Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Don Nelson Comparison

Head-to-head comparison between the NBA stars Don Nelson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar that includes championships won, honors and awards obtained, regular season and playoffs stats and other data put side by side.

Who scored more points in his career? Who averaged more points in playoffs? Who won more championships? Who led the season more times? Who won more MVP awards? These questions and many more, are answered here. It includes NBA Championships, seasons, playoffs, awards, statistical data for points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks and percentages.

Head-To-Head Career Comparison

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

vs.

Don Nelson

NBA Timeline:	1946-47 2023-24
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 1969-70 to 1988-89
Don Nelson: 1962-63 to 1975-76

NBA Championships and Seasons

NBA Championships Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 6 Don Nelson 5

NBA Seasons Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 20 Don Nelson 14

Playoffs Played Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 18 Don Nelson 11

All-Star Games Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 19 Don Nelson 0

Honors and Awards

Season MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 6 Don Nelson 0

Finals MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 2 Don Nelson 0 *

All-NBA First Team Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 10 Don Nelson 0

All-NBA Teams (Total Selections) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 15 Don Nelson 0

All-Defensive 1st Team Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 5 Don Nelson 0 *

All-Defensive Teams (Total Selections) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11 Don Nelson 0

Scoring Leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 2 Don Nelson 0

Rebounds Leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1 Don Nelson 0

Blocks Leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 4 * Don Nelson 0 *

Rookie of The Year Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1 Don Nelson 0

* Notes: Finals MVP and Defensive Teams awarded since 1968-69. Blocks and steals started to be recorded in 1973-74.

NBA Regular Season Stats

Stats Per Game

Points Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 24.6 Don Nelson 10.3

Rebounds Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11.2 Don Nelson 4.9

Assists Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 3.6 Don Nelson 1.4

Steals Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 0.9 * Don Nelson 0.3 *

Blocks Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 2.6 * Don Nelson 0.1 *

Totals Stats

Total Points Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 38,387 Don Nelson 10,898

Total Rebounds Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 17,440 Don Nelson 5,192

Total Assists Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 5,660 Don Nelson 1,526

Total Steals Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1,160 * Don Nelson 65 *

Total Blocks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 3,189 * Don Nelson 35 *

Total Games Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1,560 Don Nelson 1,053

Percentages

Field Goal Percentage Kareem Abdul-Jabbar .559 Don Nelson .480

3-Point Percentage Kareem Abdul-Jabbar .056 * Don Nelson - n/a **

Free Throw Percentage Kareem Abdul-Jabbar .721 Don Nelson .765

Best Season (no game minimum)

Points Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 34.8 (1972) Don Nelson 15.4 (1970)

Rebounds Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 16.9 (1976) Don Nelson 7.3 (1970)

Assists Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 5.4 (1979) Don Nelson 2.3 (1972)

Steals Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1.7 (1978) * Don Nelson 0.4 (1975) *

Blocks Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 4.1 (1976) * Don Nelson 0.2 (1975) *

NBA Playoffs Stats

Stats Per Game

Points Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 24.3 Don Nelson 10.5

Rebounds Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 10.5 Don Nelson 4.8

Assists Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 3.2 Don Nelson 1.4

Steals Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1.0 * Don Nelson 0.3 *

Blocks Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 2.4 * Don Nelson 0.1 *

Totals Stats

Total Points Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 5,762 Don Nelson 1,577

Total Rebounds Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 2,481 Don Nelson 719

Total Assists Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 767 Don Nelson 210

Total Steals Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 189 * Don Nelson 13 *

Total Blocks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 476 * Don Nelson 7 *

Total Games Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 237 Don Nelson 150

Percentages

Field Goal Percentage Kareem Abdul-Jabbar .533 Don Nelson .498

3-Point Percentage Kareem Abdul-Jabbar .000 * Don Nelson - n/a **

Free Throw Percentage Kareem Abdul-Jabbar .740 Don Nelson .817

Best Playoffs (no game minimum)

Points Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 35.2 (1970) Don Nelson 15.4 (1975)

Rebounds Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 18.2 (1972) Don Nelson 7.5 (1968)

Assists Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 5.1 (1972) Don Nelson 2.4 (1975)

Steals Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1.7 (1977) * Don Nelson 0.4 (1974) *

Blocks Per Game Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 4.1 (1979) * Don Nelson 0.2 (1975) *

Notes: * Blocks and steals started to be recorded in 1973-74. Some years in this player's career don't have stats. Three-point shots were implemented in 1979-80. Some years in this player's career don't have stats. ** Three-point shots were implemented in 1979-80, this player has no data for the stat.