Cross-era · careers 10 years apart

Magic Johnson vs Chris Paul

Magic Johnson 1979-1995 · Forward-Guard Chris Paul 2005-2025 · Guard · active

Magic Johnson (1979-1995) and Chris Paul (2005-2025) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 10 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Magic Johnson was the higher-volume scorer (19.6 points per game to 16.8); adjusted for era they scored at 1.86× and 1.71× their league average respectively; Magic Johnson was the more efficient scorer (61.0% true shooting to 58.1%). Magic Johnson holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 5 championships, 3 Finals MVPs and the #7 all-time ranking to Chris Paul's #33.

Career averages

Magic JohnsonStatChris Paul
19.6 Points / game 16.8
7.2 Rebounds / game 4.4
11.2 Assists / game 9.2
1.9 Steals / game 2.0
0.4 Blocks / game 0.2
52.0% Field goal % 46.5%
22.9% 3-point % 36.6%
84.3% Free throw % 86.9%
61.0% True shooting % 58.1%
906 Games played 1,370

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Magic JohnsonStatChris Paul
1.86× Points vs era avg 1.71×
1.72× Rebounds vs era avg 1.06×
4.52× Assists vs era avg 4.23×

Advanced metrics

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

Magic JohnsonStatChris Paul
— Offensive rating 114.9
— Defensive rating 105.9
— Net rating 9.0
— Usage % 14.2%
— Assist % 30.6%
— Rebound % 7.1%

Playoff averages

Magic JohnsonStatChris Paul
19.5 Points / game 20.0
7.7 Rebounds / game 4.9
12.3 Assists / game 8.3
1.9 Steals / game 1.9
0.3 Blocks / game 0.2
50.6% Field goal % 48.4%
18.5% 3-point % 36.9%
83.6% Free throw % 84.6%
190 Playoff games 149

Accolades

Magic JohnsonStatChris Paul
3 MVP awards 0
3 Finals MVP 0
5 Championships 0
11 All-Star selections 11
9 All-NBA 1st Team 4
#7 All-time GOAT rank #33

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