Carmelo Anthony vs. Don Nelson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Don Nelson and Carmelo Anthony, 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.

Carmelo Anthony played 19 years in the NBA, 5 more than Don Nelson, who played 14. Carmelo Anthony had the first of his seasons in 2003-04, while Don Nelson had his rookie season in 1962-63. 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
Carmelo Anthony 19 13 2003-04 to 2021-22
Don Nelson 14 11 1962-63 to 1975-76

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19

Rookie Season

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2003-041962-63
Team Denver NuggetsChicago Zephyrs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First Team-
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 82 36.5 21.0 2.2 3.8 6.1 2.8 1.2 0.5 3.0 2.7 7.6 17.9 .426 0.8 2.6 .322 5.0 6.4 .777
Don Nelson 62 17.3 6.8 - - 4.5 1.2 - - - 2.2 2.1 4.7 .440 - - - 2.6 3.6 .729
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 4 36.3 15.0 1.8 6.5 8.3 2.8 1.3 0.0 4.3 2.8 5.3 16.0 .328 0.5 2.8 .182 4.0 5.0 .800
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------

Season 2

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2004-051963-64
Team Denver NuggetsLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdLakers Lost West Div Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 75 34.8 20.8 1.9 3.8 5.7 2.6 0.9 0.4 3.0 3.1 7.1 16.4 .431 0.6 2.1 .266 6.1 7.6 .796
Don Nelson 80 17.6 5.2 - - 4.0 1.0 - - - 2.3 1.7 4.0 .418 - - - 1.9 2.5 .741
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 5 36.2 19.2 2.8 2.6 5.4 2.0 0.6 0.2 2.6 4.0 7.0 16.6 .422 0.0 0.2 .000 5.2 6.4 .813
Don Nelson 5 11.2 3.4 - - 2.6 0.4 - - - 2.2 1.4 2.6 .538 - - - 0.6 0.6 1.000

Season 3

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2005-061964-65
Team Denver NuggetsLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdLakers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 80 36.8 26.5 1.5 3.4 4.9 2.7 1.1 0.5 2.7 2.9 9.5 19.7 .481 0.5 1.9 .243 7.2 8.9 .808
Don Nelson 39 6.1 2.4 - - 1.9 0.6 - - - 1.0 0.9 2.2 .424 - - - 0.5 0.7 .769
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 5 38.6 21.0 2.4 4.2 6.6 2.8 0.8 0.2 3.0 4.0 6.6 19.8 .333 0.0 0.8 .000 7.8 10.4 .750
Don Nelson 11 19.3 6.1 - - 5.4 1.7 - - - 2.8 2.2 4.8 .453 - - - 1.7 2.3 .760

Season 4

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2006-071965-66
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nuggets 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 65 38.2 28.9 2.2 3.8 6.0 3.8 1.2 0.4 3.6 3.1 10.6 22.4 .476 0.6 2.3 .268 7.1 8.7 .808
Don Nelson 75 23.5 10.2 - - 5.4 1.1 - - - 2.5 3.6 8.2 .439 - - - 3.0 4.3 .684
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 5 42.0 26.8 3.6 5.0 8.6 1.2 1.0 0.0 3.8 2.4 9.4 19.6 .480 1.8 3.6 .500 6.2 7.8 .795
Don Nelson 17 18.6 8.4 - - 5.0 0.8 - - - 2.9 2.9 6.9 .424 - - - 2.5 3.1 .808

Season 5

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2007-081966-67
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdCeltics 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 77 36.4 25.7 2.3 5.1 7.4 3.4 1.3 0.5 3.3 3.3 9.5 19.2 .492 0.8 2.1 .354 6.0 7.7 .786
Don Nelson 79 15.2 7.5 - - 3.7 0.8 - - - 1.8 2.9 6.4 .446 - - - 1.8 2.4 .742
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 4 36.5 22.5 4.8 4.8 9.5 2.0 0.5 0.3 3.0 4.3 8.0 22.0 .364 0.5 2.0 .250 6.0 7.3 .828
Don Nelson 9 15.8 7.1 - - 4.7 1.0 - - - 1.3 3.0 6.6 .458 - - - 1.1 1.9 .588

