Allen Iverson vs. Gary Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Gary Payton and Allen Iverson, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Games against each other

Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.

Allen Iverson played 14 years in the NBA, 3 less than Gary Payton, who played 17. Allen Iverson had the first of his seasons in 1996-97, while Gary Payton had his rookie season in 1990-91. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achivements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
Allen Iverson 14 8 1996-97 to 2009-10
Gary Payton 17 15 1990-91 to 2006-07

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17

Rookie Season

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 1996-971990-91
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement Rookie of the Year-
Achievement All-Rookie First Team-
-Achievement All-Rookie Second Team
Playoffs Did Not PlaySupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 76 40.1 23.5 1.5 2.6 4.1 7.5 2.1 0.3 4.4 3.1 8.2 19.8 .416 2.0 6.0 .341 5.0 7.2 .702
Gary Payton 82 27.4 7.2 1.3 1.6 3.0 6.4 2.0 0.2 2.2 3.0 3.2 7.0 .450 0.0 0.2 .077 0.8 1.2 .711
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 5 27.0 4.8 1.0 1.6 2.6 6.4 1.6 0.2 1.8 3.2 2.2 5.4 .407 0.0 0.2 .000 0.4 0.4 1.000

Season 2

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 1997-981991-92
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlaySupersonics Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 80 39.4 22.0 1.1 2.6 3.7 6.2 2.2 0.3 3.1 2.5 8.1 17.6 .461 0.9 2.9 .298 4.9 6.7 .729
Gary Payton 81 31.5 9.4 1.5 2.1 3.6 6.2 1.8 0.3 2.1 3.1 4.1 9.1 .451 0.0 0.3 .130 1.2 1.8 .669
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 8 27.6 7.6 0.8 1.9 2.6 4.8 1.0 0.3 1.3 3.3 3.4 7.3 .466 0.0 0.3 .000 0.9 1.5 .583

Season 3

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 1998-991992-93
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf SemisSupersonics Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 48 41.5 26.8 1.4 3.5 4.9 4.6 2.3 0.1 3.5 2.0 9.1 22.0 .412 1.2 4.1 .291 7.4 9.9 .751
Gary Payton 82 31.1 13.5 1.2 2.3 3.4 4.9 2.2 0.3 1.8 3.0 5.8 11.7 .494 0.1 0.4 .206 1.8 2.4 .770
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 8 45.0 28.5 1.8 2.4 4.1 4.9 2.5 0.3 3.0 2.4 11.0 26.8 .411 1.9 6.6 .283 4.6 6.5 .712
Gary Payton 19 31.8 12.3 1.2 2.2 3.3 3.7 1.8 0.2 1.8 3.4 5.5 12.4 .443 0.1 0.3 .167 1.3 1.9 .676

Season 4

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 1999-001993-94
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf SemisSupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 70 40.8 28.4 1.0 2.8 3.8 4.7 2.1 0.1 3.3 2.3 10.4 24.8 .421 1.3 3.7 .341 6.3 8.9 .713
Gary Payton 82 35.1 16.5 1.3 2.0 3.3 6.0 2.3 0.2 2.1 2.8 7.1 14.1 .504 0.2 0.7 .278 2.0 3.4 .595
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 10 44.4 26.2 1.4 2.6 4.0 4.5 1.2 0.1 3.2 2.4 9.1 23.7 .384 1.2 3.9 .308 6.8 9.2 .739
Gary Payton 5 36.2 15.8 1.2 2.2 3.4 5.6 1.6 0.4 1.6 3.0 6.8 13.8 .493 0.6 1.8 .333 1.6 3.8 .421

Season 5

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2000-011994-95
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement Steals Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Achievement All-Star Game NVP-
Playoffs 76ers Lost NBA FinalsSupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 71 42.0 31.1 0.7 3.1 3.8 4.6 2.5 0.3 3.3 2.1 10.7 25.5 .420 1.4 4.3 .320 8.2 10.1 .814
Gary Payton 82 36.8 20.6 1.3 2.1 3.4 7.1 2.5 0.2 2.5 2.5 8.4 16.4 .509 0.9 2.8 .302 3.0 4.2 .716
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 22 46.5 32.9 0.7 4.0 4.7 6.1 2.4 0.3 2.9 2.5 11.7 30.0 .389 2.2 6.5 .338 7.3 9.5 .774
Gary Payton 4 43.0 17.8 1.5 1.0 2.5 5.3 1.3 0.0 2.0 3.3 8.0 16.8 .478 0.5 2.5 .200 1.3 3.0 .417

