Cross-era · careers 18 years apart

Paul Arizin vs Magic Johnson

Paul Arizin 1950-1961 · Forward Magic Johnson 1979-1995 · Forward-Guard

Paul Arizin (1950-1961) and Magic Johnson (1979-1995) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 18 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Paul Arizin was the higher-volume scorer (22.8 points per game to 19.6); adjusted for era they scored at 2.15× and 1.86× their league average respectively; Magic Johnson was the more efficient scorer (61.0% true shooting to 50.6%). Magic Johnson holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 5 championships, 3 Finals MVPs and the #7 all-time ranking to Paul Arizin's #60.

Career averages

Paul ArizinStatMagic Johnson
22.8 Points / game 19.6
8.6 Rebounds / game 7.2
2.3 Assists / game 11.2
0.0 Steals / game 1.9
0.0 Blocks / game 0.4
42.1% Field goal % 52.0%
0.0% 3-point % 22.9%
80.9% Free throw % 84.3%
50.6% True shooting % 61.0%
713 Games played 906

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Paul ArizinStatMagic Johnson
2.15× Points vs era avg 1.86×
1.45× Rebounds vs era avg 1.72×
1.02× Assists vs era avg 4.52×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Paul Arizin's era.

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

Playoff averages

Paul ArizinStatMagic Johnson
24.2 Points / game 19.5
8.3 Rebounds / game 7.7
2.6 Assists / game 12.3
0.0 Steals / game 1.9
0.0 Blocks / game 0.3
41.1% Field goal % 50.6%
0.0% 3-point % 18.5%
82.4% Free throw % 83.6%
49 Playoff games 190

Accolades

Paul ArizinStatMagic Johnson
0 MVP awards 3
0 Finals MVP 3
1 Championships 5
9 All-Star selections 11
3 All-NBA 1st Team 9
#60 All-time GOAT rank #7

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