Shaquille O'Neal vs. Paul Pierce: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Shaquille O'Neal and Paul Pierce 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 Shaquille O'Neal, with a career spanning 19 seasons from 1993 to 2011, and Paul Pierce, with 19 seasons played from 1999 to 2017, 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. Paul Pierce | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | |
| Points | 9th | 18th | 5th | 23rd |
| Rebounds | 15th | 94th | 5th | 55th |
| Assists | 236th | 84th | 53rd | 54th |
| Steals | +300th | 22nd | 92nd | 31st |
| Blocks | 8th | 175th | 4th | 75th |
| Years | 19 | 19 | 17 | 14 |
Shaquille O'Neal vs. Paul Pierce | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | |
| Points | 29th | 77th | 36th | 127th |
| Rebounds | 32nd | +300th | 23rd | +300th |
| Assists | +300th | +300th | +300th | 266th |
| Steals | +300th | 149th | +300th | 178th |
| Blocks | 15th | +300th | 15th | +300th |
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: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 9th | 18th | 9 | 28,596 vs. 26,397 | 2,199 |
| Rebounds | 15th | 94th | 79 | 13,099 vs. 7,527 | 5,572 |
| Assists | 236th | 84th | 152 | 3,026 vs. 4,708 | 1,682 |
| Steals | +300th | 22nd | +278 | 739 vs. 1,752 | 1,013 |
| Blocks | 8th | 175th | 167 | 2,732 vs. 745 | 1,987 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 6th | +300th | +294 | 4,209 vs. 1,092 | 3,117 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 11th | 43rd | 32 | 8,890 vs. 6,435 | 2,455 |
| Field Goals Made | 7th | 29th | 22 | 11,330 vs. 8,668 | 2,662 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 23rd | 22nd | 1 | 19,457 vs. 19,465 | 8 |
| 3-Pointers Made | +300th | 15th | +285 | 1 vs. 2,143 | 2,142 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | 13th | +287 | 22 vs. 5,816 | 5,794 |
| Free Throws Made | 25th | 11th | 14 | 5,935 vs. 6,918 | 983 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 4th | 14th | 10 | 11,252 vs. 8,578 | 2,674 |
Games and Years: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 47th | 17th | 30 | 1,207 vs. 1,343 | 136 |
| Seasons | 12th | 12th | 0 | 19 vs. 19 | 0 |
Triple-Doubles: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 202nd | 69th | 133 | 2 vs. 9 | 7 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 21st | 57th | 36 | 49 vs. 21 | 28 |
| 50+ point games | 40th | 76th | 36 | 3 vs. 1 | 2 |
| 60+ point games | 11th | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
| 70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 5th | 23rd | 18 | 5,250 vs. 3,180 | 2,070 |
| Rebounds | 5th | 55th | 50 | 2,508 vs. 985 | 1,523 |
| Assists | 53rd | 54th | 1 | 582 vs. 579 | 3 |
| Steals | 92nd | 31st | 61 | 117 vs. 204 | 87 |
| Blocks | 4th | 75th | 71 | 459 vs. 105 | 354 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 1st | 198th | 197 | 866 vs. 125 | 741 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 3rd | 31st | 28 | 1,642 vs. 860 | 782 |
| Field Goals Made | 4th | 35th | 31 | 2,041 vs. 1,022 | 1,019 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 7th | 27th | 20 | 3,627 vs. 2,415 | 1,212 |
| 3-Pointers Made | +300th | 14th | +286 | 0 vs. 276 | 276 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | 14th | +286 | 0 vs. 777 | 777 |
| Free Throws Made | 8th | 16th | 8 | 1,168 vs. 860 | 308 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 2nd | 20th | 18 | 2,317 vs. 1,036 | 1,281 |
Games and Years: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 9th | 26th | 17 | 216 vs. 170 | 46 |
| Playoffs | 6th | 30th | 24 | 17 vs. 14 | 3 |
Triple-Doubles: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | +300th | 39th | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 8th | 49th | 41 | 12 vs. 3 | 9 |
| 50+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 29th | 77th | 48 | 23.69 vs. 19.66 | 4.04 |
| Rebounds per game | 32nd | +300th | +268 | 10.85 vs. 5.60 | 5.25 |
| Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 2.51 vs. 3.51 | 1.00 | |
| Steals per game | +300th | 149th | +151 | 0.61 vs. 1.30 | 0.69 |
| Blocks per game | 15th | +300th | +285 | 2.26 vs. 0.55 | 1.71 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | 10th | +300th | +290 | 3.49 vs. 0.81 | 2.67 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 32nd | 173rd | 141 | 7.37 vs. 4.79 | 2.57 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 11th | 183rd | 172 | 9.39 vs. 6.45 | 2.93 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 74th | 151st | 77 | 16.12 vs. 14.49 | 1.63 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | 142nd | +158 | 0.00 vs. 1.60 | 1.59 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | 98th | +202 | 0.02 vs. 4.33 | 4.31 |
| Free Throws Made per game | 58th | 47th | 11 | 4.92 vs. 5.15 | 0.23 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 5th | 56th | 51 | 9.32 vs. 6.39 | 2.94 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Shaquille O'Neal | Paul Pierce | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 36th | 127th | 91 | 24.31 vs. 18.71 | 5.60 |
| Rebounds per game | 23rd | +300th | +277 | 11.61 vs. 5.79 | 5.82 |
| Assists per game | +300th | 266th | +34 | 2.69 vs. 3.41 | 0.71 |
| Steals per game | +300th | 178th | +122 | 0.54 vs. 1.20 | 0.66 |
| Blocks per game | 15th | +300th | +285 | 2.13 vs. 0.62 | 1.51 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | 6th | +300th | +294 | 4.01 vs. 0.74 | 3.27 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 27th | 149th | 122 | 7.60 vs. 5.06 | 2.54 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 22nd | 208th | 186 | 9.45 vs. 6.01 | 3.44 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 83rd | 177th | 94 | 16.79 vs. 14.21 | 2.59 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | 124th | +176 | 0.00 vs. 1.62 | 1.62 |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | 117th | +183 | 0.00 vs. 4.57 | 4.57 |
| Free Throws Made per game | 60th | 79th | 19 | 5.41 vs. 5.06 | 0.35 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 2nd | 96th | 94 | 10.73 vs. 6.09 | 4.63 |
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.