Billy Cunningham vs. Sam Perkins Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Sam Perkins and Billy Cunningham, 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.

Billy Cunningham played 9 years in the NBA, 8 less than Sam Perkins, who played 17. Billy Cunningham had the first of his seasons in 1965-66, while Sam Perkins had his rookie season in 1984-85. 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
Billy Cunningham 9 6 1965-66 to 1975-76
Sam Perkins 17 15 1984-85 to 2000-01

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

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1965-661984-85
Team Philadelphia 76ersDallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Div FinalsMavericks 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 %
Billy Cunningham 80 26.7 14.3 - - 7.5 2.6 - - - 3.8 5.4 12.6 .426 - - - 3.5 5.5 .634
Sam Perkins 82 28.3 11.0 2.3 5.1 7.4 1.6 0.8 0.8 1.2 2.9 4.2 9.0 .471 0.1 0.4 .250 2.4 3.0 .820
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 4 17.3 5.3 - - 4.5 2.5 - - - 2.8 1.3 7.8 .161 - - - 2.8 3.3 .846
Sam Perkins 4 42.3 18.8 4.0 8.8 12.8 2.8 0.5 0.3 0.8 3.3 6.0 12.3 .490 0.3 1.0 .250 6.5 8.5 .765

Season 2

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1966-671985-86
Team Philadelphia 76ersDallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionMavericks Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 81 26.8 18.5 - - 7.3 2.5 - - - 3.2 6.9 15.0 .459 - - - 4.7 6.9 .686
Sam Perkins 80 32.8 15.4 2.4 6.1 8.6 1.9 0.9 1.2 1.8 2.7 5.7 11.4 .503 0.1 0.4 .333 3.8 4.7 .814
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 15 22.6 15.0 - - 6.2 2.2 - - - 3.5 5.5 14.7 .376 - - - 3.9 6.0 .656
Sam Perkins 10 34.7 14.9 3.0 5.3 8.3 2.4 0.9 1.4 1.6 3.2 5.7 13.3 .429 0.2 0.8 .250 3.3 4.3 .767

Season 3

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1967-681986-87
Team Philadelphia 76ersDallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Div FinalsMavericks 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 %
Billy Cunningham 74 28.1 18.9 - - 7.6 2.5 - - - 3.5 7.0 15.9 .438 - - - 5.0 6.9 .723
Sam Perkins 80 33.6 14.8 2.5 5.2 7.7 1.8 1.4 1.0 1.7 3.4 5.8 12.0 .482 0.2 0.7 .352 3.1 3.7 .828
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 3 28.7 20.7 - - 7.3 3.3 - - - 5.3 8.0 14.3 .558 - - - 4.7 5.7 .824
Sam Perkins 4 33.3 17.0 3.0 5.5 8.5 1.3 1.0 0.3 2.3 4.0 6.5 13.0 .500 0.0 1.0 .000 4.0 5.8 .696

Season 4

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1968-691987-88
Team Philadelphia 76ersDallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Div SemisMavericks 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 %
Billy Cunningham 82 40.8 24.8 - - 12.8 3.5 - - - 4.0 9.0 21.2 .426 - - - 6.8 9.2 .737
Sam Perkins 75 33.3 14.2 2.7 5.3 8.0 1.6 1.0 0.7 1.6 3.0 5.3 11.7 .450 0.1 0.4 .167 3.6 4.4 .822
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 5 43.4 24.4 - - 12.6 2.4 - - - 4.8 9.8 23.4 .419 - - - 4.8 7.6 .632
Sam Perkins 17 33.6 13.5 2.3 4.3 6.6 1.8 1.5 1.0 1.8 3.0 5.2 11.5 .451 0.1 0.4 .143 3.1 3.9 .803

Season 5

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1969-701988-89
Team Philadelphia 76ersDallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East 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 %
Billy Cunningham 81 39.4 26.1 - - 13.6 4.3 - - - 4.1 9.9 21.1 .469 - - - 6.3 8.6 .729
Sam Perkins 78 36.7 15.0 3.0 5.8 8.8 1.6 1.0 1.2 1.8 2.9 5.7 12.3 .464 0.1 0.5 .184 3.5 4.2 .833
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 5 41.0 29.2 - - 10.4 4.0 - - - 3.8 12.2 24.6 .496 - - - 4.8 7.2 .667
Sam Perkins ------- --- ----------

Season 6

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1970-711989-90
Team Philadelphia 76ersDallas Mavericks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf SemisMavericks 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 %
Billy Cunningham 81 38.1 23.0 - - 11.7 4.9 - - - 4.0 8.7 18.8 .462 - - - 5.6 7.7 .734
Sam Perkins 76 35.1 15.9 2.8 4.8 7.5 2.3 1.2 0.8 1.9 3.0 5.7 11.6 .493 0.1 0.4 .214 4.3 5.6 .778
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 7 43.0 25.9 - - 15.4 5.7 - - - 4.0 9.6 20.3 .472 - - - 6.7 9.6 .701
Sam Perkins 3 39.3 15.0 3.3 4.0 7.3 2.7 1.0 0.7 2.3 5.7 5.3 12.0 .444 0.0 0.3 .000 4.3 5.7 .765

Season 7

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1971-721990-91
Team Philadelphia 76ersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayLakers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham 75 38.7 23.3 - - 12.2 5.9 - - - 3.9 8.8 19.0 .461 - - - 5.7 8.0 .712
Sam Perkins 73 34.3 13.5 2.3 5.1 7.4 1.5 0.9 1.1 1.4 3.4 5.0 10.2 .495 0.2 0.9 .281 3.1 3.8 .821
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 19 39.6 17.7 2.2 6.1 8.3 1.7 0.8 1.4 1.9 3.6 6.4 11.6 .548 0.6 1.6 .367 4.4 5.7 .761

Note: Billy Cunningham didn't play in 1972-73 and 1973-74.

