Nate Thurmond vs. Buck Williams Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Buck Williams and Nate Thurmond, 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

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.

Nate Thurmond played 14 years in the NBA, 3 less than Buck Williams, who played 17. Nate Thurmond had the first of his seasons in 1963-64, while Buck Williams had his rookie season in 1981-82. 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
Nate Thurmond 14 9 1963-64 to 1976-77
Buck Williams 17 14 1981-82 to 1997-98

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

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1963-641981-82
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards -Achievement Rookie of the Year
Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Warriors Lost NBA FinalsNets 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 %
Nate Thurmond 76 25.9 7.0 - - 10.4 1.1 - - - 2.4 2.9 7.3 .395 - - - 1.3 2.3 .549
Buck Williams 82 34.5 15.5 4.2 8.0 12.3 1.3 1.0 1.0 2.9 3.5 6.3 10.7 .582 0.0 0.0 .000 3.0 4.7 .624
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 12 34.2 10.0 - - 12.3 0.8 - - - 3.8 3.5 8.0 .438 - - - 3.0 4.4 .679
Buck Williams 2 39.5 17.5 5.5 5.0 10.5 1.5 0.5 1.0 2.0 3.5 7.0 13.0 .538 0.0 0.0 - 3.5 7.5 .467

Season 2

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1964-651982-83
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNets 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 %
Nate Thurmond 77 41.2 16.5 - - 18.1 2.0 - - - 3.0 6.7 16.1 .419 - - - 3.1 4.6 .658
Buck Williams 82 36.1 17.0 4.5 8.1 12.5 1.5 1.1 1.3 3.0 3.3 6.5 11.1 .588 0.0 0.0 .000 4.0 6.4 .620
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 2 42.5 19.0 4.5 7.0 11.5 2.0 1.0 1.0 2.5 6.0 5.5 11.0 .500 0.0 0.0 - 8.0 10.0 .800

Season 3

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1965-661983-84
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayNets 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 %
Nate Thurmond 73 39.6 16.3 - - 18.0 1.5 - - - 3.1 6.2 15.3 .406 - - - 3.8 5.9 .654
Buck Williams 81 37.1 15.7 4.4 8.0 12.3 1.6 1.0 1.5 2.9 3.7 6.1 11.4 .535 0.0 0.0 .000 3.5 6.1 .570
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 11 43.0 15.5 5.2 8.9 14.1 1.5 1.4 1.5 2.6 4.0 5.7 11.8 .485 0.0 0.0 - 4.1 7.4 .556

Season 4

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1966-671984-85
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Warriors Lost NBA FinalsNets 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 %
Nate Thurmond 65 42.5 18.7 - - 21.3 2.6 - - - 2.8 7.2 16.4 .437 - - - 4.3 6.8 .629
Buck Williams 82 38.8 18.2 3.9 8.3 12.3 2.0 0.8 1.3 2.9 3.6 7.0 13.3 .530 0.0 0.0 .250 4.1 6.6 .625
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 15 46.0 15.9 - - 23.1 3.1 - - - 3.5 6.2 14.3 .433 - - - 3.5 6.1 .571
Buck Williams 3 41.0 24.7 4.7 6.0 10.7 0.3 1.0 1.7 2.0 4.0 8.7 13.3 .650 0.0 0.0 - 7.3 10.0 .733

Season 5

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1967-681985-86
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNets 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 %
Nate Thurmond 51 43.6 20.5 - - 22.0 4.2 - - - 2.7 7.5 18.2 .411 - - - 5.5 8.6 .644
Buck Williams 82 37.4 15.9 4.0 8.0 12.0 1.6 0.9 1.2 3.0 3.6 6.1 11.7 .523 0.0 0.0 .000 3.7 5.4 .676
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 3 42.0 20.7 4.0 6.3 10.3 0.7 2.0 0.3 2.0 5.0 7.0 9.7 .724 0.0 0.0 - 6.7 8.7 .769