Season 6

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2001-021995-96
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement Defensive Player of the Year
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement Steals LeaderAchievement Steals Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf 1st RdSupersonics Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 60 43.7 31.4 0.7 3.8 4.5 5.5 2.8 0.2 4.0 1.7 11.1 27.8 .398 1.3 4.5 .291 7.9 9.8 .812
Gary Payton 81 39.0 19.3 1.3 2.9 4.2 7.5 2.9 0.2 3.2 2.7 7.6 15.8 .484 1.2 3.7 .328 2.8 3.8 .748
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 5 42.0 30.0 0.2 3.4 3.6 4.2 2.6 0.0 2.4 1.6 9.0 23.6 .381 1.8 5.4 .333 10.2 12.6 .810
Gary Payton 21 43.4 20.7 0.9 4.2 5.1 6.8 1.8 0.3 3.0 3.3 7.7 15.9 .485 2.0 4.8 .410 3.3 5.2 .633

Season 7

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2002-031996-97
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement Steals Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf SemisSupersonics Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 82 42.5 27.6 0.8 3.4 4.2 5.5 2.7 0.2 3.5 1.8 9.8 23.7 .414 1.0 3.7 .277 7.0 9.0 .774
Gary Payton 82 39.2 21.8 1.3 3.3 4.6 7.1 2.4 0.2 2.6 2.5 8.6 18.1 .476 1.5 4.6 .313 3.1 4.3 .715
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 12 46.4 31.7 0.9 3.4 4.3 7.4 2.4 0.1 3.9 2.1 11.4 27.4 .416 1.6 4.6 .345 7.3 9.8 .737
Gary Payton 12 45.6 23.8 1.7 3.8 5.4 8.7 2.2 0.3 2.9 2.2 8.8 21.3 .412 2.1 6.3 .333 4.2 5.1 .820

Season 8

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2003-041997-98
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlaySupersonics Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 48 42.5 26.4 0.7 3.0 3.7 6.8 2.4 0.1 4.4 1.8 9.1 23.4 .387 1.2 4.1 .286 7.1 9.5 .745
Gary Payton 82 38.4 19.2 0.9 3.6 4.6 8.3 2.3 0.2 2.8 2.4 7.1 15.6 .453 1.6 4.8 .338 3.4 4.6 .744
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 10 42.7 24.0 0.9 2.5 3.4 7.0 1.8 0.1 2.6 3.1 8.7 18.3 .475 1.9 5.0 .380 4.7 5.0 .940

Season 9

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2004-051998-99
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game NVP-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 75 42.3 30.7 0.7 3.3 4.0 7.9 2.4 0.1 4.6 1.9 10.3 24.2 .424 1.4 4.5 .308 8.7 10.5 .835
Gary Payton 50 40.2 21.7 1.2 3.6 4.9 8.7 2.2 0.2 3.1 2.3 8.0 18.5 .434 1.7 5.6 .295 4.0 5.5 .721
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 5 47.6 31.2 0.0 2.2 2.2 10.0 2.0 0.4 4.2 2.4 11.8 25.2 .468 2.4 5.8 .414 5.2 5.8 .897
Gary Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 10

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2005-061999-00
Team Philadelphia 76ersSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlaySupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 72 43.1 33.0 0.6 2.6 3.2 7.4 1.9 0.1 3.4 1.7 11.3 25.3 .447 1.0 3.1 .323 9.4 11.5 .814
Gary Payton 82 41.8 24.2 1.2 5.2 6.5 8.9 1.9 0.2 2.7 2.2 9.1 20.3 .448 2.2 6.3 .340 3.8 5.2 .735
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 5 44.2 25.8 1.6 6.0 7.6 7.4 1.8 0.2 3.6 3.2 10.0 22.6 .442 1.8 4.6 .391 4.0 5.2 .769

