Cross-era · careers 15 years apart

Moses Malone vs James Harden

Moses Malone 1976-1994 · Center James Harden 2009-2025 · Guard · active

Moses Malone (1976-1994) and James Harden (2009-2025) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 15 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, James Harden was the higher-volume scorer (24.0 points per game to 20.6); adjusted for era they scored at 2.00× and 2.39× their league average respectively; James Harden was the more efficient scorer (64.1% true shooting to 56.9%). Moses Malone holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 1 championship, 1 Finals MVP and the #15 all-time ranking to James Harden's #41.

Career averages

Moses MaloneStatJames Harden
20.6 Points / game 24.0
12.2 Rebounds / game 5.6
1.3 Assists / game 7.3
0.8 Steals / game 1.5
1.3 Blocks / game 0.6
48.4% Field goal % 43.8%
7.3% 3-point % 36.5%
76.8% Free throw % 86.0%
56.9% True shooting % 64.1%
1,329 Games played 1,221

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Moses MaloneStatJames Harden
2.00× Points vs era avg 2.39×
2.88× Rebounds vs era avg 1.35×
0.55× Assists vs era avg 3.21×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Moses Malone's era.

Moses MaloneStatJames Harden
— Offensive rating 115.0
— Defensive rating 109.4
— Net rating 5.5
— Usage % 28.6%
— Assist % 34.7%
— Rebound % 7.9%

Playoff averages

Moses MaloneStatJames Harden
22.1 Points / game 22.5
13.8 Rebounds / game 5.5
1.4 Assists / game 6.5
0.9 Steals / game 1.6
1.6 Blocks / game 0.6
46.7% Field goal % 43.0%
5.3% 3-point % 34.7%
77.7% Free throw % 86.5%
94 Playoff games 173

Accolades

Moses MaloneStatJames Harden
3 MVP awards 1
1 Finals MVP 0
1 Championships 0
11 All-Star selections 10
4 All-NBA 1st Team 6
#15 All-time GOAT rank #41

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