James Harden vs. Sam Jones Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Sam Jones and James Harden, 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.

James Harden played 15 years in the NBA, 3 more than Sam Jones, who played 12. James Harden had the first of his seasons in 2009-10, while Sam Jones had his rookie season in 1957-58. 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
James Harden 15 15 2009-10 to 2023-24
Sam Jones 12 12 1957-58 to 1968-69

Comparison Season by Season

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

Rookie Season

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2009-101957-58
Team Oklahoma City ThunderBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie Second Team-
Playoffs Thunder Lost West Conf 1st RdCeltics Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 76 22.9 9.9 0.6 2.6 3.2 1.8 1.1 0.3 1.4 2.6 3.1 7.6 .403 1.2 3.3 .375 2.6 3.2 .808
Sam Jones 56 10.6 4.6 - - 2.9 0.7 - - - 0.8 1.8 4.2 .429 - - - 1.1 1.5 .714
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 20.0 7.7 0.2 2.3 2.5 1.8 1.0 0.2 0.5 2.3 2.0 5.2 .387 1.0 2.7 .375 2.7 3.2 .842
Sam Jones 8 9.4 3.9 - - 3.0 0.5 - - - 0.9 1.3 2.8 .455 - - - 1.4 2.0 .688

Season 2

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2010-111958-59
Team Oklahoma City ThunderBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Thunder Lost West Conf 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 %
James Harden 82 26.7 12.2 0.5 2.6 3.1 2.1 1.1 0.3 1.3 2.5 3.6 8.3 .436 1.4 4.0 .349 3.5 4.2 .843
Sam Jones 71 20.6 10.7 - - 6.0 1.4 - - - 1.4 4.3 9.9 .434 - - - 2.1 2.8 .770
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 31.6 13.0 0.6 4.8 5.4 3.6 1.2 0.8 1.6 2.8 3.9 8.2 .475 1.4 4.5 .303 3.9 4.7 .825
Sam Jones 11 17.5 10.3 - - 5.7 1.5 - - - 1.3 3.6 9.8 .370 - - - 3.0 3.5 .846

Season 3

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2011-121959-60
Team Oklahoma City ThunderBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Sixth Man of the Year-
Playoffs Thunder 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 %
James Harden 62 31.4 16.8 0.5 3.6 4.1 3.7 1.0 0.2 2.2 2.4 5.0 10.1 .491 1.8 4.7 .390 5.0 6.0 .846
Sam Jones 74 20.4 11.9 - - 5.1 1.7 - - - 1.4 4.8 10.6 .454 - - - 2.3 3.0 .764
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 20 31.5 16.3 0.7 4.5 5.1 3.4 1.6 0.1 2.1 3.4 4.7 10.7 .435 1.6 3.9 .410 5.4 6.3 .857
Sam Jones 13 15.2 8.2 - - 3.2 1.4 - - - 1.2 3.5 9.0 .385 - - - 1.3 1.6 .810

Season 4

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2012-131960-61
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 78 38.3 25.9 0.8 4.1 4.9 5.8 1.8 0.5 3.8 2.3 7.5 17.1 .438 2.3 6.2 .368 8.6 10.2 .851
Sam Jones 78 26.0 15.0 - - 5.4 2.8 - - - 1.9 6.2 13.7 .449 - - - 2.7 3.4 .787
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 40.5 26.3 0.8 5.8 6.7 4.5 2.0 1.0 4.5 3.0 7.5 19.2 .391 2.5 7.3 .341 8.8 11.0 .803
Sam Jones 10 25.8 13.1 - - 5.4 2.2 - - - 2.2 5.0 11.2 .446 - - - 3.1 3.5 .886

Season 5

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2013-141961-62
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 73 38.0 25.4 0.8 3.9 4.7 6.1 1.6 0.4 3.6 2.4 7.5 16.5 .456 2.4 6.6 .366 7.9 9.1 .866
Sam Jones 78 30.6 18.4 - - 5.9 3.0 - - - 1.9 7.6 16.5 .464 - - - 3.1 3.8 .818
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 43.8 26.8 0.8 3.8 4.7 5.8 2.0 0.2 3.5 3.5 8.3 22.2 .376 2.7 9.0 .296 7.5 8.3 .900
Sam Jones 14 36.0 20.6 - - 7.1 3.1 - - - 2.1 8.8 19.8 .444 - - - 3.0 4.3 .700

Season 6

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2014-151962-63
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 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 %
James Harden 81 36.8 27.4 0.9 4.7 5.7 7.0 1.9 0.7 4.0 2.6 8.0 18.1 .440 2.6 6.9 .375 8.8 10.2 .868
Sam Jones 76 30.6 19.7 - - 5.2 3.2 - - - 2.1 8.2 17.2 .476 - - - 3.4 4.3 .793
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 37.4 27.2 0.7 5.0 5.7 7.5 1.6 0.4 4.5 2.9 7.6 17.3 .439 2.4 6.3 .383 9.6 10.5 .916
Sam Jones 13 34.6 23.8 - - 6.2 2.5 - - - 3.2 9.2 19.1 .484 - - - 5.3 6.4 .831

Season 7

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2015-161963-64
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 82 38.1 29.0 0.8 5.3 6.1 7.5 1.7 0.6 4.6 2.8 8.7 19.7 .439 2.9 8.0 .359 8.8 10.2 .860
Sam Jones 76 31.3 19.4 - - 4.6 2.7 - - - 2.5 8.1 17.9 .450 - - - 3.3 4.2 .783
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 5 38.6 26.6 1.4 3.8 5.2 7.6 2.4 0.2 5.2 2.6 8.2 20.0 .410 2.6 8.4 .310 7.6 9.0 .844
Sam Jones 10 35.6 23.2 - - 4.7 2.3 - - - 2.4 9.1 18.0 .506 - - - 5.0 6.8 .735

