Tim Duncan vs. Dirk Nowitzki: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Tim Duncan 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 / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings / Games against each other

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Tim Duncan, with a career spanning 19 seasons from 1998 to 2016, 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.

Tim Duncan vs. Dirk Nowitzki
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki
Points
17th
6th
6th
18th
Rebounds
6th
27th
3rd
24th
Assists
110th
160th
33rd
105th
Steals
172nd
95th
48th
55th
Blocks
5th
55th
1st
53rd
Years19211815

Tim Duncan vs. Dirk Nowitzki
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki
Points
98th
58th
81st
28th
Rebounds
33rd
180th
26th
61st
Assists
+300th
+300th
+300th
+300th
Steals
+300th
+300th
+300th
276th
Blocks
21st
228th
10th
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:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
17th
6th
11 26,496 vs. 31,5605,064
Rebounds
6th
27th
21 15,091 vs. 11,4893,602
Assists
110th
160th
50 4,225 vs. 3,651574
Steals
172nd
95th
77 1,025 vs. 1,210185
Blocks
5th
55th
50 3,020 vs. 1,2811,739
Offensive Rebounds
11th
236th
225 3,859 vs. 1,4682,391
Defensive Rebounds
3rd
6th
3 11,232 vs. 10,0211,211
Field Goals Made
15th
8th
7 10,285 vs. 11,169884
Field Goals Attempted
18th
8th
10 20,334 vs. 23,7343,400
3-Pointers Made
+300th
20th
+280 30 vs. 1,9821,952
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
21st
+279 168 vs. 5,2105,042
Free Throws Made
26th
9th
17 5,896 vs. 7,2401,344
Free Throws Attempted
15th
18th
3 8,468 vs. 8,239229

Games and Years:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
11th
5th
6 1,392 vs. 1,522130
Seasons
13th
3rd
10 19 vs. 212

Triple-Doubles:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
134th
202nd
68 4 vs. 22

Rankings by Points Scored:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
152nd
61st
91 5 vs. 2015
50+ point games
76th
49th
27 1 vs. 21
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
6th
18th
12 5,172 vs. 3,6631,509
Rebounds
3rd
24th
21 2,859 vs. 1,4461,413
Assists
33rd
105th
72 764 vs. 360404
Steals
48th
55th
7 168 vs. 14919
Blocks
1st
53rd
52 568 vs. 129439
Offensive Rebounds
2nd
83rd
81 778 vs. 212566
Defensive Rebounds
2nd
7th
5 2,081 vs. 1,234847
Field Goals Made
6th
21st
15 1,975 vs. 1,220755
Field Goals Attempted
5th
21st
16 3,939 vs. 2,6421,297
3-Pointers Made
+300th
62nd
+238 5 vs. 149144
3-Pointers Attempted
+300th
63rd
+237 35 vs. 408373
Free Throws Made
6th
10th
4 1,217 vs. 1,074143
Free Throws Attempted
3rd
14th
11 1,766 vs. 1,204562

Games and Years:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
3rd
54th
51 251 vs. 145106
Playoffs
3rd
17th
14 18 vs. 153

Triple-Doubles:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
13th
+300th
4 vs. 04

Rankings by Points Scored:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
36th
20th
16 4 vs. 73
50+ point games
-
9th
0 vs. 11
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
98th
58th
40 19.03 vs. 20.741.70
Rebounds per game
33rd
180th
147 10.84 vs. 7.553.29
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
3.04 vs. 2.400.64
Steals per game
+300th
+300th
0.74 vs. 0.800.06
Blocks per game
21st
228th
207 2.17 vs. 0.841.33
Offensive Rebounds per game
54th
+300th
+246 2.77 vs. 0.961.81
Defensive Rebounds per game
10th
54th
44 8.07 vs. 6.581.48
Field Goals Made per game
85th
89th
4 7.39 vs. 7.340.05
Field Goals Attempted per game
139th
101st
38 14.61 vs. 15.590.99
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
268th
+32 0.02 vs. 1.301.28
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
211st
+89 0.12 vs. 3.423.30
Free Throws Made per game
104th
70th
34 4.24 vs. 4.760.52
Free Throws Attempted per game
73rd
106th
33 6.08 vs. 5.410.67

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Tim Duncan Dirk Nowitzki Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
81st
28th
53 20.61 vs. 25.264.66
Rebounds per game
26th
61st
35 11.39 vs. 9.971.42
Assists per game
+300th
+300th
3.04 vs. 2.480.56
Steals per game
+300th
276th
+24 0.67 vs. 1.030.36
Blocks per game
10th
188th
178 2.26 vs. 0.891.37
Offensive Rebounds per game
39th
+300th
+261 3.10 vs. 1.461.64
Defensive Rebounds per game
15th
11th
4 8.29 vs. 8.510.22
Field Goals Made per game
71st
51st
20 7.87 vs. 8.410.55
Field Goals Attempted per game
118th
58th
60 15.69 vs. 18.222.53
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
+300th
0.02 vs. 1.031.01
3-Pointers Attempted per game
+300th
+300th
0.14 vs. 2.812.67
Free Throws Made per game
87th
10th
77 4.85 vs. 7.412.56
Free Throws Attempted per game
51st
23rd
28 7.04 vs. 8.301.27

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.