Dave Cowens vs. Vinnie Johnson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Vinnie Johnson and Dave Cowens, 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.

Dave Cowens played 11 years in the NBA, 2 less than Vinnie Johnson, who played 13. Dave Cowens had the first of his seasons in 1970-71, while Vinnie Johnson had his rookie season in 1979-80. 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
Dave Cowens	11	7	1970-71 to 1982-83
Vinnie Johnson	13	10	1979-80 to 1991-92

Comparison Season by Season
Jump to season: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13


Rookie Season
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1970-71	1979-80
Team	Boston Celtics	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	Rookie of the Year	-
Honors & Awards	All-Rookie First Team	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Supersonics Lost West Conf Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	81	38.0	17.0	-	-	15.0	2.8	-	-	-	4.3	6.8	16.1	.422	-	-	-	3.4	4.6	.732
Vinnie Johnson	38	8.6	3.2	0.5	0.9	1.4	1.4	0.5	0.1	1.1	1.1	1.2	3.0	.391	0.0	0.0	.000	0.8	1.0	.795

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	5	2.4	0.4	0.0	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.2	0.0	0.0	0.2	0.2	0.6	.333	0.0	0.0	-	0.0	0.0	-


Season 2
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1971-72	1980-81
Team	Boston Celtics	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Finals	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	79	40.3	18.8	-	-	15.2	3.1	-	-	-	4.0	8.3	17.2	.484	-	-	-	2.2	3.1	.720
Vinnie Johnson	81	28.5	13.0	2.4	2.1	4.5	4.2	1.0	0.2	2.7	2.4	5.2	9.7	.534	0.0	0.1	.200	2.6	3.3	.793

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	11	40.1	15.5	-	-	13.8	3.0	-	-	-	4.5	6.5	14.2	.455	-	-	-	2.5	4.3	.596
Vinnie Johnson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 3
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1972-73	1981-82
Team	Boston Celtics	Seattle Supersonics, Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game NVP	-
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Finals	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	82	41.8	20.5	-	-	16.2	4.1	-	-	-	3.8	9.0	20.0	.452	-	-	-	2.5	3.2	.779
Vinnie Johnson	74	17.5	7.4	1.1	1.0	2.1	2.3	0.8	0.3	1.3	1.4	2.9	6.0	.489	0.0	0.2	.250	1.4	1.9	.754

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	13	46.0	21.9	-	-	16.6	3.7	-	-	-	4.2	9.9	21.0	.473	-	-	-	2.1	3.2	.659
Vinnie Johnson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 4
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1973-74	1982-83
Team	Boston Celtics	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	80	41.9	19.0	3.3	12.4	15.7	4.4	1.2	1.3	-	3.7	8.1	18.4	.437	-	-	-	2.9	3.4	.832
Vinnie Johnson	82	30.6	15.8	2.0	2.3	4.3	3.7	1.1	0.6	1.9	3.2	6.3	12.4	.513	0.1	0.5	.275	3.0	3.8	.778

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	18	42.9	20.5	3.3	10.0	13.3	3.7	1.2	0.9	-	4.7	8.9	20.6	.435	-	-	-	2.6	3.3	.797
Vinnie Johnson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 5
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1974-75	1983-84
Team	Boston Celtics	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Defensive Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Finals	Pistons Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	65	40.5	20.4	3.5	11.2	14.7	4.6	1.3	1.1	-	3.7	8.8	18.4	.475	-	-	-	2.9	3.8	.783
Vinnie Johnson	82	23.3	13.0	1.6	1.3	2.9	3.3	0.5	0.2	1.6	2.4	5.2	11.0	.473	0.0	0.2	.211	2.5	3.4	.753

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	11	43.5	20.5	4.5	12.0	16.5	4.2	1.6	0.5	-	4.5	9.2	21.5	.428	-	-	-	2.1	2.4	.885
Vinnie Johnson	5	26.4	10.2	1.0	1.8	2.8	2.4	0.2	0.2	0.8	1.8	3.4	9.2	.370	0.0	0.2	.000	3.4	3.8	.895


Season 6
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1975-76	1984-85
Team	Boston Celtics	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Defensive First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Pistons Lost East Conf Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	78	39.8	19.0	4.3	11.7	16.0	4.2	1.2	0.9	-	4.0	7.8	16.7	.468	-	-	-	3.3	4.4	.756
Vinnie Johnson	82	25.5	12.8	1.6	1.4	3.1	4.0	0.9	0.2	1.6	2.5	5.2	11.5	.454	0.1	0.3	.185	2.3	3.0	.769

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	18	44.3	21.0	4.8	11.6	16.4	4.6	1.2	0.7	-	4.7	8.7	18.9	.457	-	-	-	3.7	4.8	.759
Vinnie Johnson	9	26.1	14.2	1.7	1.3	3.0	3.2	0.7	0.1	1.7	2.7	5.9	11.4	.515	0.0	0.3	.000	2.4	3.1	.786


