Shaquille O'Neal vs. Nate Thurmond Comparison

Head-to-head comparison between the NBA stars Nate Thurmond and Shaquille O'Neal that includes championships won, honors and awards obtained, regular season and playoffs stats and other data put side by side.

Who scored more points in his career? Who averaged more points in playoffs? Who won more championships? Who led the season more times? Who won more MVP awards? These questions and many more, are answered here. It includes NBA Championships, seasons, playoffs, awards, statistical data for points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks and percentages.

Head-To-Head Career Comparison

Shaquille O'Neal

vs.

Nate Thurmond

NBA Timeline:	1946-47 2023-24
Shaquille O'Neal: 1992-93 to 2010-11
Nate Thurmond: 1963-64 to 1976-77

NBA Championships and Seasons

NBA Championships Shaquille O'Neal 4 Nate Thurmond 0

NBA Seasons Shaquille O'Neal 19 Nate Thurmond 14

Playoffs Played Shaquille O'Neal 17 Nate Thurmond 9

All-Star Games Shaquille O'Neal 15 Nate Thurmond 7

Honors and Awards

Season MVP Shaquille O'Neal 1 Nate Thurmond 0

Finals MVP Shaquille O'Neal 3 Nate Thurmond 0 *

All-NBA First Team Shaquille O'Neal 8 Nate Thurmond 0

All-NBA Teams (Total Selections) Shaquille O'Neal 14 Nate Thurmond 0

All-Defensive 1st Team Shaquille O'Neal 0 Nate Thurmond 2 *

All-Defensive Teams (Total Selections) Shaquille O'Neal 3 Nate Thurmond 5

Scoring Leader Shaquille O'Neal 2 Nate Thurmond 0

Rookie of The Year Shaquille O'Neal 1 Nate Thurmond 0

* Notes: Finals MVP and Defensive Teams awarded since 1968-69.

NBA Regular Season Stats

Stats Per Game

Points Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 23.7 Nate Thurmond 15.0

Rebounds Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 10.9 Nate Thurmond 15.0

Assists Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 2.5 Nate Thurmond 2.7

Steals Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 0.6 Nate Thurmond 0.5 *

Blocks Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 2.3 Nate Thurmond 2.1 *

Totals Stats

Total Points Shaquille O'Neal 28,596 Nate Thurmond 14,437

Total Rebounds Shaquille O'Neal 13,099 Nate Thurmond 14,464

Total Assists Shaquille O'Neal 3,026 Nate Thurmond 2,575

Total Steals Shaquille O'Neal 739 Nate Thurmond 125 *

Total Blocks Shaquille O'Neal 2,732 Nate Thurmond 553 *

Total Games Shaquille O'Neal 1,207 Nate Thurmond 964

Percentages

Field Goal Percentage Shaquille O'Neal .582 Nate Thurmond .421

3-Point Percentage Shaquille O'Neal .045 Nate Thurmond - n/a **

Free Throw Percentage Shaquille O'Neal .527 Nate Thurmond .667

Best Season (no game minimum)

Points Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 29.7 (2000) Nate Thurmond 21.9 (1970)

Rebounds Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 13.9 (1993) Nate Thurmond 22.0 (1968)

Assists Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 3.8 (2000) Nate Thurmond 4.2 (1968)

Steals Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 0.9 (1994) Nate Thurmond 0.7 (1974) *

Blocks Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 3.5 (1993) Nate Thurmond 2.9 (1974) *

NBA Playoffs Stats

Stats Per Game

Points Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 24.3 Nate Thurmond 11.9

Rebounds Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 11.6 Nate Thurmond 13.6

Assists Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 2.7 Nate Thurmond 2.8

Steals Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 0.5 Nate Thurmond 0.4 *

Blocks Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 2.1 Nate Thurmond 1.9 *

Totals Stats

Total Points Shaquille O'Neal 5,250 Nate Thurmond 966

Total Rebounds Shaquille O'Neal 2,508 Nate Thurmond 1,101

Total Assists Shaquille O'Neal 582 Nate Thurmond 225

Total Steals Shaquille O'Neal 117 Nate Thurmond 11 *

Total Blocks Shaquille O'Neal 459 Nate Thurmond 51 *

Total Games Shaquille O'Neal 216 Nate Thurmond 81

Percentages

Field Goal Percentage Shaquille O'Neal .563 Nate Thurmond .416

3-Point Percentage Shaquille O'Neal - Nate Thurmond - n/a **

Free Throw Percentage Shaquille O'Neal .504 Nate Thurmond .621

Best Playoffs (no game minimum)

Points Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 30.7 (2000) Nate Thurmond 25.4 (1972)

Rebounds Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 15.4 (2001) Nate Thurmond 23.1 (1967)

Assists Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 4.6 (1996) Nate Thurmond 5.2 (1972)

Steals Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 1.0 (2008) Nate Thurmond 0.5 (1976) *

Blocks Per Game Shaquille O'Neal 3.0 (1994) Nate Thurmond 2.2 (1976) *

Notes: * Blocks and steals started to be recorded in 1973-74. Some years in this player's career don't have stats. ** Three-point shots were implemented in 1979-80, this player has no data for the stat.