Season 6

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1968-691986-87
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Playoffs Warriors Lost West Div SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 71 45.2 21.5 - - 19.7 3.6 - - - 2.4 8.0 19.6 .410 - - - 5.4 8.7 .615
Buck Williams 82 36.3 18.0 3.9 8.5 12.5 1.6 1.0 1.1 3.4 3.8 6.4 11.4 .557 0.0 0.0 .000 5.2 7.2 .731
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 6 43.8 16.7 - - 19.5 4.7 - - - 3.0 6.7 17.0 .392 - - - 3.3 5.7 .588
Buck Williams ------- --- ----------

Season 7

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1969-701987-88
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 43 44.6 21.9 - - 17.7 3.5 - - - 2.6 7.9 19.2 .414 - - - 6.1 8.0 .754
Buck Williams 70 37.7 18.3 4.3 7.7 11.9 1.6 1.0 0.6 2.7 3.8 6.7 11.9 .560 0.0 0.0 1.000 4.9 7.4 .668
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams ------- --- ----------

Season 8

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1970-711988-89
Team San Francisco WarriorsNew Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Playoffs Warriors Lost West 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 %
Nate Thurmond 82 40.9 20.0 - - 13.8 3.1 - - - 2.3 7.6 17.1 .445 - - - 4.8 6.6 .730
Buck Williams 74 33.1 13.0 3.4 6.0 9.4 1.1 0.8 0.5 1.9 3.0 5.0 9.5 .531 0.0 0.0 .000 2.9 4.3 .666
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 5 38.4 17.6 - - 10.2 3.0 - - - 4.0 7.2 19.4 .371 - - - 3.2 4.0 .800
Buck Williams ------- --- ----------

Season 9

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1971-721989-90
Team Golden State WarriorsPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Playoffs Warriors Lost West Conf SemisTrail Blazers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 78 43.1 21.4 - - 16.1 2.9 - - - 2.7 8.1 18.6 .432 - - - 5.3 7.2 .743
Buck Williams 82 34.2 13.6 3.0 6.7 9.8 1.4 0.8 0.5 2.0 3.5 5.0 9.2 .548 0.0 0.0 .000 3.5 5.0 .706
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 5 46.0 25.4 - - 17.8 5.2 - - - 2.4 10.6 24.4 .434 - - - 4.2 5.6 .750
Buck Williams 21 37.0 13.0 3.2 6.0 9.2 1.9 0.6 0.3 2.0 3.5 4.8 9.5 .508 0.0 0.0 - 3.4 5.0 .676

Season 10

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1972-731990-91
Team Golden State WarriorsPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Warriors Lost West Conf FinalsTrail Blazers 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 %
Nate Thurmond 79 43.3 17.1 - - 17.1 3.5 - - - 3.0 6.5 14.7 .446 - - - 4.0 5.6 .718
Buck Williams 80 32.3 11.7 2.8 6.6 9.4 1.2 0.6 0.6 1.7 3.1 4.5 7.4 .602 0.0 0.0 - 2.7 3.9 .705
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 11 41.8 14.5 - - 13.2 3.6 - - - 2.7 5.8 14.6 .398 - - - 2.9 3.6 .800
Buck Williams 16 35.8 10.3 3.3 5.6 8.9 0.9 0.6 0.3 1.5 3.4 4.1 8.1 .500 0.0 0.0 - 2.2 3.6 .603

Season 11

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1973-741991-92
Team Golden State WarriorsPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive Second TeamAchievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayTrail Blazers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 62 39.7 13.0 4.0 10.1 14.2 2.7 0.7 2.9 - 2.9 5.0 11.2 .444 - - - 3.1 4.6 .666
Buck Williams 80 31.5 11.3 3.3 5.6 8.8 1.4 0.8 0.5 1.6 3.1 4.3 7.0 .604 0.0 0.0 .000 2.8 3.7 .754
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 21 36.1 9.6 2.9 5.6 8.5 1.0 1.3 0.8 2.1 3.5 3.1 6.2 .508 0.0 0.0 - 3.3 4.3 .758

