Cross-era · careers 17 years apart

Magic Johnson vs Anthony Davis

Magic Johnson 1979-1995 · Forward-Guard Anthony Davis 2012-2025 · Forward-Center · active

Magic Johnson (1979-1995) and Anthony Davis (2012-2025) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 17 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Anthony Davis was the higher-volume scorer (24.0 points per game to 19.6); adjusted for era they scored at 1.86× and 2.37× their league average respectively; Magic Johnson was the more efficient scorer (61.0% true shooting to 60.1%). Magic Johnson holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 5 championships, 3 Finals MVPs and the #7 all-time ranking to Anthony Davis's #61.

Career averages

Magic JohnsonStatAnthony Davis
19.6 Points / game 24.0
7.2 Rebounds / game 10.7
11.2 Assists / game 2.6
1.9 Steals / game 1.3
0.4 Blocks / game 2.3
52.0% Field goal % 52.2%
22.9% 3-point % 24.6%
84.3% Free throw % 78.8%
61.0% True shooting % 60.1%
906 Games played 807

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Magic JohnsonStatAnthony Davis
1.86× Points vs era avg 2.37×
1.72× Rebounds vs era avg 2.58×
4.52× Assists vs era avg 1.11×

Advanced metrics

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

Magic JohnsonStatAnthony Davis
— Offensive rating 110.2
— Defensive rating 107.5
— Net rating 2.7
— Usage % 27.5%
— Assist % 15.1%
— Rebound % 18.7%

Playoff averages

Magic JohnsonStatAnthony Davis
19.5 Points / game 26.1
7.7 Rebounds / game 11.7
12.3 Assists / game 2.9
1.9 Steals / game 1.3
0.3 Blocks / game 2.1
50.6% Field goal % 54.0%
18.5% 3-point % 28.0%
83.6% Free throw % 83.8%
190 Playoff games 60

Accolades

Magic JohnsonStatAnthony Davis
3 MVP awards 0
3 Finals MVP 0
5 Championships 1
11 All-Star selections 7
9 All-NBA 1st Team 4
#7 All-time GOAT rank #61

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