Cross-era · careers 3 years apart

Dirk Nowitzki vs Magic Johnson

Dirk Nowitzki 1998-2018 · Forward Magic Johnson 1979-1995 · Forward-Guard

Dirk Nowitzki (1998-2018) and Magic Johnson (1979-1995) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 3 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Dirk Nowitzki was the higher-volume scorer (20.7 points per game to 19.6); adjusted for era they scored at 2.17× and 1.86× their league average respectively; Magic Johnson was the more efficient scorer (61.0% true shooting to 57.7%). Magic Johnson holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 5 championships, 3 Finals MVPs and the #7 all-time ranking to Dirk Nowitzki's #25.

Career averages

Dirk NowitzkiStatMagic Johnson
20.7 Points / game 19.6
7.5 Rebounds / game 7.2
2.4 Assists / game 11.2
0.8 Steals / game 1.9
0.8 Blocks / game 0.4
46.6% Field goal % 52.0%
37.9% 3-point % 22.9%
87.4% Free throw % 84.3%
57.7% True shooting % 61.0%
1,522 Games played 906

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Dirk NowitzkiStatMagic Johnson
2.17× Points vs era avg 1.86×
1.82× Rebounds vs era avg 1.72×
1.14× Assists vs era avg 4.52×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Magic Johnson's era.

Dirk NowitzkiStatMagic Johnson
105.9 Offensive rating —
105.4 Defensive rating —
0.6 Net rating —
0.2% Usage % —
0.1% Assist % —
0.1% Rebound % —

Playoff averages

Dirk NowitzkiStatMagic Johnson
25.3 Points / game 19.5
10.0 Rebounds / game 7.7
2.5 Assists / game 12.3
1.0 Steals / game 1.9
0.9 Blocks / game 0.3
46.1% Field goal % 50.6%
36.2% 3-point % 18.5%
89.2% Free throw % 83.6%
145 Playoff games 190

Accolades

Dirk NowitzkiStatMagic Johnson
1 MVP awards 3
1 Finals MVP 3
1 Championships 5
14 All-Star selections 11
4 All-NBA 1st Team 9
#25 All-time GOAT rank #7

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