Dave DeBusschere vs. George Gervin Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of George Gervin and Dave DeBusschere, 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.

Dave DeBusschere played 12 years in the NBA, 2 more than George Gervin, who played 10. Dave DeBusschere had the first of his seasons in 1962-63, while George Gervin had his rookie season in 1976-77. 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.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
Dave DeBusschere 12 8 1962-63 to 1973-74
George Gervin 10 9 1976-77 to 1985-86

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Rookie Season

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1962-631976-77
Team Detroit PistonsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Rookie First Team-
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Pistons Lost West Div SemisSpurs Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 80 29.4 12.7 - - 8.7 2.6 - - - 3.1 5.1 11.8 .430 - - - 2.6 3.6 .718
difference:+2+3.6+10.4+3.2+0.3-0.4+3.8+4.5+.114+2.8+2.9+.115
George Gervin 82 33.0 23.1 1.6 3.9 5.5 2.9 1.3 1.3 - 3.5 8.9 16.3 .544 - - - 5.4 6.5 .833
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 4 39.8 20.0 - - 15.8 1.5 - - - 3.5 6.3 14.8 .424 - - - 7.5 11.0 .682
difference:+2+8.8+5.0+10.3-1.0+3.2+7.2+.008+1.5+3.5+.118
George Gervin 2 31.0 25.0 2.5 3.0 5.5 1.5 0.5 1.0 - 4.5 9.5 22.0 .432 - - - 6.0 7.5 .800

Season 2

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1963-641977-78
Team Detroit PistonsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Scoring Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlaySpurs Lost East Conf Semis
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 15 20.3 8.6 - - 7.0 1.5 - - - 2.1 3.5 8.9 .391 - - - 1.7 2.9 .581
difference:+67+14.5+18.6+1.9+2.2-1.0+7.0+10.7+.145+4.4+4.5+.249
George Gervin 82 34.8 27.2 1.4 3.7 5.1 3.7 1.7 1.3 3.7 3.1 10.5 19.6 .536 - - - 6.1 7.4 .830
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere DNP------ --- ----------
George Gervin 6 37.8 33.2 1.8 3.8 5.7 3.2 1.0 2.7 3.2 3.8 13.0 23.7 .549 - - - 7.2 9.3 .768

Season 3

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1964-651978-79
Team Detroit PistonsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Scoring Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlaySpurs Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 79 35.1 16.7 - - 11.1 3.2 - - - 3.1 6.4 15.1 .425 - - - 3.9 5.5 .700
difference:+1+1.0+12.9+6.1+0.5-0.3+5.4+6.8+.116+2.0+1.6+.126
George Gervin 80 36.1 29.6 1.8 3.2 5.0 2.7 1.7 1.1 3.6 3.4 11.8 21.9 .541 - - - 5.9 7.1 .826
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere DNP------ --- ----------
George Gervin 14 36.6 28.6 2.4 3.5 5.9 2.5 1.9 1.0 2.9 3.6 11.3 21.1 .536 - - - 6.0 7.4 .808

Season 4

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1965-661979-80
Team Detroit PistonsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Scoring Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Did Not PlaySpurs Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 79 34.1 16.4 - - 11.6 2.6 - - - 3.2 6.6 16.3 .408 - - - 3.2 4.8 .659
difference:+1+3.5+16.7+6.4-0.5+6.5+8.6+.120+3.3+2.8+.193
George Gervin 78 37.6 33.1 2.0 3.2 5.2 2.6 1.4 1.0 3.3 2.7 13.1 24.9 .528 0.4 1.3 .314 6.5 7.6 .852
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere DNP------ --- ----------
George Gervin 3 40.7 33.3 3.0 3.7 6.7 4.0 1.7 1.0 3.0 2.7 12.3 24.7 .500 0.0 0.7 .000 8.7 10.0 .867

Season 5

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1966-671980-81
Team Detroit PistonsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlaySpurs Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 78 37.1 18.2 - - 11.8 2.8 - - - 3.8 6.8 16.4 .415 - - - 4.6 6.6 .705
difference:+4+3.4+8.9+6.7+0.4-1.2+3.6+4.7+.077+1.6+1.0+.121
George Gervin 82 33.7 27.1 1.5 3.6 5.1 3.2 1.1 0.7 3.1 2.6 10.4 21.1 .492 0.1 0.4 .257 6.2 7.6 .826
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere DNP------ --- ----------
George Gervin 7 39.1 27.1 1.3 3.7 5.0 3.4 0.7 0.7 2.9 2.7 11.0 22.0 .500 0.0 0.4 .000 5.1 6.4 .800