Season 12

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1974-751992-93
Team Chicago BullsPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Bulls Lost West Conf FinalsTrail Blazers 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 %
Nate Thurmond 80 34.5 7.9 3.2 8.1 11.3 4.1 0.6 2.4 - 3.4 3.1 8.6 .364 - - - 1.7 2.8 .589
Buck Williams 82 30.5 8.3 2.8 5.6 8.4 0.9 1.0 0.7 1.2 3.3 3.3 6.4 .511 0.0 0.0 .000 1.7 2.6 .645
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 13 19.5 3.5 1.8 4.8 6.7 2.4 0.4 1.6 - 2.8 1.1 2.9 .368 - - - 1.4 2.8 .486
Buck Williams 4 29.8 8.8 3.0 4.3 7.3 0.3 0.3 0.8 1.5 3.0 2.8 5.8 .478 0.0 0.0 - 3.3 4.8 .684

Season 13

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1975-761993-94
Team Chicago Bulls, Cleveland CavaliersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Cavaliers Lost East Conf FinalsTrail Blazers 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 %
Nate Thurmond 78 17.9 4.4 1.5 3.8 5.3 1.2 0.3 1.3 - 2.1 1.8 4.3 .421 - - - 0.8 1.6 .504
Buck Williams 81 32.5 9.7 3.9 6.5 10.4 1.0 0.7 0.6 1.4 3.0 3.6 6.5 .555 0.0 0.0 .000 2.5 3.7 .679
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 13 28.8 6.7 2.9 6.1 9.0 2.2 0.5 2.2 - 4.0 2.8 6.1 .468 - - - 1.0 2.5 .406
Buck Williams 4 31.3 12.8 3.5 5.3 8.8 0.5 1.0 0.5 2.0 2.8 4.8 7.0 .679 0.0 0.0 - 3.3 3.8 .867

Season 14

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season 1976-771994-95
Team Cleveland CavaliersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Cavaliers Lost East Conf 1st RdTrail Blazers 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 %
Nate Thurmond 49 20.3 5.5 2.5 5.2 7.6 1.7 0.3 1.7 - 2.6 2.0 5.0 .407 - - - 1.4 2.2 .642
Buck Williams 82 29.5 9.2 3.1 5.1 8.2 1.0 0.8 0.8 1.5 3.1 3.8 7.4 .512 0.0 0.0 .500 1.7 2.5 .673
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond 1 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 - 0.0 0.0 0.0 - - - - 0.0 0.0 -
Buck Williams 3 34.3 8.3 2.7 3.7 6.3 0.3 1.3 0.7 1.3 4.7 3.0 5.0 .600 0.0 0.0 - 2.3 3.7 .636

Season 15

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season -1995-96
Team -Portland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Trail Blazers 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 %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 70 23.9 7.3 2.3 3.5 5.8 0.6 0.6 0.7 1.3 2.7 2.7 5.5 .500 0.0 0.0 .667 1.8 2.7 .668
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 5 26.6 4.8 2.6 2.4 5.0 0.2 0.2 0.8 1.0 3.6 1.8 4.6 .391 0.2 0.4 .500 1.0 1.4 .714

Season 16

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season -1996-97
Team -New York Knicks
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Knicks 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 %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 74 20.2 6.3 2.2 3.1 5.4 0.7 0.5 0.5 1.1 2.8 2.4 4.4 .537 0.0 0.0 .000 1.6 2.4 .642
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 10 19.2 4.3 1.3 2.7 4.0 0.6 0.3 0.4 0.4 3.4 1.7 3.5 .486 0.0 0.0 - 0.9 1.7 .529

Season 17

Nate Thurmond Buck Williams
Season -1997-98
Team -New York Knicks
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Knicks 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 %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 41 18.0 4.9 1.9 2.6 4.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.9 2.3 1.8 3.6 .503 0.0 0.0 - 1.3 1.7 .732
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Buck Williams 3 15.0 4.7 2.3 3.0 5.3 0.3 0.0 0.3 1.0 1.7 1.3 3.0 .444 0.0 0.0 - 2.0 2.7 .750