Season 8

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2016-171964-65
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement Assists Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 81 36.4 29.1 1.2 7.0 8.1 11.2 1.5 0.5 5.7 2.7 8.3 18.9 .440 3.2 9.3 .347 9.2 10.9 .847
Sam Jones 80 36.1 25.9 - - 5.1 2.8 - - - 2.2 10.3 22.7 .452 - - - 5.4 6.5 .820
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 37.0 28.5 0.6 4.8 5.5 8.5 1.9 0.5 5.4 3.9 8.2 19.8 .413 2.9 10.5 .278 9.2 10.5 .878
Sam Jones 12 41.3 28.6 - - 4.6 2.5 - - - 3.3 11.3 24.5 .459 - - - 6.1 7.0 .869

Season 9

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2017-181965-66
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 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 %
James Harden 72 35.4 30.4 0.6 4.8 5.4 8.8 1.8 0.7 4.4 2.3 9.0 20.1 .449 3.7 10.0 .367 8.7 10.1 .858
Sam Jones 67 32.2 23.5 - - 5.2 3.2 - - - 2.5 9.3 19.9 .469 - - - 4.9 6.1 .799
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 36.5 28.6 0.8 4.4 5.2 6.8 2.2 0.6 3.8 2.7 9.3 22.6 .410 3.1 10.2 .299 6.9 7.8 .887
Sam Jones 17 35.4 24.8 - - 5.1 3.1 - - - 3.8 9.1 20.2 .449 - - - 6.7 8.0 .838

Season 10

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2018-191966-67
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf SemisCeltics Lost East Div Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 78 36.8 36.1 0.8 5.8 6.6 7.5 2.0 0.7 5.0 3.1 10.8 24.5 .442 4.8 13.2 .368 9.7 11.0 .879
Sam Jones 72 32.3 22.1 - - 4.7 3.0 - - - 2.7 8.9 19.5 .454 - - - 4.4 5.2 .857
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 38.5 31.6 0.8 6.0 6.8 6.6 2.2 0.9 4.6 3.7 9.9 24.0 .413 4.4 12.5 .350 7.5 8.9 .837
Sam Jones 9 36.2 26.7 - - 5.1 3.1 - - - 3.3 10.6 23.0 .459 - - - 5.6 6.4 .862

Season 11

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2019-201967-68
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 68 36.5 34.3 1.0 5.5 6.6 7.5 1.8 0.9 4.5 3.3 9.9 22.3 .444 4.4 12.4 .355 10.2 11.8 .865
Sam Jones 73 33.0 21.3 - - 4.9 3.0 - - - 2.5 8.5 18.5 .461 - - - 4.3 5.2 .827
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 12 37.3 29.6 1.0 4.6 5.6 7.7 1.5 0.8 3.8 3.6 9.1 19.0 .478 3.3 9.8 .333 8.2 9.7 .845
Sam Jones 19 36.1 20.5 - - 3.4 2.6 - - - 3.1 8.5 19.3 .441 - - - 3.5 4.4 .786

Season 12

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2020-211968-69
Team Houston Rockets, Brooklyn NetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nets Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 44 36.6 24.6 0.8 7.1 7.9 10.8 1.2 0.8 4.0 2.3 7.8 16.7 .466 2.8 7.6 .362 6.3 7.3 .861
Sam Jones 70 26.0 16.3 - - 3.8 2.6 - - - 1.7 7.1 15.8 .450 - - - 2.1 2.7 .783
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 9 35.8 20.2 0.8 5.6 6.3 8.6 1.7 0.7 2.9 2.6 5.7 12.0 .472 2.7 7.3 .364 6.2 6.9 .903
Sam Jones 18 28.6 16.8 - - 3.2 2.1 - - - 2.5 6.9 16.4 .419 - - - 3.1 3.8 .797

Season 13

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2021-22-
Team Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers 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 %
James Harden 65 37.2 22.0 0.8 6.8 7.7 10.3 1.3 0.6 4.4 2.4 6.3 15.3 .410 2.3 6.9 .330 7.2 8.2 .877
Sam Jones ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 12 39.9 18.6 0.9 4.8 5.7 8.6 0.8 0.7 4.2 2.4 5.3 13.2 .405 2.3 6.3 .368 5.6 6.3 .893
Sam Jones ------- --- ----------

Season 14

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2022-23-
Team Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement Assists Leader-
Playoffs 76ers 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 %
James Harden 58 36.8 21.0 0.7 5.4 6.1 10.7 1.2 0.5 3.4 1.9 6.4 14.5 .441 2.8 7.2 .385 5.4 6.2 .867
Sam Jones ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 38.8 20.3 0.5 5.6 6.2 8.3 1.8 0.4 3.2 2.5 6.5 16.6 .393 2.8 7.5 .378 4.4 5.0 .873
Sam Jones ------- --- ----------

Season 15

James Harden Sam Jones
Season 2023-24-
Team Los Angeles Clippers-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Clippers 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 %
James Harden 72 34.3 16.6 0.5 4.7 5.1 8.5 1.1 0.8 2.6 1.8 4.9 11.4 .428 2.6 6.8 .381 4.2 4.8 .878
Sam Jones ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 40.3 21.2 0.5 4.0 4.5 8.0 1.0 1.0 2.3 2.2 6.7 14.8 .449 3.0 7.8 .383 4.8 5.3 .906
Sam Jones ------- --- ----------