Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs LeBron James

4of 9 lines

5of 9 lines

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James compared on their NBA careers: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played 14 seasons, 1975-76 to 1988-89, LeBron James 23 seasons, 2003-04 to 2025-26. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar averaged 24.6 points a game to LeBron James's 26.8. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won 5 titles, LeBron James won 4 titles.

Who has the better career numbers?

LeBron James leads in 5 of the 9 lines, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 4. Bold marks the better figure; playing time — games, minutes, at-bats, innings — is not scored.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James career per game

1,560	GP	1,622
36.8	MIN	37.6
24.6	PTS	26.8, better
7.9, better	REB	7.5
3.6	AST	7.4, better
0.7	STL	1.5, better
2, better	BLK	0.7
55.9, better	FG%	50.7
5.6	3P%	34.8, better
72.1	FT%	73.7, better
59.2, better	TS%	59

Career totals

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James career totals

38,387	PTS	43,440, better
12,369, better	REB	12,095
5,660	AST	12,016, better
1,160	STL	2,417, better
3,189, better	BLK	1,185
55.9, better	FG%	50.7
5.6	3P%	34.8, better
72.1	FT%	73.7, better
59.2, better	TS%	59

How do they compare in the playoffs?

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James postseason

237	GP	302
37.3	MIN	41.2
24.3	PTS	28.2, better
7.5	REB	8.9, better
3.2	AST	7.2, better
0.8	STL	1.7, better
2, better	BLK	1
53.3, better	FG%	49.5
0	3P%	33.2, better
74	FT%	74.1, better
57.1	TS%	58.3, better

Where each stands all time

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James all-time places

2nd (38,387)	Points	1st (43,440), better
12th (12,369), better	Rebounds	16th (12,095)
49th (5,660)	Assists	4th (12,016), better
105th (1,160)	Steals	6th (2,417), better
3rd (3,189), better	Blocks	64th (1,185)
—	3-pointers made	6th (2,636), better

Among the NBA players with a career line on file, regular season, counting stats only — the same lists the records pages run on.

Titles and awards

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James titles and awards

5, better	Championships	4
5, better	MVP	4
9	All-NBA First Team	13, better
5	All-Defensive First Team	5
3, better	All-Defensive Second Team	1
4	All-NBA Second Team	4
1	Finals MVP	4, better
—	Rookie of the Year	1, better
—	All-Rookie First Team	1, better
—	All-Star MVP	3, better
—	All-NBA Third Team	4, better

Awards come from the league’s published winner lists; a championship counts a season played for the club that won it.

Season by season

Lined up by career year, not by calendar: each row is the players’ nth season.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James season by season

1st	1975-76	27.7, better	16.9, better	5.0	2003-04	20.9	5.5	5.9, better
2nd	1976-77	26.2	13.3, better	3.9	2004-05	27.2, better	7.4	7.2, better
3rd	1977-78	25.8	12.9, better	4.3	2005-06	31.4, better	7.0	6.6, better
4th	1978-79	23.8	12.8, better	5.4	2006-07	27.3, better	6.7	6.0, better
5th	1979-80	24.8	10.8, better	4.5	2007-08	30.0, better	7.9	7.2, better
6th	1980-81	26.2	10.3, better	3.4	2008-09	28.4, better	7.6	7.2, better
7th	1981-82	23.9	8.7, better	3.0	2009-10	29.7, better	7.3	8.6, better
8th	1982-83	21.8	7.5	2.5	2010-11	26.7, better	7.5	7.0, better
9th	1983-84	21.5	7.3	2.6	2011-12	27.1, better	7.9, better	6.2, better
10th	1984-85	22.0	7.9	3.2	2012-13	26.8, better	8.0, better	7.3, better
11th	1985-86	23.4	6.1	3.5	2013-14	27.1, better	6.9, better	6.3, better
12th	1986-87	17.5	6.7, better	2.6	2014-15	25.3, better	6.0	7.4, better
13th	1987-88	14.6	6.0	1.7	2015-16	25.3, better	7.4, better	6.8, better
14th	1988-89	10.1	4.5	1.0	2016-17	26.4, better	8.6, better	8.7, better
15th	—	—	—	—	2017-18	27.5	8.6	9.1
16th	—	—	—	—	2018-19	27.4	8.5	8.3
17th	—	—	—	—	2019-20	25.3	7.8	10.2
18th	—	—	—	—	2020-21	25.0	7.7	7.8
19th	—	—	—	—	2021-22	30.3	8.2	6.2
20th	—	—	—	—	2022-23	28.9	8.3	6.8
21st	—	—	—	—	2023-24	25.7	7.3	8.3
22nd	—	—	—	—	2024-25	24.4	7.8	8.2
23rd	—	—	—	—	2025-26	20.9	6.1	7.2

What the columns mean: PTS · REB · AST