Cross-era · careers 13 years apart

Larry Bird vs Dwight Howard

Larry Bird 1979-1991 · Forward Dwight Howard 2004-2021 · Center-Forward

Larry Bird (1979-1991) and Dwight Howard (2004-2021) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 13 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Larry Bird was the higher-volume scorer (24.3 points per game to 15.7); adjusted for era they scored at 2.32× and 1.61× their league average respectively; Dwight Howard was the more efficient scorer (60.3% true shooting to 56.5%). Larry Bird holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 3 championships, 2 Finals MVPs and the #10 all-time ranking to Dwight Howard's #48.

Career averages

Larry BirdStatDwight Howard
24.3 Points / game 15.7
10.0 Rebounds / game 11.8
6.3 Assists / game 1.3
1.7 Steals / game 0.9
0.8 Blocks / game 1.8
49.4% Field goal % 59.3%
34.6% 3-point % 15.8%
88.5% Free throw % 57.0%
56.5% True shooting % 60.3%
897 Games played 1,242

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Larry BirdStatDwight Howard
2.32× Points vs era avg 1.61×
2.38× Rebounds vs era avg 2.85×
2.56× Assists vs era avg 0.64×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Larry Bird's era.

Larry BirdStatDwight Howard
— Offensive rating 107.3
— Defensive rating 106.8
— Net rating 0.5
— Usage % 0.2%
— Assist % 0.1%
— Rebound % 0.2%

Playoff averages

Larry BirdStatDwight Howard
23.7 Points / game 15.3
10.3 Rebounds / game 11.8
6.5 Assists / game 1.2
1.8 Steals / game 0.8
0.9 Blocks / game 2.0
47.1% Field goal % 59.3%
31.6% 3-point % 7.2%
88.5% Free throw % 54.8%
164 Playoff games 125

Accolades

Larry BirdStatDwight Howard
3 MVP awards 0
2 Finals MVP 0
3 Championships 1
10 All-Star selections 8
9 All-NBA 1st Team 5
#10 All-time GOAT rank #48

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