Larry Bird vs. Mitch Kupchak Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Mitch Kupchak and Larry Bird, 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.

Larry Bird played 13 years in the NBA, 4 more than Mitch Kupchak, who played 9. Larry Bird had the first of his seasons in 1979-80, while Mitch Kupchak had his rookie season in 1976-77. 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
Larry Bird 13 12 1979-80 to 1991-92
Mitch Kupchak 9 6 1976-77 to 1985-86

Comparison Season by Season

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

Rookie Season

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1979-801976-77
Team Boston CelticsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsBullets Lost East Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 82 36.0 21.3 2.6 7.8 10.4 4.5 1.7 0.6 3.2 3.4 8.5 17.8 .474 0.7 1.7 .406 3.7 4.4 .836
Mitch Kupchak 82 18.5 10.4 2.2 3.8 6.0 0.8 0.3 0.4 - 2.5 4.2 7.3 .572 - - - 2.1 3.0 .691
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 9 41.3 21.3 2.4 8.8 11.2 4.7 1.6 0.9 3.7 3.3 9.2 19.7 .469 0.4 1.7 .267 2.4 2.8 .880
Mitch Kupchak 9 28.0 16.2 3.1 4.4 7.6 1.1 0.2 0.3 - 3.8 5.9 10.0 .589 - - - 4.4 6.6 .678

Season 2

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1980-811977-78
Team Boston CelticsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 82 39.5 21.2 2.3 8.6 10.9 5.5 2.0 0.8 3.5 2.9 8.8 18.3 .478 0.2 0.9 .270 3.5 4.0 .863
Mitch Kupchak 67 26.3 15.9 2.4 4.4 6.9 1.1 0.4 0.6 2.7 2.9 5.9 11.5 .512 - - - 4.2 6.0 .697
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 17 44.1 21.9 2.9 11.1 14.0 6.1 2.3 1.0 3.6 3.1 8.6 18.4 .470 0.2 0.5 .375 4.5 5.0 .894
Mitch Kupchak 21 24.0 10.1 2.3 3.7 6.0 1.0 0.2 0.1 2.0 2.8 4.0 9.5 .422 - - - 2.1 3.3 .652

Season 3

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1981-821978-79
Team Boston CelticsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game NVP-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsBullets Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 77 38.0 22.9 2.6 8.3 10.9 5.8 1.9 0.9 3.3 3.2 9.2 18.4 .503 0.1 0.7 .212 4.3 4.9 .863
Mitch Kupchak 66 24.3 14.6 2.3 4.2 6.5 1.3 0.3 0.3 1.8 2.1 5.6 10.4 .539 - - - 3.4 4.5 .743
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 12 40.8 17.8 2.8 9.8 12.5 5.6 1.9 1.4 3.2 3.6 7.3 17.2 .427 0.1 0.5 .167 3.1 3.8 .822
Mitch Kupchak 8 17.1 6.5 2.0 2.3 4.3 0.4 0.3 0.0 0.6 1.5 2.6 6.5 .404 - - - 1.3 1.9 .667

Season 4

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1982-831979-80
Team Boston CelticsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 79 37.7 23.6 2.4 8.6 11.0 5.8 1.9 0.9 3.0 2.5 9.5 18.7 .504 0.3 1.0 .286 4.4 5.3 .840
Mitch Kupchak 40 11.3 4.7 0.8 1.8 2.6 0.4 0.2 0.2 1.0 1.2 1.7 4.0 .419 0.0 0.1 .000 1.3 1.9 .693
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 6 40.0 20.5 3.3 9.2 12.5 6.8 2.2 0.5 3.2 2.5 8.2 19.3 .422 0.2 0.7 .250 4.0 4.8 .828
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------

Season 5

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1983-841980-81
Team Boston CelticsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 79 38.3 24.2 2.3 7.8 10.1 6.6 1.8 0.9 3.0 2.5 9.6 19.5 .492 0.2 0.9 .247 4.7 5.3 .888
Mitch Kupchak 82 23.6 12.5 2.4 4.5 6.9 0.8 0.4 0.3 2.0 2.4 4.8 9.1 .525 0.0 0.0 .000 2.9 4.1 .706
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 23 41.8 27.5 2.7 8.3 11.0 5.9 2.3 1.2 3.8 3.1 10.0 19.0 .524 0.3 0.7 .412 7.3 8.3 .879
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------

Season 6

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1984-851981-82
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost NBA FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 80 39.5 28.7 2.1 8.5 10.5 6.6 1.6 1.2 3.1 2.6 11.5 22.0 .522 0.7 1.6 .427 5.0 5.7 .882
Mitch Kupchak 26 31.6 14.3 2.5 5.6 8.1 1.3 0.5 0.4 1.7 3.1 5.9 10.3 .573 0.0 0.0 - 2.5 3.8 .663
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 20 40.8 26.0 2.7 6.5 9.1 5.8 1.7 1.0 2.9 2.7 9.8 21.3 .461 0.4 1.3 .280 6.1 6.8 .890
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------

Note: Mitch Kupchak didn't play in 1982-83.

