Wilt Chamberlain vs. Hakeem Olajuwon: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Wilt Chamberlain and Hakeem Olajuwon 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 / Stats / Stats Rankings

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Wilt Chamberlain, with a career spanning 14 seasons from 1960 to 1973, and Hakeem Olajuwon, with 18 seasons played from 1985 to 2002, 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.

Wilt Chamberlain vs. Hakeem Olajuwon
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon
Points
7th
14th
21st
16th
Rebounds
1st
14th
2nd
13th
Assists
86th
232nd
38th
73rd
Steals
n/a
10th
n/a
21st
Blocks
n/a
1st
n/a
3rd
Years14181315

Wilt Chamberlain vs. Hakeem Olajuwon
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon
Points
2nd
46th
50th
22nd
Rebounds
1st
27th
2nd
27th
Assists
180th
+300th
164th
+300th
Steals
n/a
35th
n/a
37th
Blocks
n/a
3rd
n/a
1st

Steals, blocks, offensive and defensive rebounds started to be recorded in the 1973-74 season. The 3-point shot was implemented in the 1979-80 season.
n/a = The player doesn't have data for the stat.

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:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
7th
14th
7 31,419 vs. 26,9464,473
Rebounds
1st
14th
13 23,924 vs. 13,74810,176
Assists
86th
232nd
146 4,643 vs. 3,0581,585
Steals
n/a
10th
0 vs. 2,162
Blocks
n/a
1st
0 vs. 3,830
Offensive Rebounds
n/a
9th
0 vs. 4,034
Defensive Rebounds
n/a
8th
0 vs. 9,714
Field Goals Made
4th
11th
7 12,681 vs. 10,7491,932
Field Goals Attempted
9th
17th
8 23,497 vs. 20,9912,506
3-Pointers Made
n/a
+300th
0 vs. 25
3-Pointers Attempted
n/a
+300th
0 vs. 124
Free Throws Made
21st
29th
8 6,057 vs. 5,423634
Free Throws Attempted
2nd
28th
26 11,862 vs. 7,6214,241

Games and Years:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
126th
39th
87 1,045 vs. 1,238193
Seasons
194th
29th
165 14 vs. 184

Triple-Doubles:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
9th
50th
41 78 vs. 1464

Rankings by Points Scored:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
1st
40th
39 271 vs. 32239
50+ point games
1st
50th
49 118 vs. 2116
60+ point games
1st
-
32 vs. 032
70+ point games
1st
-
6 vs. 06

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
21st
16th
5 3,607 vs. 3,755148
Rebounds
2nd
13th
11 3,913 vs. 1,6212,292
Assists
38th
73rd
35 673 vs. 458215
Steals
n/a
21st
0 vs. 245
Blocks
n/a
3rd
0 vs. 472
Offensive Rebounds
n/a
11th
0 vs. 471
Defensive Rebounds
n/a
13th
0 vs. 1,150
Field Goals Made
15th
11th
4 1,425 vs. 1,50479
Field Goals Attempted
19th
17th
2 2,728 vs. 2,847119
3-Pointers Made
n/a
+300th
0 vs. 4
3-Pointers Attempted
n/a
+300th
0 vs. 18
Free Throws Made
23rd
26th
3 757 vs. 74314
Free Throws Attempted
6th
21st
15 1,627 vs. 1,034593

Games and Years:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
38th
54th
16 160 vs. 14515
Playoffs
45th
17th
28 13 vs. 152

Triple-Doubles:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
10th
38th
28 9 vs. 18

Rankings by Points Scored:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
6th
9th
3 13 vs. 112
50+ point games
2nd
-
4 vs. 04
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
2nd
46th
44 30.07 vs. 21.778.30
Rebounds per game
1st
27th
26 22.89 vs. 11.1111.79
Assists per game
180th
+300th
+120 4.44 vs. 2.471.97
Steals per game
n/a
35th
0.00 vs. 1.75
Blocks per game
n/a
3rd
0.00 vs. 3.09
Offensive Rebounds per game
n/a
16th
0.00 vs. 3.26
Defensive Rebounds per game
n/a
17th
0.00 vs. 7.85
Field Goals Made per game
1st
30th
29 12.13 vs. 8.683.45
Field Goals Attempted per game
3rd
51st
48 22.49 vs. 16.965.53
3-Pointers Made per game
n/a
+300th
0.00 vs. 0.02
3-Pointers Attempted per game
n/a
+300th
0.00 vs. 0.10
Free Throws Made per game
26th
93rd
67 5.80 vs. 4.381.42
Free Throws Attempted per game
1st
66th
65 11.35 vs. 6.165.20

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Wilt Chamberlain Hakeem Olajuwon Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
50th
22nd
28 22.54 vs. 25.903.35
Rebounds per game
2nd
27th
25 24.46 vs. 11.1813.28
Assists per game
164th
+300th
+136 4.21 vs. 3.161.05
Steals per game
n/a
37th
0.00 vs. 1.69
Blocks per game
n/a
1st
0.00 vs. 3.26
Offensive Rebounds per game
n/a
25th
0.00 vs. 3.25
Defensive Rebounds per game
n/a
22nd
0.00 vs. 7.93
Field Goals Made per game
36th
8th
28 8.91 vs. 10.371.47
Field Goals Attempted per game
78th
34th
44 17.05 vs. 19.632.58
3-Pointers Made per game
n/a
+300th
0.00 vs. 0.03
3-Pointers Attempted per game
n/a
+300th
0.00 vs. 0.12
Free Throws Made per game
95th
73rd
22 4.73 vs. 5.120.39
Free Throws Attempted per game
6th
46th
40 10.17 vs. 7.133.04

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.