Comparing Austin Rivers and Carlton Carrington Head to Head

This is as close as it gets. Austin Rivers and Carlton Carrington split the statistical categories evenly — 3 apiece — making this one of the most genuinely contested SG comparisons in NBA history. When the numbers are this balanced, the debate comes down to which statistics matter most to you.

Carlton Carrington's Assists Per Game of 2.8 compared to Austin Rivers's 2.1 represents a 33.3% advantage — significantly better than their counterpart in this critical category. Austin Rivers falls 34.4% below the career average of 3.2 in this category while Carlton Carrington exceeds it. It is the single most decisive number in this comparison and the clearest statistical argument for Carlton Carrington's edge.

The most competitive category in this matchup is Field Goal %, where Austin Rivers posts 41.9% against Carlton Carrington's 41.0% — a gap of just 2.2%. Carlton Carrington can point to this as evidence that the overall comparison is closer than the final 3-3 tally suggests. In any debate, Field Goal % is the statistical ammunition for the Carlton Carrington side.

In NBA history, backcourt players are judged on their ability to create offense for themselves and teammates alike. Points per game captures scoring but assists and efficiency metrics reveal the complete offensive picture.

With categories split evenly, this comparison ultimately comes down to which statistics matter most to you. Carlton Carrington claims the tiebreaker through Assists Per Game advantage — a 33.3% edge — but reasonable people can, and do, argue both sides of this NBA debate.