Hoops Nightly
Daniel Gafford
Mavericks · F-C · 28
Daniel Gafford
vs
2025-26
Royce O'Neale
Hornets · F · 33
Royce O'Neale
Head to head · 2025-26 regular season · stats.nba.com

Daniel Gafford vs Royce O'Neale

8-9categories
Gafford · O'Neale
Daniel Gafford
Gafford
Mavericks
2025-26
O'Neale
Hornets
Royce O'Neale
55
Games
availability
78
21.7
Minutes
per game
28.4
9.5
Points
per game
9.8
6.9
Rebounds
per game
4.8
1.1
Assists
per game
2.7
2.1
Steals + blocks
per game
1.5
1.1
Turnovers
per game · lower is better
1.3
65.5%
Field goal %
42.1%
0.0%
Three-point %
0.0 vs 6.7 attempts
40.8%
68.3%
Free throw %
71.1%
67.7%
True shooting
TS%
59.6%
15.1%
Usage
USG%
13.9%
7.1%
Assist %
of teammates' baskets
12.9%
14.5%
Rebound %
of available
8.1%
-7.1
Net rating
on court
-3.6
11.4%
PIE
player impact estimate
8.2%
-3.4
Plus-minus
per game
-1.4
Bars show each player's share of the pair's total; the better number is in the club's color (turnovers: fewer is better).

Where the gap is

from the numbers above

Royce O'Neale scored more in 2025-26, 0.3 points a game apart (9.8 vs 9.5), on Gafford's heavier usage (15.1% vs 13.9%).

Gafford is the more efficient scorer by true shooting, 67.7% to 59.6%; TS% folds threes and free throws into one number, so the gap survives shot-diet differences.

Playmaking goes to O'Neale (2.7 vs 1.1 assists), the glass to Gafford (6.9 vs 4.8 rebounds).

Availability is part of the comparison: O'Neale played 23 more games (78 vs 55 of 82).

With O'Neale on the floor his team outscored opponents by -3.6 per 100 possessions, against -7.1 for Gafford; on-court net rating carries the teammates with it, so read it next to PIE.

On the books for 2026-27: Gafford $17.3M through 2028-29, O'Neale $10.9M through 2027-28. Whether either fits a trade is a Trade Machine question, not a stat one.

Splits

2025-26 · from the game logs
Gafford
2025-26
O'Neale
12-43
Record when playing
43-35
10.3
Points at home
10.2
8.8
Points on the road
9.4
9.7
Points in wins
10.5
9.5
Points in losses
8.9
24
Season high
21
0
30-point games
0
10
Double-doubles
2

Last games & contracts

test a trade in the Trade Machine →
Gafford · last 5
Fri, Oct 16 vs ATL6 pts · 2 reb · 1 ast
Sun, Oct 11 at HOU9 pts · 4 reb · 0 ast
Fri, Oct 9 vs HOU7 pts · 3 reb · 0 ast
Sun, Apr 5 vs LAL7 pts · 7 reb · 0 ast
Fri, Apr 3 vs ORL7 pts · 3 reb · 1 ast
O'Neale · last 5
Fri, Oct 16 at MEM6 pts · 0 reb · 0 ast
Wed, Oct 14 at BOS12 pts · 2 reb · 2 ast
Sun, Oct 11 vs MIL9 pts · 1 reb · 1 ast
Tue, Oct 6 vs BKN3 pts · 2 reb · 5 ast
Mon, Apr 27 vs OKC8 pts · 7 reb · 2 ast
Gafford · contract
2026-27$17.3M
2027-28$18.1M
2028-29$19.0M
O'Neale · contract
2026-27$10.9M
2027-28$11.6M

More comparisons

pick any two players →
Gafford vs
Isaac Okoro · Gui Santos · Cam Whitmore · Corey Kispert
O'Neale vs
Tristan da Silva · Harrison Barnes · Isaiah Stewart · Olivier-Maxence Prosper

Per-game numbers and percentages are 2025-26 regular season from stats.nba.com; splits and last games from our own game logs; contract figures are cap hits from public salary data and can lag a signing by a day. Bold marks the better number in each row (turnovers: fewer is better).