Season 6

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2008-091967-68
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Playoffs Nuggets 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 66 34.5 22.8 1.6 5.2 6.8 3.4 1.1 0.4 3.0 3.0 8.1 18.3 .443 1.0 2.6 .371 5.6 7.1 .793
Don Nelson 82 18.3 10.0 - - 5.3 1.3 - - - 2.2 3.8 7.7 .494 - - - 2.4 3.3 .728
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 16 38.3 27.2 1.6 4.2 5.8 4.1 1.8 0.6 2.3 3.8 9.1 20.1 .453 1.5 4.1 .364 7.4 9.0 .826
Don Nelson 19 24.6 12.5 - - 7.5 1.7 - - - 2.6 4.8 9.2 .520 - - - 2.9 3.9 .743

Season 7

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2009-101968-69
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nuggets 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 69 38.2 28.2 2.2 4.4 6.6 3.2 1.3 0.4 3.0 3.3 10.0 21.8 .458 0.9 2.7 .316 7.4 8.9 .830
Don Nelson 82 21.6 11.6 - - 5.6 1.1 - - - 2.4 4.6 9.4 .485 - - - 2.5 3.2 .776
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 6 42.3 30.7 2.3 6.2 8.5 3.3 2.0 0.5 3.5 4.3 10.7 23.0 .464 1.0 3.2 .316 8.3 9.5 .877
Don Nelson 18 19.3 12.4 - - 4.6 1.2 - - - 2.8 4.8 9.3 .518 - - - 2.8 3.3 .833

Season 8

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2010-111969-70
Team Denver Nuggets, New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 77 35.7 25.6 1.5 5.8 7.3 2.9 0.9 0.6 2.7 2.9 8.9 19.5 .455 1.2 3.3 .378 6.6 7.9 .838
Don Nelson 82 27.1 15.4 - - 7.3 1.8 - - - 2.9 5.6 11.2 .501 - - - 4.1 5.3 .775
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 4 39.0 26.0 3.3 7.0 10.3 4.8 1.3 0.8 3.3 4.0 8.3 22.0 .375 2.3 6.5 .346 7.3 8.5 .853
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------

Season 9

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2011-121970-71
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 55 34.1 22.6 1.6 4.7 6.3 3.6 1.1 0.4 2.6 2.8 8.0 18.6 .430 1.2 3.7 .335 5.4 6.7 .804
Don Nelson 82 27.5 13.9 - - 6.9 1.9 - - - 2.8 5.0 10.7 .468 - - - 3.9 5.2 .744
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 5 40.8 27.8 2.6 5.6 8.2 2.2 1.2 0.2 2.8 4.2 10.4 24.8 .419 0.8 3.6 .222 6.2 8.2 .756
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------

Season 10

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2012-131971-72
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisCeltics 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 67 37.0 28.7 2.0 4.9 6.9 2.6 0.8 0.5 2.6 3.1 10.0 22.2 .449 2.3 6.2 .379 6.3 7.6 .830
Don Nelson 82 25.4 13.8 - - 5.5 2.3 - - - 2.7 4.7 9.9 .480 - - - 4.3 5.5 .788
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 12 40.1 28.8 0.9 5.7 6.6 1.6 1.1 0.2 2.6 3.8 10.5 25.8 .406 1.4 4.8 .298 6.4 7.3 .885
Don Nelson 11 28.0 13.2 - - 5.5 1.9 - - - 2.7 4.7 9.0 .525 - - - 3.7 4.4 .854

Season 11

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2013-141972-73
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayCeltics 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 77 38.7 27.4 1.9 6.2 8.1 3.1 1.2 0.7 2.6 2.9 9.6 21.3 .452 2.2 5.4 .402 6.0 7.0 .848
Don Nelson 72 19.8 10.8 - - 4.4 1.4 - - - 2.2 4.3 9.0 .476 - - - 2.2 2.6 .846
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony ------- --- ----------
Don Nelson 13 23.3 11.0 - - 2.9 1.2 - - - 2.2 3.6 7.8 .465 - - - 3.8 4.3 .875

