Cross-era · careers 23 years apart

Dirk Nowitzki vs Billy Cunningham

Dirk Nowitzki 1998-2018 · Forward Billy Cunningham 1965-1975 · Forward

Dirk Nowitzki (1998-2018) and Billy Cunningham (1965-1975) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 23 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Billy Cunningham was the higher-volume scorer (20.8 points per game to 20.7); adjusted for era they scored at 2.17× and 1.88× their league average respectively; Dirk Nowitzki was the more efficient scorer (57.7% true shooting to 50.3%). Dirk Nowitzki holds the edge on accolades — 1 MVP, 1 championship, 1 Finals MVP and the #25 all-time ranking to Billy Cunningham's #64.

Career averages

Dirk NowitzkiStatBilly Cunningham
20.7 Points / game 20.8
7.5 Rebounds / game 10.2
2.4 Assists / game 4.0
0.8 Steals / game 0.2
0.8 Blocks / game 0.1
46.6% Field goal % 44.5%
37.9% 3-point % 0.0%
87.4% Free throw % 71.8%
57.7% True shooting % 50.3%
1,522 Games played 654

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Dirk NowitzkiStatBilly Cunningham
2.17× Points vs era avg 1.88×
1.82× Rebounds vs era avg 1.88×
1.14× Assists vs era avg 1.76×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Billy Cunningham's era.

Dirk NowitzkiStatBilly Cunningham
105.9 Offensive rating —
105.4 Defensive rating —
0.6 Net rating —
0.2% Usage % —
0.1% Assist % —
0.1% Rebound % —

Playoff averages

Dirk NowitzkiStatBilly Cunningham
25.3 Points / game 19.4
10.0 Rebounds / game 9.1
2.5 Assists / game 3.2
1.0 Steals / game 0.0
0.9 Blocks / game 0.0
46.1% Field goal % 40.6%
36.2% 3-point % 0.0%
89.2% Free throw % 69.4%
145 Playoff games 39

Accolades

Dirk NowitzkiStatBilly Cunningham
1 MVP awards 0
1 Finals MVP 0
1 Championships 1
14 All-Star selections 4
4 All-NBA 1st Team 4
#25 All-time GOAT rank #64

More comparisons

Want a different matchup? Use the interactive comparison tool.