Michael Jordan vs. Karl Malone: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Michael Jordan and Karl Malone 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 / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other
This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Michael Jordan, with a career spanning 15 seasons from 1985 to 2003, and Karl Malone, with 19 seasons played from 1986 to 2004, 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.
Michael Jordan vs. Karl Malone | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | |
Points | 5th | 3rd | 2nd | 8th |
Rebounds | 141st | 7th | 40th | 7th |
Assists | 52nd | 63rd | 13th | 45th |
Steals | 4th | 12th | 3rd | 17th |
Blocks | 126th | 74th | 34th | 50th |
Years | 15 | 19 | 13 | 19 |
Michael Jordan vs. Karl Malone | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | |
Points | 1st | 15th | 1st | 33rd |
Rebounds | +300th | 51st | 278th | 38th |
Assists | 108th | +300th | 69th | +300th |
Steals | 3rd | 107th | 11th | 118th |
Blocks | 233rd | 254th | 195th | 299th |
Comparisons on this page: |
Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 5th | 3rd | 2 | 32,292 vs. 36,928 | 4,636 |
Rebounds | 141st | 7th | 134 | 6,672 vs. 14,968 | 8,296 |
Assists | 52nd | 63rd | 11 | 5,633 vs. 5,248 | 385 |
Steals | 4th | 12th | 8 | 2,514 vs. 2,085 | 429 |
Blocks | 126th | 74th | 52 | 893 vs. 1,145 | 252 |
Offensive Rebounds | 177th | 14th | 163 | 1,668 vs. 3,562 | 1,894 |
Defensive Rebounds | 93rd | 2nd | 91 | 5,004 vs. 11,406 | 6,402 |
Field Goals Made | 5th | 3rd | 2 | 12,192 vs. 13,528 | 1,336 |
Field Goals Attempted | 5th | 3rd | 2 | 24,537 vs. 26,210 | 1,673 |
3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 581 vs. 85 | 496 | |
3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 1,778 vs. 310 | 1,468 | |
Free Throws Made | 7th | 1st | 6 | 7,327 vs. 9,787 | 2,460 |
Free Throws Attempted | 12th | 1st | 11 | 8,772 vs. 13,188 | 4,416 |
Games and Years: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 108th | 7th | 101 | 1,072 vs. 1,476 | 404 |
Seasons | 133rd | 12th | 121 | 15 vs. 19 | 4 |
Triple-Doubles: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 20th | 134th | 114 | 28 vs. 4 | 24 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 2nd | 29th | 27 | 173 vs. 44 | 129 |
50+ point games | 2nd | 29th | 27 | 31 vs. 4 | 27 |
60+ point games | 4th | 11th | 7 | 4 vs. 1 | 3 |
70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 2nd | 8th | 6 | 5,987 vs. 4,761 | 1,226 |
Rebounds | 40th | 7th | 33 | 1,152 vs. 2,062 | 910 |
Assists | 13th | 45th | 32 | 1,022 vs. 610 | 412 |
Steals | 3rd | 17th | 14 | 376 vs. 258 | 118 |
Blocks | 34th | 50th | 16 | 158 vs. 135 | 23 |
Offensive Rebounds | 36th | 10th | 26 | 305 vs. 502 | 197 |
Defensive Rebounds | 32nd | 4th | 28 | 847 vs. 1,560 | 713 |
Field Goals Made | 3rd | 7th | 4 | 2,188 vs. 1,743 | 445 |
Field Goals Attempted | 3rd | 6th | 3 | 4,497 vs. 3,768 | 729 |
3-Pointers Made | 63rd | +300th | +237 | 148 vs. 6 | 142 |
3-Pointers Attempted | 52nd | +300th | +248 | 446 vs. 37 | 409 |
Free Throws Made | 2nd | 4th | 2 | 1,463 vs. 1,269 | 194 |
Free Throws Attempted | 3rd | 5th | 2 | 1,766 vs. 1,725 | 41 |
Games and Years: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 19th | 12th | 7 | 179 vs. 193 | 14 |
Playoffs | 45th | 1st | 44 | 13 vs. 19 | 6 |
Triple-Doubles: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 31st | +300th | 2 vs. 0 | 2 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 1st | 36th | 35 | 38 vs. 4 | 34 |
50+ point games | 1st | 9th | 8 | 8 vs. 1 | 7 |
60+ point games | 1st | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 1st | 15th | 14 | 30.12 vs. 25.02 | 5.10 |
Rebounds per game | +300th | 51st | +249 | 6.22 vs. 10.14 | 3.92 |
Assists per game | 108th | +300th | +192 | 5.25 vs. 3.56 | 1.70 |
Steals per game | 3rd | 107th | 104 | 2.35 vs. 1.41 | 0.93 |
Blocks per game | 233rd | 254th | 21 | 0.83 vs. 0.78 | 0.06 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | 111st | +189 | 1.56 vs. 2.41 | 0.86 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 186th | 20th | 166 | 4.67 vs. 7.73 | 3.06 |
Field Goals Made per game | 2nd | 16th | 14 | 11.37 vs. 9.17 | 2.21 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 2nd | 36th | 34 | 22.89 vs. 17.76 | 5.13 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.54 vs. 0.06 | 0.48 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 1.66 vs. 0.21 | 1.45 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 10th | 14th | 4 | 6.83 vs. 6.63 | 0.20 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 19th | 6th | 13 | 8.18 vs. 8.93 | 0.75 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Michael Jordan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 1st | 33rd | 32 | 33.45 vs. 24.67 | 8.78 |
Rebounds per game | 278th | 38th | 240 | 6.44 vs. 10.68 | 4.25 |
Assists per game | 69th | +300th | +231 | 5.71 vs. 3.16 | 2.55 |
Steals per game | 11th | 118th | 107 | 2.10 vs. 1.34 | 0.76 |
Blocks per game | 195th | 299th | 104 | 0.88 vs. 0.70 | 0.18 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | 98th | +202 | 1.70 vs. 2.60 | 0.90 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 184th | 18th | 166 | 4.73 vs. 8.08 | 3.35 |
Field Goals Made per game | 1st | 33rd | 32 | 12.22 vs. 9.03 | 3.19 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 2nd | 37th | 35 | 25.12 vs. 19.52 | 5.60 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.83 vs. 0.03 | 0.80 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 2.49 vs. 0.19 | 2.30 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 3rd | 17th | 14 | 8.17 vs. 6.58 | 1.60 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 8th | 14th | 6 | 9.87 vs. 8.94 | 0.93 |
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.