Season 12

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2014-151973-74
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 40 35.7 24.2 1.8 4.8 6.6 3.1 1.0 0.4 2.2 2.2 9.0 20.2 .444 1.5 4.5 .341 4.7 5.9 .797
Don Nelson 82 21.3 11.5 1.1 3.1 4.2 2.0 0.2 0.2 - 2.3 4.4 8.7 .508 - - - 2.6 3.3 .788
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony ------- --- ----------
Don Nelson 18 25.9 11.4 1.4 4.0 5.4 1.9 0.4 0.2 - 3.0 4.6 9.1 .500 - - - 2.3 2.9 .774

Season 13

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2015-161974-75
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayCeltics 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 72 35.1 21.8 1.4 6.4 7.7 4.2 0.9 0.5 2.4 2.5 7.9 18.2 .434 1.5 4.3 .339 4.6 5.6 .829
Don Nelson 79 26.0 14.0 1.6 4.3 5.9 2.3 0.4 0.2 - 3.0 5.4 9.9 .539 - - - 3.3 4.0 .827
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony ------- --- ----------
Don Nelson 11 24.9 15.4 1.6 2.5 4.1 2.4 0.2 0.2 - 3.3 6.0 10.6 .564 - - - 3.4 3.7 .902

Season 14

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2016-171975-76
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 74 34.3 22.4 0.8 5.1 5.9 2.9 0.8 0.5 2.1 2.7 8.1 18.8 .433 2.0 5.7 .359 4.1 4.9 .833
Don Nelson 75 12.6 6.4 0.7 1.7 2.4 1.0 0.2 0.1 - 1.5 2.3 5.1 .462 - - - 1.7 2.1 .789
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony ------- --- ----------
Don Nelson 18 17.5 9.1 0.9 2.0 2.9 0.9 0.2 0.1 - 2.6 2.9 6.0 .481 - - - 3.3 3.8 .870

Season 15

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2017-18-
Team Oklahoma City Thunder-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Thunder 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 %
Carmelo Anthony 78 32.1 16.2 0.9 4.9 5.8 1.3 0.6 0.6 1.3 2.5 6.1 15.0 .404 2.2 6.1 .357 1.9 2.5 .767
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 6 32.3 11.8 0.5 5.2 5.7 0.3 1.7 0.7 1.0 2.3 4.5 12.0 .375 1.0 4.7 .214 1.8 2.5 .733
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------

Season 16

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2018-19-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 10 29.4 13.4 0.9 4.5 5.4 0.5 0.4 0.7 0.8 3.2 4.9 12.1 .405 2.1 6.4 .328 1.5 2.2 .682
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony ------- --- ----------
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------

Season 17

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2019-20-
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 %
Carmelo Anthony 58 32.8 15.4 1.2 5.1 6.3 1.5 0.8 0.5 1.7 2.9 5.8 13.5 .430 1.5 3.9 .385 2.3 2.8 .845
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 5 35.2 15.2 0.2 4.8 5.0 2.0 1.0 0.4 2.6 4.0 5.6 13.6 .412 1.6 3.8 .421 2.4 2.8 .857
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------

Season 18

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2020-21-
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 %
Carmelo Anthony 69 24.5 13.4 0.5 2.6 3.1 1.5 0.7 0.6 0.9 2.1 4.7 11.3 .421 1.9 4.7 .409 2.0 2.2 .890
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 6 23.8 12.3 0.3 2.8 3.2 1.5 0.3 0.2 1.2 2.5 4.2 10.0 .417 2.3 6.2 .378 1.7 1.8 .909
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------

Season 19

Carmelo Anthony Don Nelson
Season 2021-22-
Team Los Angeles Lakers-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony 69 26.0 13.3 0.9 3.3 4.2 1.0 0.7 0.8 0.9 2.4 4.6 10.5 .441 2.2 5.8 .375 1.9 2.3 .830
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Carmelo Anthony ------- --- ----------
Don Nelson ------- --- ----------