Allen Iverson vs. Yao Ming Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Yao Ming and Allen Iverson, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

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.

Allen Iverson played 14 years in the NBA, 6 more than Yao Ming, who played 8. Allen Iverson had the first of his seasons in 1996-97, while Yao Ming had his rookie season in 2002-03. 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 achievements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Rookie Season
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	1996-97	2002-03
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	Rookie of the Year	-
	All-Rookie First Team	All-Rookie First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did not play	Did not play

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Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	76	40.1	23.5	1.5	2.6	4.1	7.5	2.1	0.3	4.4	3.1	8.2	19.8	.416	2.0	6.0	.341	5.0	7.2	.702
difference:	+6	+11.1	+10.0	+0.9	+3.2	+4.1	+5.8	+1.7	+1.5	-2.3	-0.3	+3.3	+10.0	+.082	+2.0	+6.0		+1.3	+2.7	+.109
Yao Ming	82	29.0	13.5	2.4	5.8	8.2	1.7	0.4	1.8	2.1	2.8	4.9	9.8	.498	0.0	0.0	-	3.7	4.5	.811
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Allen Iverson nor Yao Ming played in the postseason in their season 1

Season 2
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	1997-98	2003-04
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did not play	Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	80	39.4	22.0	1.1	2.6	3.7	6.2	2.2	0.3	3.1	2.5	8.1	17.6	.461	0.9	2.9	.298	4.9	6.7	.729
difference:	+2	+6.6	+4.5	+1.3	+4.0	+5.3	+4.7	+1.9	+1.6	-0.6	-0.8	+1.6	+5.1	+.061	+0.9	+2.9		+0.5	+1.3	+.080
Yao Ming	82	32.8	17.5	2.4	6.6	9.0	1.5	0.3	1.9	2.5	3.3	6.5	12.5	.522	0.0	0.0	-	4.4	5.4	.809
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Yao Ming	5	37.6	15.0	2.2	5.2	7.4	1.8	0.4	1.4	2.6	4.0	6.2	13.6	.456	0.0	0.0	-	2.6	3.4	.765

Season 3
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	1998-99	2004-05
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	Scoring Leader	-
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	76ers Lost East Conf Semis	Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	48	41.5	26.8	1.4	3.5	4.9	4.6	2.3	0.1	3.5	2.0	9.1	22.0	.412	1.2	4.1	.291	7.4	9.9	.751
difference:	+32	+10.9	+8.5	+1.2	+2.3	+3.5	+3.8	+1.9	+1.9	-1.0	-1.7	+2.4	+9.8	+.140	+1.2	+4.1		+2.5	+3.7	+.032
Yao Ming	80	30.6	18.3	2.6	5.8	8.4	0.8	0.4	2.0	2.5	3.7	6.7	12.2	.552	0.0	0.0	-	4.9	6.2	.783
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	8	45.0	28.5	1.8	2.4	4.1	4.9	2.5	0.3	3.0	2.4	11.0	26.8	.411	1.9	6.6	.283	4.6	6.5	.712
difference:	+1	+13.1	+7.1	+1.5	+2.0	+3.6	+4.2	+2.2	+2.4	-0.3	-2.0	+3.1	+14.8	+.244	+1.9	+6.6		+1.1	+1.4	+.015
Yao Ming	7	31.9	21.4	3.3	4.4	7.7	0.7	0.3	2.7	2.7	4.4	7.9	12.0	.655	0.0	0.0	-	5.7	7.9	.727

Season 4
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	1999-00	2005-06
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	-	All-NBA Third Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	76ers Lost East Conf Semis	Did not play

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4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	70	40.8	28.4	1.0	2.8	3.8	4.7	2.1	0.1	3.3	2.3	10.4	24.8	.421	1.3	3.7	.341	6.3	8.9	.713
difference:	+13	+6.6	+6.1	+1.6	+4.8	+6.4	+3.2	+1.6	+1.5	-0.7	-1.1	+2.2	+9.0	+.098	+1.3	+3.7		+0.4	+2.0	+.140
Yao Ming	57	34.2	22.3	2.6	7.6	10.2	1.5	0.5	1.6	2.6	3.4	8.2	15.8	.519	0.0	0.0	-	5.9	6.9	.853
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	10	44.4	26.2	1.4	2.6	4.0	4.5	1.2	0.1	3.2	2.4	9.1	23.7	.384	1.2	3.9	.308	6.8	9.2	.739
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 5
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	2000-01	2006-07
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	Scoring Leader	-
	Steals Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	76ers Lost NBA Finals	Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	71	42.0	31.1	0.7	3.1	3.8	4.6	2.5	0.3	3.3	2.1	10.7	25.5	.420	1.4	4.3	.320	8.2	10.1	.814
difference:	+23	+8.2	+6.1	+1.4	+4.2	+5.6	+2.6	+2.1	+1.7	-0.2	-1.2	+1.9	+8.4	+.096	+1.4	+4.3		+0.8	+1.5	+.048
Yao Ming	48	33.8	25.0	2.1	7.3	9.4	2.0	0.4	2.0	3.5	3.3	8.8	17.1	.516	0.0	0.0	-	7.4	8.6	.862
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	22	46.5	32.9	0.7	4.0	4.7	6.1	2.4	0.3	2.9	2.5	11.7	30.0	.389	2.2	6.5	.338	7.3	9.5	.774
difference:	+15	+9.4	+7.8	+2.6	+3.0	+5.6	+5.2	+2.3	+0.4	-1.8	-1.4	+3.8	+12.1	+.051	+2.2	+6.5		+2.1	+1.2	+.106
Yao Ming	7	37.1	25.1	3.3	7.0	10.3	0.9	0.1	0.7	4.7	3.9	7.9	17.9	.440	0.0	0.0	-	9.4	10.7	.880

