Shaquille O'Neal vs. Chris Paul: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Shaquille O'Neal and Chris Paul 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
Filter: Career Stats - Suns

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Shaquille O'Neal, with a career spanning 19 seasons from 1993 to 2011, and Chris Paul, with 21 seasons played from 2006 to 2026, 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.

Shaquille O'Neal vs. Chris Paul
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul
Points
9th
36th
5th
31st
Rebounds
15th
193rd
5th
99th
Assists
237th
2nd
53rd
5th
Steals
+300th
2nd
92nd
11th
Blocks
8th
+300th
4th
+300th
Years19211715

Shaquille O'Neal vs. Chris Paul
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul
Points
30th
192nd
36th
94th
Rebounds
32nd
+300th
23rd
+300th
Assists
+300th
6th
+300th
14th
Steals
+300th
11th
+300th
14th
Blocks
15th
+300th
15th
+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:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
9th
36th
27 28,596 vs. 23,0585,538
Rebounds
15th
193rd
178 13,099 vs. 6,0067,093
Assists
237th
2nd
235 3,026 vs. 12,5529,526
Steals
+300th
2nd
+298 739 vs. 2,7281,989
Blocks
8th
+300th
+292 2,732 vs. 2222,510
Offensive Rebounds
6th
+300th
+294 4,209 vs. 7983,411
Defensive Rebounds
11th
82nd
71 8,890 vs. 5,2083,682
Field Goals Made
7th
41st
34 11,330 vs. 8,1653,165
Field Goals Attempted
24th
38th
14 19,457 vs. 17,4082,049
3-Pointers Made
+300th
27th
+273 1 vs. 1,8701,869
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
25th
+275 22 vs. 5,0595,037
Free Throws Made
25th
44th
19 5,935 vs. 4,8581,077
Free Throws Attempted
4th
68th
64 11,252 vs. 5,5815,671

Games and Years:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
48th
15th
33 1,207 vs. 1,370163
Seasons
13th
3rd
10 19 vs. 212

Triple-Doubles:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
204th
35th
169 2 vs. 1816

Rankings by Points Scored:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
22nd
121st
99 49 vs. 841
50+ point games
42nd
-
3 vs. 03
60+ point games
11th
-
1 vs. 01
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
5th
31st
26 5,250 vs. 2,9812,269
Rebounds
5th
99th
94 2,508 vs. 7301,778
Assists
53rd
5th
48 582 vs. 1,233651
Steals
92nd
11th
81 117 vs. 287170
Blocks
4th
+300th
+296 459 vs. 31428
Offensive Rebounds
1st
241st
240 866 vs. 106760
Defensive Rebounds
3rd
60th
57 1,642 vs. 6241,018
Field Goals Made
4th
30th
26 2,041 vs. 1,106935
Field Goals Attempted
7th
32nd
25 3,627 vs. 2,2871,340
3-Pointers Made
+300th
21st
+279 0 vs. 244244
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
22nd
+278 0 vs. 654654
Free Throws Made
8th
53rd
45 1,168 vs. 525643
Free Throws Attempted
2nd
61st
59 2,317 vs. 6151,702

Games and Years:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
9th
48th
39 216 vs. 14967
Playoffs
6th
17th
11 17 vs. 152

Triple-Doubles:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
+300th
20th
0 vs. 33

Rankings by Points Scored:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
8th
55th
47 12 vs. 210
50+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
30th
192nd
162 23.69 vs. 16.836.86
Rebounds per game
32nd
+300th
+268 10.85 vs. 4.386.47
Assists per game
+300th
6th
+294 2.51 vs. 9.166.66
Steals per game
+300th
11th
+289 0.61 vs. 1.991.38
Blocks per game
15th
+300th
+285 2.26 vs. 0.162.10
Offensive Rebounds per game
10th
+300th
+290 3.49 vs. 0.582.90
Defensive Rebounds per game
31st
+300th
+269 7.37 vs. 3.803.56
Field Goals Made per game
11th
245th
234 9.39 vs. 5.963.43
Field Goals Attempted per game
74th
264th
190 16.12 vs. 12.713.41
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
238th
+62 0.00 vs. 1.361.36
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
179th
+121 0.02 vs. 3.693.67
Free Throws Made per game
58th
180th
122 4.92 vs. 3.551.37
Free Throws Attempted per game
5th
250th
245 9.32 vs. 4.075.25

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Shaquille O'Neal Chris Paul Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
36th
94th
58 24.31 vs. 20.014.30
Rebounds per game
23rd
+300th
+277 11.61 vs. 4.906.71
Assists per game
+300th
14th
+286 2.69 vs. 8.285.58
Steals per game
+300th
14th
+286 0.54 vs. 1.931.38
Blocks per game
15th
+300th
+285 2.13 vs. 0.211.92
Offensive Rebounds per game
6th
+300th
+294 4.01 vs. 0.713.30
Defensive Rebounds per game
27th
243rd
216 7.60 vs. 4.193.41
Field Goals Made per game
22nd
99th
77 9.45 vs. 7.422.03
Field Goals Attempted per game
83rd
133rd
50 16.79 vs. 15.351.44
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
120th
+180 0.00 vs. 1.641.64
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
134th
+166 0.00 vs. 4.394.39
Free Throws Made per game
60th
229th
169 5.41 vs. 3.521.88
Free Throws Attempted per game
2nd
299th
297 10.73 vs. 4.136.60

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.