Season 8

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1974-751991-92
Team Philadelphia 76ersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards
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 %
Billy Cunningham 80 35.7 19.5 1.6 7.5 9.1 5.5 1.1 0.4 - 3.4 7.6 17.8 .428 - - - 4.3 5.6 .777
Sam Perkins 63 37.0 16.5 3.0 5.8 8.8 2.2 1.0 1.0 1.3 3.0 5.7 12.7 .450 0.2 1.1 .217 4.8 5.9 .817
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins ------- --- ----------

Season 9

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season 1975-761992-93
Team Philadelphia 76ersLos Angeles Lakers, Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlaySupersonics 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 %
Billy Cunningham 20 32.0 13.7 1.5 5.9 7.4 5.4 1.2 0.5 - 2.9 5.2 12.6 .410 - - - 3.4 4.4 .773
Sam Perkins 79 29.8 13.1 2.1 4.6 6.6 2.0 0.8 1.0 1.4 2.8 4.8 10.1 .477 0.3 0.9 .338 3.2 3.9 .820
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 19 32.9 14.4 1.7 5.3 7.0 1.9 1.0 1.3 1.1 2.9 5.2 11.8 .436 1.6 4.2 .380 2.5 2.9 .873

Season 10

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -1993-94
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Supersonics 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 %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 81 26.8 12.3 1.5 3.0 4.5 1.4 0.8 0.4 1.3 2.4 4.2 9.6 .438 1.2 3.3 .367 2.7 3.4 .801
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 5 28.2 9.8 1.2 6.0 7.2 0.8 0.8 0.4 1.2 3.0 2.8 8.4 .333 1.2 2.8 .429 3.0 3.4 .882

Season 11

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -1994-95
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Supersonics 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 %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 82 28.7 12.7 1.2 3.7 4.9 1.6 0.9 0.5 0.9 2.3 4.2 9.0 .466 1.7 4.2 .397 2.6 3.3 .799
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 4 35.3 13.5 1.5 6.3 7.8 3.3 0.8 1.3 2.3 3.0 5.3 12.0 .438 2.5 5.5 .455 0.5 0.5 1.000

Season 12

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -1995-96
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Supersonics Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 82 26.5 11.8 1.2 3.2 4.5 1.5 1.0 0.6 1.0 2.1 4.0 9.7 .408 1.6 4.4 .355 2.3 2.9 .793
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 21 31.1 12.3 1.0 3.3 4.3 1.7 0.7 0.3 1.4 2.1 4.3 9.3 .459 1.5 4.1 .368 2.2 2.9 .754

Season 13

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -1996-97
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Supersonics Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 81 24.4 11.0 0.9 2.8 3.7 1.3 0.9 0.6 1.0 1.7 3.6 8.2 .439 1.5 3.8 .395 2.3 2.8 .817
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 12 28.3 8.4 1.3 3.2 4.4 1.3 1.0 1.0 1.1 2.8 2.6 7.7 .337 1.2 3.8 .311 2.1 2.4 .862

Season 14

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -1997-98
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Supersonics Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 81 20.7 7.2 0.7 2.5 3.1 1.4 0.8 0.4 0.8 2.0 2.4 5.8 .416 1.1 2.7 .392 1.2 1.6 .789
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 10 21.0 5.4 0.6 2.6 3.2 1.4 0.3 0.5 1.1 2.2 1.6 4.2 .381 1.0 2.4 .417 1.2 2.0 .600

Season 15

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -1998-99
Team -Indiana Pacers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Pacers Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 48 16.4 5.0 0.8 2.1 2.9 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.5 1.5 1.7 4.2 .400 0.7 1.9 .389 0.9 1.3 .717
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 13 11.2 4.1 0.2 1.8 1.9 0.5 0.0 0.2 0.5 1.0 1.4 2.7 .514 0.8 1.8 .458 0.5 0.7 .667

Season 16

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -1999-00
Team -Indiana Pacers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Pacers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 81 20.0 6.6 0.8 2.8 3.6 0.8 0.4 0.4 0.8 1.7 2.3 5.4 .417 1.1 2.7 .408 1.0 1.2 .825
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 23 18.2 4.8 0.7 2.4 3.2 0.4 0.2 0.3 0.3 2.0 1.5 4.6 .324 1.0 2.9 .348 0.8 0.9 .905

Season 17

Billy Cunningham Sam Perkins
Season -2000-01
Team -Indiana Pacers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Pacers 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 %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 64 15.6 3.8 0.5 2.1 2.6 0.6 0.5 0.3 0.3 1.0 1.3 3.5 .381 0.6 1.7 .345 0.5 0.6 .842
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Billy Cunningham ------- --- ----------
Sam Perkins 3 6.7 1.7 0.3 1.0 1.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.7 2.7 .250 0.3 1.3 .250 0.0 0.0 -