Season 6
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	2001-02	2007-08
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	-	All-NBA Third Team
	Scoring Leader	-
	Steals Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	76ers Lost East Conf 1st Rd	Did not play

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6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	60	43.7	31.4	0.7	3.8	4.5	5.5	2.8	0.2	4.0	1.7	11.1	27.8	.398	1.3	4.5	.291	7.9	9.8	.812
difference:	+5	+6.5	+9.4	+2.4	+3.9	+6.3	+3.2	+2.3	+1.8	-0.7	-1.4	+3.2	+12.3	+.109	+1.3	+4.5		+1.6	+2.4	+.038
Yao Ming	55	37.2	22.0	3.1	7.7	10.8	2.3	0.5	2.0	3.3	3.1	7.9	15.5	.507	0.0	0.0	-	6.3	7.4	.850
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	5	42.0	30.0	0.2	3.4	3.6	4.2	2.6	0.0	2.4	1.6	9.0	23.6	.381	1.8	5.4	.333	10.2	12.6	.810
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 7
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	2002-03	2008-09
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	All-NBA Second Team
	Steals Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	76ers Lost East Conf Semis	Rockets Lost West Conf Semis

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7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	82	42.5	27.6	0.8	3.4	4.2	5.5	2.7	0.2	3.5	1.8	9.8	23.7	.414	1.0	3.7	.277	7.0	9.0	.774
difference:	+5	+8.9	+7.9	+1.8	+3.8	+5.7	+3.7	+2.3	+1.7	-0.5	-1.5	+2.4	+10.3	+.134	+1.0	+3.7		+2.1	+3.3	+.092
Yao Ming	77	33.6	19.7	2.6	7.2	9.9	1.8	0.4	1.9	3.0	3.3	7.4	13.4	.548	0.0	0.0	-	4.9	5.7	.866
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	12	46.4	31.7	0.9	3.4	4.3	7.4	2.4	0.1	3.9	2.1	11.4	27.4	.416	1.6	4.6	.345	7.3	9.8	.737
difference:	+3	+10.5	+14.6	+1.2	+5.4	+6.6	+6.4	+2.0	+1.1	-2.0	-0.9	+5.4	+16.4	+.129	+1.6	+4.6		+2.2	+4.1	+.165
Yao Ming	9	35.9	17.1	2.1	8.8	10.9	1.0	0.4	1.2	1.9	3.0	6.0	11.0	.545	0.0	0.0	-	5.1	5.7	.902

Note: Yao Ming didn't play in 2009-10.

Season 8
	Allen Iverson	Yao Ming
Season	2003-04	2010-11
Team	Philadelphia 76ers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did not play	Did not play

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8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Allen Iverson	48	42.5	26.4	0.7	3.0	3.7	6.8	2.4	0.1	4.4	1.8	9.1	23.4	.387	1.2	4.1	.286	7.1	9.5	.745
difference:	+43	+24.3	+16.2	+0.7	+1.0	+1.7	+6.0	+2.4	+1.5	-3.0	-0.8	+5.5	+16.0	+.099	+1.2	+4.1		+4.1	+6.3	+.193
Yao Ming	5	18.2	10.2	1.4	4.0	5.4	0.8	0.0	1.6	1.4	2.6	3.6	7.4	.486	0.0	0.0	-	3.0	3.2	.938
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Allen Iverson nor Yao Ming played in the postseason in their season 8

Additional Years
* Allen Iverson played 6 seasons more than Yao Ming in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 9 to 14, from 2005 to 2010—Allen Iverson played in 3 Playoffs. In those 6 extra years over Yao Ming, Allen Iverson got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	1 All-NBA First Team 1 All-NBA Third Team 1 Scoring Leader 6 All-Star Game 1 All-Star Game MVP