Season 11

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2006-072000-01
Team Philadelphia 76ers, Denver NuggetsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 65 42.5 26.3 0.4 2.6 3.0 7.2 1.9 0.2 4.1 1.5 8.9 20.2 .442 1.0 3.0 .315 7.5 9.4 .795
Gary Payton 79 41.1 23.1 0.9 3.6 4.6 8.1 1.6 0.3 2.6 2.3 9.2 20.1 .456 1.3 3.4 .375 3.4 4.5 .766
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 5 44.6 22.8 0.0 0.6 0.6 5.8 1.4 0.0 3.0 2.2 8.4 22.8 .368 1.0 3.4 .294 5.0 6.2 .806
Gary Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 12

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2007-082001-02
Team Denver NuggetsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdSupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 82 41.8 26.4 0.6 2.4 3.0 7.1 2.0 0.1 3.0 1.3 8.7 19.0 .458 1.2 3.4 .345 7.9 9.7 .809
Gary Payton 82 40.3 22.1 1.0 3.9 4.8 9.0 1.6 0.3 2.5 2.2 9.0 19.2 .467 0.9 2.9 .314 3.3 4.1 .797
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 4 39.5 24.5 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.5 1.0 0.3 1.8 0.8 9.0 20.8 .434 0.8 3.5 .214 5.8 8.3 .697
Gary Payton 5 41.2 22.2 2.0 6.6 8.6 5.8 0.6 0.4 2.6 2.4 9.0 21.2 .425 0.8 3.0 .267 3.4 5.8 .586

Season 13

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2008-092002-03
Team Denver Nuggets, Detroit PistonsSeattle Supersonics, Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayBucks Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 57 36.7 17.5 0.5 2.5 3.0 5.0 1.5 0.1 2.6 1.5 6.1 14.6 .417 0.5 1.7 .283 4.8 6.1 .781
Gary Payton 80 40.1 20.4 1.0 3.2 4.2 8.3 1.7 0.3 2.3 2.3 8.3 18.3 .454 0.7 2.3 .297 3.1 4.4 .710
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 6 41.8 18.5 0.7 2.3 3.0 8.7 1.3 0.2 2.2 3.0 8.0 18.7 .429 0.2 2.5 .067 2.3 3.3 .700

Season 14

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season 2009-102003-04
Team Memphis Grizzlies, Philadelphia 76ersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayLakers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson 28 30.9 13.8 0.6 2.3 2.8 4.0 0.7 0.1 2.3 1.7 4.9 11.3 .430 0.3 0.9 .360 3.7 4.7 .794
Gary Payton 82 34.5 14.6 0.9 3.3 4.2 5.5 1.2 0.2 1.8 2.1 5.9 12.5 .471 0.7 2.0 .333 2.2 3.1 .714
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 22 35.0 7.8 0.9 2.4 3.3 5.3 1.0 0.2 1.3 2.7 3.1 8.5 .366 0.6 2.5 .250 1.0 1.3 .750

Season 15

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season -2004-05
Team -Boston Celtics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Celtics Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 77 33.0 11.3 0.6 2.4 3.1 6.1 1.1 0.2 1.9 1.6 4.4 9.4 .468 0.5 1.7 .326 2.0 2.6 .761
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 7 34.1 10.3 1.1 3.0 4.1 4.6 0.9 0.1 1.6 1.4 4.7 10.6 .446 0.1 2.0 .071 0.7 0.9 .833

Season 16

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season -2005-06
Team -Miami Heat
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -NBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 81 28.5 7.7 0.4 2.5 2.9 3.2 0.9 0.1 1.3 2.1 2.8 6.8 .420 0.8 2.8 .287 1.2 1.6 .794
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 23 24.3 5.8 0.3 1.5 1.7 1.6 1.0 0.1 0.8 2.4 2.1 5.0 .422 0.7 2.5 .293 0.8 1.1 .720

Season 17

Allen Iverson Gary Payton
Season -2006-07
Team -Miami Heat
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Heat Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 68 22.1 5.3 0.3 1.7 1.9 3.0 0.6 0.0 1.0 1.7 2.1 5.4 .393 0.5 1.8 .260 0.6 0.8 .667
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Allen Iverson ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 2 16.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 2.0 1.5 0.0 0.0 2.0 1.5 0.0 1.5 .000 0.0 0.5 .000 0.0 0.0 -