39 vs. 5.41 | 0.99 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 17th | 2nd | 15 | 8.63 vs. 10.73 | 2.10 |
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.