Season 7
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1976-77	1985-86
Team	Boston Celtics	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Semis	Pistons Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	50	37.8	16.4	2.9	11.0	13.9	5.0	0.9	1.0	-	3.6	6.6	15.1	.434	-	-	-	3.2	4.0	.818
Vinnie Johnson	79	25.0	13.9	1.5	1.4	2.9	3.4	1.0	0.3	1.1	2.3	5.9	12.6	.467	0.0	0.2	.154	2.1	2.7	.771

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	9	42.1	16.6	3.2	11.7	14.9	4.0	0.9	1.4	-	4.1	7.3	16.4	.446	-	-	-	1.9	2.4	.773
Vinnie Johnson	4	21.3	12.8	2.0	2.3	4.3	2.8	0.8	0.0	1.3	2.3	5.5	12.3	.449	0.0	0.3	.000	1.8	3.3	.538


Season 8
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1977-78	1986-87
Team	Boston Celtics	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Pistons Lost East Conf Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	77	41.8	18.6	3.2	10.8	14.0	4.6	1.3	0.9	2.8	3.9	7.8	15.8	.490	-	-	-	3.1	3.7	.842
Vinnie Johnson	78	27.8	15.7	1.6	1.7	3.3	3.8	1.2	0.2	1.7	2.0	6.8	14.8	.462	0.1	0.2	.286	2.0	2.6	.786

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	15	25.9	14.7	1.3	1.6	2.9	4.1	0.6	0.3	1.5	2.2	6.3	13.8	.459	0.0	0.1	.000	2.1	2.4	.861


Season 9
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1978-79	1987-88
Team	Boston Celtics	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Pistons Lost NBA Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	68	37.0	16.6	2.2	7.4	9.6	3.6	1.1	0.8	2.6	3.9	7.2	14.9	.483	-	-	-	2.2	2.8	.807
Vinnie Johnson	82	23.6	12.2	1.1	1.7	2.8	3.3	0.7	0.2	1.9	2.0	5.2	11.7	.443	0.1	0.3	.208	1.8	2.6	.677

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	23	20.7	10.3	1.5	1.7	3.3	1.9	0.7	0.2	0.9	2.1	4.4	10.4	.423	0.0	0.3	.143	1.4	2.2	.660


Season 10
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1979-80	1988-89
Team	Boston Celtics	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards	All-Defensive Second Team	-
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Finals	NBA Champion

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	66	32.7	14.2	1.9	6.2	8.1	3.1	1.0	0.9	1.6	3.3	6.4	14.1	.453	0.0	0.2	.083	1.4	1.8	.779
Vinnie Johnson	82	25.3	13.8	1.3	1.8	3.1	3.0	0.9	0.2	1.3	1.9	5.6	12.1	.464	0.2	0.5	.295	2.4	3.2	.734

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	9	33.4	12.0	2.0	5.3	7.3	2.3	1.0	0.8	0.9	4.1	5.4	11.4	.476	0.0	0.2	.000	1.1	1.2	.909
Vinnie Johnson	17	21.9	14.1	0.9	1.7	2.6	2.5	0.2	0.2	1.2	1.9	5.4	11.8	.455	0.6	1.4	.417	2.8	3.6	.758

Note: Dave Cowens didn't play in 1980-81 and 1981-82.


Season 11
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	1982-83	1989-90
Team	Milwaukee Bucks	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	Did Not Play	NBA Champion

more >>

Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	40	25.4	8.1	1.8	5.0	6.9	2.1	0.8	0.4	1.1	3.4	3.4	7.7	.444	0.0	0.1	.000	1.3	1.6	.825
Vinnie Johnson	82	24.0	9.8	1.3	1.8	3.1	3.1	0.9	0.2	1.5	1.7	4.1	9.5	.431	0.1	0.4	.147	1.6	2.4	.668

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	20	23.2	10.3	1.4	1.4	2.8	2.7	0.4	0.2	1.6	1.9	4.3	9.2	.462	0.1	0.4	.286	1.7	2.2	.791


Season 12
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	-	1990-91
Team	-	Detroit Pistons
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	-	Pistons Lost East Conf Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	82	29.1	11.7	1.3	2.1	3.4	3.3	0.9	0.2	1.4	2.0	5.0	11.4	.434	0.1	0.4	.324	1.6	2.5	.646

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	15	29.2	15.2	2.5	2.6	5.1	2.9	0.7	0.3	1.1	2.2	6.8	14.7	.464	0.1	0.9	.154	1.5	2.1	.710


Season 13
	Dave Cowens	Vinnie Johnson
Season	-	1991-92
Team	-	San Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	-	Spurs 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		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	60	22.5	8.0	1.1	1.9	3.0	2.4	0.7	0.2	1.2	1.6	3.4	8.3	.405	0.3	1.0	.317	0.9	1.4	.647

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dave Cowens	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Vinnie Johnson	3	23.0	8.3	1.0	1.7	2.7	2.3	1.7	0.3	1.7	2.3	3.7	8.0	.458	0.7	1.3	.500	0.3	0.7	.500

Dave Cowens vs. Vinnie Johnson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Vinnie Johnson and Dave Cowens, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Their Careers

Comparison Season by Season

Rookie Season

Season 2

Season 3

Season 4

Season 5

Season 6

Season 7

Season 8

Season 9

Season 10

Season 11

Season 12

Season 13