Season 7

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1985-861983-84
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionLakers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 82 38.0 25.8 2.3 7.5 9.8 6.8 2.0 0.6 3.2 2.2 9.7 19.6 .496 1.0 2.4 .423 5.4 6.0 .896
Mitch Kupchak 34 9.5 3.1 1.0 1.5 2.6 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.6 1.4 1.2 3.2 .380 0.0 0.0 .000 0.6 1.0 .647
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 18 42.8 25.9 1.9 7.4 9.3 8.2 2.1 0.6 2.6 3.1 9.5 18.4 .517 1.3 3.1 .411 5.6 6.1 .927
Mitch Kupchak 9 7.7 2.0 1.3 1.9 3.2 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.7 1.3 0.6 1.9 .294 0.0 0.0 - 0.9 1.6 .571

Season 8

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1986-871984-85
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost NBA FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 74 40.6 28.1 1.7 7.5 9.2 7.6 1.8 0.9 3.2 2.5 10.6 20.2 .525 1.2 3.0 .400 5.6 6.1 .910
Mitch Kupchak 58 12.3 5.3 1.2 2.0 3.2 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.8 1.8 2.1 4.2 .504 0.0 0.0 - 1.0 1.6 .659
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 23 44.1 27.0 1.8 8.3 10.0 7.2 1.2 0.8 3.1 2.4 9.4 19.7 .476 0.6 1.8 .341 7.7 8.4 .912
Mitch Kupchak 16 12.3 4.7 0.7 2.3 3.0 0.3 0.1 0.4 0.6 2.6 1.9 3.3 .585 0.0 0.1 .000 0.8 1.4 .591

Season 9

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1987-881985-86
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsLakers 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 %
Larry Bird 76 39.0 29.9 1.4 7.8 9.3 6.1 1.6 0.8 2.8 2.1 11.6 22.0 .527 1.3 3.1 .414 5.5 6.0 .916
Mitch Kupchak 55 14.2 6.0 1.3 2.2 3.5 0.3 0.2 0.1 1.2 1.9 2.3 4.7 .482 0.0 0.0 .000 1.5 2.0 .750
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 17 44.9 24.5 1.7 7.1 8.8 6.8 2.1 0.8 2.9 2.6 8.9 19.9 .450 0.7 1.9 .375 5.9 6.6 .894
Mitch Kupchak 5 11.2 4.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.6 1.2 1.6 3.0 .533 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.2 .667

Season 10

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1988-89-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 6 31.5 19.3 0.2 6.0 6.2 4.8 1.0 0.8 1.8 3.0 8.2 17.3 .471 0.0 0.0 - 3.0 3.2 .947
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------

Season 11

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1989-90-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
Larry Bird 75 39.3 24.3 1.2 8.3 9.5 7.5 1.4 0.8 3.2 2.3 9.6 20.2 .473 0.9 2.6 .333 4.3 4.6 .930
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 5 41.4 24.4 1.4 7.8 9.2 8.8 1.0 1.0 3.6 2.0 8.8 19.8 .444 1.0 3.8 .263 5.8 6.4 .906
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------

Season 12

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1990-91-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 60 38.0 19.4 0.9 7.6 8.5 7.2 1.8 1.0 3.1 2.0 7.7 17.0 .454 1.3 3.3 .389 2.7 3.1 .891
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 10 39.6 17.1 0.8 6.4 7.2 6.5 1.3 0.3 1.9 2.8 6.2 15.2 .408 0.3 2.1 .143 4.4 5.1 .863
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------

Season 13

Larry Bird Mitch Kupchak
Season 1991-92-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 45 36.9 20.2 1.0 8.6 9.6 6.8 0.9 0.7 2.8 1.8 7.8 16.8 .466 1.2 2.8 .406 3.3 3.6 .926
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 4 26.8 11.3 0.5 4.0 4.5 5.3 0.3 0.5 1.5 1.8 5.3 10.5 .500 0.0 1.3 .000 0.8 1.0 .750
Mitch Kupchak ------- --- ----------