Tim Duncan vs. Karl Malone: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Tim Duncan 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 Tim Duncan, with a career spanning 19 seasons from 1998 to 2016, 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.
Tim Duncan vs. Karl Malone | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | |
Points | 17th | 3rd | 6th | 8th |
Rebounds | 6th | 7th | 3rd | 7th |
Assists | 110th | 63rd | 33rd | 45th |
Steals | 172nd | 12th | 48th | 17th |
Blocks | 5th | 74th | 1st | 50th |
Years | 19 | 19 | 18 | 19 |
Tim Duncan vs. Karl Malone | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | |
Points | 98th | 15th | 81st | 33rd |
Rebounds | 33rd | 51st | 26th | 38th |
Assists | +300th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
Steals | +300th | 107th | +300th | 118th |
Blocks | 21st | 254th | 10th | 299th |
Comparisons on this page: |
Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 17th | 3rd | 14 | 26,496 vs. 36,928 | 10,432 |
Rebounds | 6th | 7th | 1 | 15,091 vs. 14,968 | 123 |
Assists | 110th | 63rd | 47 | 4,225 vs. 5,248 | 1,023 |
Steals | 172nd | 12th | 160 | 1,025 vs. 2,085 | 1,060 |
Blocks | 5th | 74th | 69 | 3,020 vs. 1,145 | 1,875 |
Offensive Rebounds | 11th | 14th | 3 | 3,859 vs. 3,562 | 297 |
Defensive Rebounds | 3rd | 2nd | 1 | 11,232 vs. 11,406 | 174 |
Field Goals Made | 15th | 3rd | 12 | 10,285 vs. 13,528 | 3,243 |
Field Goals Attempted | 18th | 3rd | 15 | 20,334 vs. 26,210 | 5,876 |
3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 30 vs. 85 | 55 | |
3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 168 vs. 310 | 142 | |
Free Throws Made | 26th | 1st | 25 | 5,896 vs. 9,787 | 3,891 |
Free Throws Attempted | 15th | 1st | 14 | 8,468 vs. 13,188 | 4,720 |
Games and Years: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 11th | 7th | 4 | 1,392 vs. 1,476 | 84 |
Seasons | 12th | 12th | 0 | 19 vs. 19 | 0 |
Triple-Doubles: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 134th | 134th | 0 | 4 vs. 4 | 0 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 152nd | 29th | 123 | 5 vs. 44 | 39 |
50+ point games | 76th | 29th | 47 | 1 vs. 4 | 3 |
60+ point games | - | 11th | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points | 6th | 8th | 2 | 5,172 vs. 4,761 | 411 |
Rebounds | 3rd | 7th | 4 | 2,859 vs. 2,062 | 797 |
Assists | 33rd | 45th | 12 | 764 vs. 610 | 154 |
Steals | 48th | 17th | 31 | 168 vs. 258 | 90 |
Blocks | 1st | 50th | 49 | 568 vs. 135 | 433 |
Offensive Rebounds | 2nd | 10th | 8 | 778 vs. 502 | 276 |
Defensive Rebounds | 2nd | 4th | 2 | 2,081 vs. 1,560 | 521 |
Field Goals Made | 6th | 7th | 1 | 1,975 vs. 1,743 | 232 |
Field Goals Attempted | 5th | 6th | 1 | 3,939 vs. 3,768 | 171 |
3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 5 vs. 6 | 1 | |
3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 35 vs. 37 | 2 | |
Free Throws Made | 6th | 4th | 2 | 1,217 vs. 1,269 | 52 |
Free Throws Attempted | 3rd | 5th | 2 | 1,766 vs. 1,725 | 41 |
Games and Years: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Games Played | 3rd | 12th | 9 | 251 vs. 193 | 58 |
Playoffs | 3rd | 1st | 2 | 18 vs. 19 | 1 |
Triple-Doubles: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Triple-Doubles | 13th | +300th | 4 vs. 0 | 4 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
40+ point games | 36th | 36th | 0 | 4 vs. 4 | 0 |
50+ point games | - | 9th | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
60+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 98th | 15th | 83 | 19.03 vs. 25.02 | 5.98 |
Rebounds per game | 33rd | 51st | 18 | 10.84 vs. 10.14 | 0.70 |
Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 3.04 vs. 3.56 | 0.52 | |
Steals per game | +300th | 107th | +193 | 0.74 vs. 1.41 | 0.68 |
Blocks per game | 21st | 254th | 233 | 2.17 vs. 0.78 | 1.39 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 53rd | 111st | 58 | 2.77 vs. 2.41 | 0.36 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 10th | 20th | 10 | 8.07 vs. 7.73 | 0.34 |
Field Goals Made per game | 85th | 16th | 69 | 7.39 vs. 9.17 | 1.78 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 139th | 36th | 103 | 14.61 vs. 17.76 | 3.15 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.02 vs. 0.06 | 0.04 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.12 vs. 0.21 | 0.09 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 104th | 14th | 90 | 4.24 vs. 6.63 | 2.40 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 73rd | 6th | 67 | 6.08 vs. 8.93 | 2.85 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Tim Duncan | Karl Malone | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
Points per game | 81st | 33rd | 48 | 20.61 vs. 24.67 | 4.06 |
Rebounds per game | 26th | 38th | 12 | 11.39 vs. 10.68 | 0.71 |
Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 3.04 vs. 3.16 | 0.12 | |
Steals per game | +300th | 118th | +182 | 0.67 vs. 1.34 | 0.67 |
Blocks per game | 10th | 299th | 289 | 2.26 vs. 0.70 | 1.56 |
Offensive Rebounds per game | 39th | 98th | 59 | 3.10 vs. 2.60 | 0.50 |
Defensive Rebounds per game | 15th | 18th | 3 | 8.29 vs. 8.08 | 0.21 |
Field Goals Made per game | 71st | 33rd | 38 | 7.87 vs. 9.03 | 1.16 |
Field Goals Attempted per game | 118th | 37th | 81 | 15.69 vs. 19.52 | 3.83 |
3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.02 vs. 0.03 | 0.01 | |
3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.14 vs. 0.19 | 0.05 | |
Free Throws Made per game | 87th | 17th | 70 | 4.85 vs. 6.58 | 1.73 |
Free Throws Attempted per game | 51st | 14th | 37 | 7.04 vs. 8.94 | 1.90 |
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.