Tim Duncan vs. Shaquille O'Neal: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Tim Duncan and Shaquille O'Neal 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 Tim Duncan, with a career spanning 19 seasons from 1998 to 2016, and Shaquille O'Neal, with 19 seasons played from 1993 to 2011, 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. Shaquille O'Neal | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | |
| Points | 17th | 9th | 6th | 5th |
| Rebounds | 6th | 15th | 3rd | 5th |
| Assists | 110th | 236th | 33rd | 53rd |
| Steals | 172nd | +300th | 48th | 92nd |
| Blocks | 5th | 8th | 1st | 4th |
| Years | 19 | 19 | 18 | 17 |
Tim Duncan vs. Shaquille O'Neal | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | |
| Points | 98th | 29th | 81st | 36th |
| Rebounds | 33rd | 32nd | 26th | 23rd |
| Assists | +300th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
| Steals | +300th | +300th | +300th | +300th |
| Blocks | 21st | 15th | 10th | 15th |
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: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 17th | 9th | 8 | 26,496 vs. 28,596 | 2,100 |
| Rebounds | 6th | 15th | 9 | 15,091 vs. 13,099 | 1,992 |
| Assists | 110th | 236th | 126 | 4,225 vs. 3,026 | 1,199 |
| Steals | 172nd | +300th | +128 | 1,025 vs. 739 | 286 |
| Blocks | 5th | 8th | 3 | 3,020 vs. 2,732 | 288 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 11th | 6th | 5 | 3,859 vs. 4,209 | 350 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 3rd | 11th | 8 | 11,232 vs. 8,890 | 2,342 |
| Field Goals Made | 15th | 7th | 8 | 10,285 vs. 11,330 | 1,045 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 18th | 23rd | 5 | 20,334 vs. 19,457 | 877 |
| 3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 30 vs. 1 | 29 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 168 vs. 22 | 146 | |
| Free Throws Made | 26th | 25th | 1 | 5,896 vs. 5,935 | 39 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 15th | 4th | 11 | 8,468 vs. 11,252 | 2,784 |
Games and Years: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 11th | 47th | 36 | 1,392 vs. 1,207 | 185 |
| Seasons | 12th | 12th | 0 | 19 vs. 19 | 0 |
Triple-Doubles: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 134th | 202nd | 68 | 4 vs. 2 | 2 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 152nd | 21st | 131 | 5 vs. 49 | 44 |
| 50+ point games | 76th | 40th | 36 | 1 vs. 3 | 2 |
| 60+ point games | - | 11th | 0 vs. 1 | 1 | |
| 70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 6th | 5th | 1 | 5,172 vs. 5,250 | 78 |
| Rebounds | 3rd | 5th | 2 | 2,859 vs. 2,508 | 351 |
| Assists | 33rd | 53rd | 20 | 764 vs. 582 | 182 |
| Steals | 48th | 92nd | 44 | 168 vs. 117 | 51 |
| Blocks | 1st | 4th | 3 | 568 vs. 459 | 109 |
| Offensive Rebounds | 2nd | 1st | 1 | 778 vs. 866 | 88 |
| Defensive Rebounds | 2nd | 3rd | 1 | 2,081 vs. 1,642 | 439 |
| Field Goals Made | 6th | 4th | 2 | 1,975 vs. 2,041 | 66 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 5th | 7th | 2 | 3,939 vs. 3,627 | 312 |
| 3-Pointers Made | +300th | +300th | 5 vs. 0 | 5 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted | +300th | +300th | 35 vs. 0 | 35 | |
| Free Throws Made | 6th | 8th | 2 | 1,217 vs. 1,168 | 49 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 3rd | 2nd | 1 | 1,766 vs. 2,317 | 551 |
Games and Years: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 3rd | 9th | 6 | 251 vs. 216 | 35 |
| Playoffs | 3rd | 6th | 3 | 18 vs. 17 | 1 |
Triple-Doubles: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 13th | +300th | 4 vs. 0 | 4 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 36th | 8th | 28 | 4 vs. 12 | 8 |
| 50+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 98th | 29th | 69 | 19.03 vs. 23.69 | 4.66 |
| Rebounds per game | 33rd | 32nd | 1 | 10.84 vs. 10.85 | 0.01 |
| Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 3.04 vs. 2.51 | 0.53 | |
| Steals per game | +300th | +300th | 0.74 vs. 0.61 | 0.12 | |
| Blocks per game | 21st | 15th | 6 | 2.17 vs. 2.26 | 0.09 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | 54th | 10th | 44 | 2.77 vs. 3.49 | 0.71 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 11th | 32nd | 21 | 8.07 vs. 7.37 | 0.70 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 85th | 11th | 74 | 7.39 vs. 9.39 | 2.00 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 139th | 74th | 65 | 14.61 vs. 16.12 | 1.51 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.02 vs. 0.00 | 0.02 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.12 vs. 0.02 | 0.10 | |
| Free Throws Made per game | 104th | 58th | 46 | 4.24 vs. 4.92 | 0.68 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 73rd | 5th | 68 | 6.08 vs. 9.32 | 3.24 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Tim Duncan | Shaquille O'Neal | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 81st | 36th | 45 | 20.61 vs. 24.31 | 3.70 |
| Rebounds per game | 26th | 23rd | 3 | 11.39 vs. 11.61 | 0.22 |
| Assists per game | +300th | +300th | 3.04 vs. 2.69 | 0.35 | |
| Steals per game | +300th | +300th | 0.67 vs. 0.54 | 0.13 | |
| Blocks per game | 10th | 15th | 5 | 2.26 vs. 2.13 | 0.14 |
| Offensive Rebounds per game | 39th | 6th | 33 | 3.10 vs. 4.01 | 0.91 |
| Defensive Rebounds per game | 15th | 27th | 12 | 8.29 vs. 7.60 | 0.69 |
| Field Goals Made per game | 71st | 22nd | 49 | 7.87 vs. 9.45 | 1.58 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 118th | 83rd | 35 | 15.69 vs. 16.79 | 1.10 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | +300th | 0.02 vs. 0.00 | 0.02 | |
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | +300th | +300th | 0.14 vs. 0.00 | 0.14 | |
| Free Throws Made per game | 87th | 60th | 27 | 4.85 vs. 5.41 | 0.56 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 51st | 2nd | 49 | 7.04 vs. 10.73 | 3.69 |
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.