Cross-era · careers 7 years apart
Larry Bird vs Paul Pierce
Larry Bird (1979-1991) and Paul Pierce (1998-2016) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 7 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 19.7); adjusted for era they scored at 2.32× and 2.11× their league average respectively; Larry Bird created more for others (6.3 assists per game to 3.5). Larry Bird holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 3 championships, 2 Finals MVPs and the #10 all-time ranking to Paul Pierce's #52.
Career averages
| Larry Bird | Stat | Paul Pierce |
|---|
| 24.3 |
Points / game |
19.7 |
| 10.0 |
Rebounds / game |
5.6 |
| 6.3 |
Assists / game |
3.5 |
| 1.7 |
Steals / game |
1.3 |
| 0.8 |
Blocks / game |
0.5 |
| 49.4% |
Field goal % |
44.4% |
| 34.6% |
3-point % |
36.8% |
| 88.5% |
Free throw % |
80.8% |
| 56.5% |
True shooting % |
56.8% |
| 897 |
Games played |
1,343 |
Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)
| Larry Bird | Stat | Paul Pierce |
|---|
| 2.32× |
Points vs era avg |
2.11× |
| 2.38× |
Rebounds vs era avg |
1.37× |
| 2.56× |
Assists vs era avg |
1.68× |
Advanced metrics
Advanced stats weren't tracked in Larry Bird's era.
| Larry Bird | Stat | Paul Pierce |
|---|
| — |
Offensive rating |
104.7 |
| — |
Defensive rating |
101.7 |
| — |
Net rating |
3.1 |
| — |
Usage % |
0.2% |
| — |
Assist % |
0.1% |
| — |
Rebound % |
0.1% |
Playoff averages
| Larry Bird | Stat | Paul Pierce |
|---|
| 23.7 |
Points / game |
18.7 |
| 10.3 |
Rebounds / game |
5.8 |
| 6.5 |
Assists / game |
3.4 |
| 1.8 |
Steals / game |
1.2 |
| 0.9 |
Blocks / game |
0.6 |
| 47.1% |
Field goal % |
42.2% |
| 31.6% |
3-point % |
35.1% |
| 88.5% |
Free throw % |
82.4% |
| 164 |
Playoff games |
170 |
Accolades
| Larry Bird | Stat | Paul Pierce |
|---|
| 3 |
MVP awards |
0 |
| 2 |
Finals MVP |
1 |
| 3 |
Championships |
1 |
| 10 |
All-Star selections |
10 |
| 9 |
All-NBA 1st Team |
0 |
| #10 |
All-time GOAT rank |
#52 |