Magic Johnson vs Shaquille O'Neal

5of 9 lines

4of 9 lines

Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal compared on their NBA careers: Magic Johnson played 13 seasons, 1979-80 to 1995-96, Shaquille O'Neal 19 seasons, 1992-93 to 2010-11. Magic Johnson averaged 19.5 points a game to Shaquille O'Neal's 23.7. Magic Johnson won 5 titles, Shaquille O'Neal won 4 titles.

Who has the better career numbers?

Magic Johnson leads in 5 of the 9 lines, Shaquille O'Neal in 4. Bold marks the better figure; playing time — games, minutes, at-bats, innings — is not scored.

Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal career per game

906	GP	1,207
36.7	MIN	34.7
19.5	PTS	23.7, better
7.2	REB	10.9, better
11.2, better	AST	2.5
1.9, better	STL	0.6
0.4	BLK	2.3, better
52	FG%	58.2, better
30.3, better	3P%	4.5
84.8, better	FT%	52.7
61, better	TS%	58.6

Career totals

Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal career totals

17,707	PTS	28,596, better
6,559	REB	13,099, better
10,141, better	AST	3,026
1,724, better	STL	739
374	BLK	2,732, better
52	FG%	58.2, better
30.3, better	3P%	4.5
84.8, better	FT%	52.7
61, better	TS%	58.6

How do they compare in the playoffs?

Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal postseason

190	GP	216
39.7	MIN	37.5
19.5	PTS	24.3, better
7.7	REB	11.6, better
12.3, better	AST	2.7
1.9, better	STL	0.5
0.3	BLK	2.1, better
50.6	FG%	56.3, better
24.1, better	3P%	0
83.8, better	FT%	50.4
59.5, better	TS%	56.5

Where each stands all time

Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal all-time places

90th (17,707)	Points	11th (28,596), better
127th (6,559)	Rebounds	9th (13,099), better
8th (10,141), better	Assists	216th (3,026)
26th (1,724), better	Steals	—
—	Blocks	8th (2,732), 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

Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal titles and awards

5, better	Championships	4
3	Finals MVP	3
1	All-Rookie First Team	1
1	All-NBA Second Team	2, better
9, better	All-NBA First Team	8
3, better	MVP	1
2	All-Star MVP	3, better
—	Rookie of the Year	1, better
—	All-NBA Third Team	4, better
—	All-Defensive Second Team	3, 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.

Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal season by season

1st	1979-80	18.0	7.7	7.3, better	1992-93	23.4, better	13.9, better	1.9
2nd	1980-81	21.6	8.6	8.6, better	1993-94	29.3, better	13.2, better	2.4
3rd	1981-82	18.6	9.6	9.5, better	1994-95	29.3, better	11.4, better	2.7
4th	1982-83	16.8	8.6	10.5, better	1995-96	26.6, better	11.0, better	2.9
5th	1983-84	17.6	7.3	13.1, better	1996-97	26.2, better	12.5, better	3.1
6th	1984-85	18.3	6.2	12.6, better	1997-98	28.3, better	11.4, better	2.4
7th	1985-86	18.8	5.9	12.6, better	1998-99	26.3, better	10.7, better	2.3
8th	1986-87	23.9	6.3	12.2, better	1999-00	29.7, better	13.6, better	3.8
9th	1987-88	19.6	6.2	11.9, better	2000-01	28.7, better	12.7, better	3.7
10th	1988-89	22.5	7.9	12.8, better	2001-02	27.2, better	10.7, better	3.0
11th	1989-90	22.3	6.6	11.5, better	2002-03	27.5, better	11.1, better	3.1
12th	1990-91	19.4	7.0	12.5, better	2003-04	21.5, better	11.5, better	2.9
13th	1995-96	14.6	5.7	6.9, better	2004-05	22.9, better	10.4, better	2.7
14th	—	—	—	—	2005-06	20.0	9.2	1.9
15th	—	—	—	—	2006-07	17.3	7.4	2.0
16th	—	—	—	—	2007-08	13.6	9.1	1.5
17th	—	—	—	—	2008-09	17.8	8.4	1.7
18th	—	—	—	—	2009-10	12.0	6.7	1.5
19th	—	—	—	—	2010-11	9.2	4.8	0.7

What the columns mean: PTS · REB · AST