Patrick Ewing vs. Dirk Nowitzki: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Patrick Ewing and Dirk Nowitzki 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 / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Patrick Ewing, with a career spanning 17 seasons from 1986 to 2002, and Dirk Nowitzki, with 21 seasons played from 1999 to 2019, 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.

Patrick Ewing vs. Dirk Nowitzki
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki
Points
28th
6th
38th
18th
Rebounds
26th
27th
26th
24th
Assists
+300th
163rd
162nd
105th
Steals
124th
96th
83rd
55th
Blocks
7th
56th
7th
53rd
Years17211415

Patrick Ewing vs. Dirk Nowitzki
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki
Points
54th
59th
88th
28th
Rebounds
62nd
181st
48th
61st
Assists
+300th
+300th
+300th
+300th
Steals
+300th
+300th
+300th
276th
Blocks
11th
228th
13th
188th

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:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
28th
6th
22 24,815 vs. 31,5606,745
Rebounds
26th
27th
1 11,607 vs. 11,489118
Assists
+300th
163rd
+137 2,215 vs. 3,6511,436
Steals
124th
96th
28 1,136 vs. 1,21074
Blocks
7th
56th
49 2,894 vs. 1,2811,613
Offensive Rebounds
41st
237th
196 2,752 vs. 1,4681,284
Defensive Rebounds
12th
6th
6 8,855 vs. 10,0211,166
Field Goals Made
18th
8th
10 9,702 vs. 11,1691,467
Field Goals Attempted
25th
8th
17 19,241 vs. 23,7344,493
3-Pointers Made
+300th
20th
+280 19 vs. 1,9821,963
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
23rd
+277 125 vs. 5,2105,085
Free Throws Made
31st
9th
22 5,392 vs. 7,2401,848
Free Throws Attempted
33rd
18th
15 7,289 vs. 8,239950

Games and Years:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
54th
5th
49 1,183 vs. 1,522339
Seasons
59th
3rd
56 17 vs. 214

Triple-Doubles:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
275th
205th
70 1 vs. 21

Rankings by Points Scored:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
43rd
62nd
19 30 vs. 2010
50+ point games
49th
50th
1 2 vs. 20
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
38th
18th
20 2,813 vs. 3,663850
Rebounds
26th
24th
2 1,435 vs. 1,44611
Assists
162nd
105th
57 275 vs. 36085
Steals
83rd
55th
28 122 vs. 14927
Blocks
7th
53rd
46 303 vs. 129174
Offensive Rebounds
29th
83rd
54 337 vs. 212125
Defensive Rebounds
16th
7th
9 1,098 vs. 1,234136
Field Goals Made
31st
21st
10 1,104 vs. 1,220116
Field Goals Attempted
29th
21st
8 2,353 vs. 2,642289
3-Pointers Made
+300th
62nd
+238 8 vs. 149141
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
63rd
+237 23 vs. 408385
Free Throws Made
43rd
10th
33 597 vs. 1,074477
Free Throws Attempted
37th
14th
23 831 vs. 1,204373

Games and Years:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
71st
54th
17 139 vs. 1456
Playoffs
30th
17th
13 14 vs. 151

Triple-Doubles:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
+300th
+300th
0 vs. 00

Rankings by Points Scored:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
55th
20th
35 2 vs. 75
50+ point games
-
9th
0 vs. 11
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
54th
59th
5 20.98 vs. 20.740.24
Rebounds per game
62nd
181st
119 9.81 vs. 7.552.26
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
1.87 vs. 2.400.53
Steals per game
+300th
+300th
0.96 vs. 0.800.17
Blocks per game
11th
228th
217 2.45 vs. 0.841.60
Offensive Rebounds per game
131st
+300th
+169 2.33 vs. 0.961.36
Defensive Rebounds per game
29th
54th
25 7.49 vs. 6.580.90
Field Goals Made per game
45th
91st
46 8.20 vs. 7.340.86
Field Goals Attempted per game
67th
102nd
35 16.26 vs. 15.590.67
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
271st
+29 0.02 vs. 1.301.29
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
216th
+84 0.11 vs. 3.423.32
Free Throws Made per game
79th
69th
10 4.56 vs. 4.760.20
Free Throws Attempted per game
66th
107th
41 6.16 vs. 5.410.75

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Patrick Ewing Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
88th
28th
60 20.24 vs. 25.265.02
Rebounds per game
48th
61st
13 10.32 vs. 9.970.35
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
1.98 vs. 2.480.50
Steals per game
+300th
276th
+24 0.88 vs. 1.030.15
Blocks per game
13th
188th
175 2.18 vs. 0.891.29
Offensive Rebounds per game
125th
+300th
+175 2.42 vs. 1.460.96
Defensive Rebounds per game
23rd
11th
12 7.90 vs. 8.510.61
Field Goals Made per game
67th
51st
16 7.94 vs. 8.410.47
Field Goals Attempted per game
80th
58th
22 16.93 vs. 18.221.29
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.06 vs. 1.030.97
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
0.17 vs. 2.812.65
Free Throws Made per game
134th
10th
124 4.29 vs. 7.413.11
Free Throws Attempted per game
106th
23rd
83 5.98 vs. 8.302.33

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.