Season 6

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1967-681981-82
Team Detroit PistonsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Scoring Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Pistons Lost East Div SemisSpurs Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 80 39.1 17.9 - - 13.5 2.3 - - - 3.8 7.2 16.2 .442 - - - 3.6 5.4 .664
difference:+1+3.4+14.4+8.5+0.1-1.1+5.4+9.0+.058+3.4+2.7+.200
George Gervin 79 35.7 32.3 1.7 3.2 5.0 2.4 1.0 0.6 2.7 2.7 12.6 25.2 .500 0.1 0.5 .278 7.0 8.1 .864
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 6 43.8 19.3 - - 16.2 2.2 - - - 3.8 7.5 17.7 .425 - - - 4.3 7.5 .578
difference:+3+2.4+10.1+8.9+2.4-0.2+3.9+7.6+.027+2.3+0.4+.253
George Gervin 9 41.4 29.4 2.1 5.2 7.3 4.6 1.1 0.4 3.4 4.0 11.4 25.3 .452 0.0 0.3 .000 6.6 7.9 .831

Season 7

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1968-691982-83
Team Detroit Pistons, New York KnicksSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Div FinalsSpurs Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 76 38.7 16.3 - - 11.7 2.5 - - - 3.8 6.7 15.0 .444 - - - 3.0 4.3 .698
difference:+2+2.4+9.9+7.1+0.9-0.7+3.0+4.9+.043+3.6+3.5+.155
George Gervin 78 36.3 26.2 1.4 3.2 4.6 3.4 1.1 0.9 3.2 3.1 9.7 19.9 .487 0.2 0.4 .364 6.6 7.8 .853
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 10 41.9 16.3 - - 14.8 3.3 - - - 4.3 6.1 17.4 .351 - - - 4.1 5.0 .820
difference:+1+2.2+8.9+8.1+0.1-0.8+3.7+1.5+.168+1.4+1.3+.064
George Gervin 11 39.7 25.2 1.9 4.8 6.7 3.4 1.1 0.4 4.2 3.5 9.8 18.9 .519 0.0 0.2 .000 5.5 6.3 .884

Season 8

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1969-701983-84
Team New York KnicksSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 79 33.3 14.6 - - 10.0 2.5 - - - 3.1 6.2 13.7 .451 - - - 2.2 3.2 .688
difference:+3+0.7+11.3+5.9+0.4-0.2+3.9+6.8+.039+3.4+3.5+.154
George Gervin 76 34.0 25.9 1.4 2.7 4.1 2.9 1.0 0.6 2.9 2.9 10.1 20.5 .490 0.1 0.3 .417 5.6 6.7 .842
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 19 36.9 16.1 - - 11.6 2.4 - - - 3.3 6.8 16.3 .421 - - - 2.4 3.6 .662
George Gervin DNP------ --- ----------

Season 9

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1970-711984-85
Team New York KnicksSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf FinalsSpurs Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 81 35.7 15.6 - - 11.1 2.7 - - - 2.9 6.5 15.3 .421 - - - 2.7 3.9 .696
difference:+9+6.7+5.6+7.8+0.2+1.8+1.1+.087+1.8+1.4+.148
George Gervin 72 29.0 21.2 1.1 2.2 3.3 2.5 0.9 0.7 2.8 2.9 8.3 16.4 .508 0.0 0.1 .000 4.5 5.3 .844
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 12 40.7 16.4 - - 13.0 1.8 - - - 3.3 7.0 16.8 .416 - - - 2.4 3.7 .659
difference:+7+4.1+5.8+9.4+1.0-0.5+1.4+1.0+.116+3.0+3.1+.135
George Gervin 5 36.6 22.2 0.6 3.0 3.6 2.8 0.6 0.6 4.0 3.8 8.4 15.8 .532 0.0 0.6 .000 5.4 6.8 .794

Season 10

Dave DeBusschere George Gervin
Season 1971-721985-86
Team New York KnicksChicago Bulls
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Knicks Lost NBA FinalsBulls Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 80 38.4 15.4 - - 11.3 3.6 - - - 2.7 6.5 15.2 .427 - - - 2.4 3.3 .728
difference:+2+13.2+0.8+8.7+1.8-0.1+0.2+1.8+.045+1.1+0.6+.151
George Gervin 82 25.2 16.2 1.0 1.7 2.6 1.8 0.6 0.3 2.0 2.6 6.3 13.4 .472 0.0 0.2 .211 3.5 3.9 .879
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Dave DeBusschere 16 38.5 16.6 - - 12.1 2.3 - - - 3.2 6.8 15.1 .450 - - - 3.0 4.0 .750
difference:+14+33.0+16.6+11.6+1.8-1.7+6.8+14.6+.450+3.0+4.0
George Gervin 2 5.5 0.0 0.0 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.5 0.0 0.5 .000 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 -

Additional Years

* Dave DeBusschere played 2 seasons more than George Gervin in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 11 to 12, from 1973 to 1974—Dave DeBusschere played in two Playoffs and won one NBA Championship.

In those 2 extra years over George Gervin, Dave DeBusschere got these achievements:

Honors & AwardsAchievement 2 All-Defensive First Team
Achievement 2 All-Star Game