Derek Fisher vs. Yao Ming Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Yao Ming and Derek Fisher, 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.

Derek Fisher played 18 years in the NBA, 10 more than Yao Ming, who played 8. Derek Fisher 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
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	1996-97	2002-03
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-Rookie First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost West Conf Semis	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		%
Derek Fisher	80	11.5	3.9	0.3	0.9	1.2	1.5	0.5	0.1	0.9	1.1	1.3	3.3	.397	0.3	0.9	.301	1.0	1.5	.658
difference:	+2	+17.5	+9.6	+2.1	+4.9	+7.0	+0.2	+0.1	+1.7	-1.2	-1.7	+3.6	+6.5	+.101	+0.3	+0.9		+2.7	+3.0	+.153
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
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Derek Fisher	6	5.7	1.3	0.0	0.5	0.5	1.0	0.2	0.0	1.0	0.7	0.5	1.8	.273	0.0	0.8	.000	0.3	0.5	.667
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 2
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	1997-98	2003-04
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost West Conf Finals	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		%
Derek Fisher	82	21.5	5.8	0.5	1.9	2.4	4.1	0.9	0.1	1.5	1.5	2.0	4.6	.434	0.4	1.0	.383	1.4	1.9	.757
difference:		+11.3	+11.7	+1.9	+4.7	+6.6	+2.6	+0.6	+1.8	-1.0	-1.8	+4.5	+7.9	+.088	+0.4	+1.0		+3.0	+3.5	+.052
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		%
Derek Fisher	13	21.5	6.0	0.2	1.8	1.9	3.8	1.3	0.0	1.2	2.5	2.1	5.2	.397	0.5	1.5	.300	1.4	2.2	.621
difference:	+8	+16.1	+9.0	+2.0	+3.4	+5.5	+2.0	+0.9	+1.4	-1.4	-1.5	+4.1	+8.4	+.059	+0.5	+1.5		+1.2	+1.2	+.144
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
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	1998-99	2004-05
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost West 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		%
Derek Fisher	50	22.6	5.9	0.4	1.4	1.8	3.9	1.2	0.0	1.5	1.9	2.0	5.3	.376	0.8	1.9	.392	1.2	1.6	.759
difference:	+30	+8.0	+12.4	+2.2	+4.4	+6.6	+3.1	+0.8	+2.0	-1.0	-1.8	+4.7	+6.9	+.176	+0.8	+1.9		+3.7	+4.6	+.024
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		%
Derek Fisher	8	29.8	9.8	0.8	2.9	3.6	4.9	1.0	0.0	1.4	2.5	3.5	8.4	.418	1.3	3.6	.345	1.5	1.9	.800
difference:	+1	+2.1	+11.6	+2.5	+1.5	+4.1	+4.2	+0.7	+2.7	-1.3	-1.9	+4.4	+3.6	+.237	+1.3	+3.6		+4.2	+6.0	+.073
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
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	1999-00	2005-06
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	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		%
Derek Fisher	78	23.1	6.3	0.3	1.6	1.8	2.8	1.0	0.0	1.0	1.9	2.1	6.2	.346	0.7	2.1	.313	1.3	1.9	.724
difference:	+21	+11.1	+16.0	+2.3	+6.0	+8.4	+1.3	+0.5	+1.6	-1.6	-1.5	+6.1	+9.6	+.173	+0.7	+2.1		+4.6	+5.0	+.129
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		%
Derek Fisher	21	15.3	4.7	0.2	0.9	1.0	2.0	0.5	0.0	0.4	1.4	1.6	3.8	.430	0.6	1.4	.414	0.9	1.2	.760
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 5
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	2000-01	2006-07
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	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		%
Derek Fisher	20	35.5	11.5	0.3	2.7	3.0	4.4	2.0	0.1	1.5	2.5	3.9	9.4	.412	1.3	3.2	.397	2.5	3.1	.806
difference:	+28	+1.7	+13.5	+1.8	+4.6	+6.4	+2.4	+1.6	+1.9	-2.0	-0.8	+4.9	+7.7	+.104	+1.3	+3.2		+4.9	+5.5	+.056
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		%
Derek Fisher	16	35.8	13.4	0.3	3.5	3.8	3.0	1.3	0.1	0.8	2.8	4.8	9.9	.484	2.2	4.3	.515	1.6	2.1	.765
difference:	+9	+1.3	+11.7	+3.0	+3.5	+6.5	+2.1	+1.2	+0.6	-3.9	-1.1	+3.1	+8.0	+.044	+2.2	+4.3		+7.8	+8.6	+.115
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
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	2001-02	2007-08
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	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		%
Derek Fisher	70	28.2	11.2	0.2	1.9	2.1	2.6	0.9	0.1	0.9	1.7	3.9	9.5	.411	2.1	5.0	.413	1.3	1.6	.847
difference:	+15	+9.0	+10.8	+2.9	+5.8	+8.7	+0.3	+0.4	+1.9	-2.4	-1.4	+4.0	+6.0	+.096	+2.1	+5.0		+5.0	+5.8	+.003
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		%
Derek Fisher	19	34.2	10.2	0.5	2.7	3.3	2.7	1.0	0.1	1.1	2.6	3.2	8.8	.357	1.5	4.3	.358	2.3	2.9	.786
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 7
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	2002-03	2008-09
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost West 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		%
Derek Fisher	82	34.5	10.5	0.5	2.4	2.9	3.6	1.1	0.2	1.1	2.4	4.1	9.5	.437	1.0	2.6	.401	1.2	1.5	.800
difference:	+5	+0.9	+9.2	+2.1	+4.8	+7.0	+1.8	+0.7	+1.7	-1.9	-0.9	+3.3	+3.9	+.111	+1.0	+2.6		+3.7	+4.2	+.066
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		%
Derek Fisher	12	35.4	12.8	0.4	2.6	3.0	1.8	1.5	0.1	1.5	3.3	4.4	8.5	.520	2.4	3.9	.617	1.5	1.8	.818
difference:	+3	+0.5	+4.3	+1.7	+6.2	+7.9	+0.8	+1.1	+1.1	-0.4	-0.3	+1.6	+2.5	+.025	+2.4	+3.9		+3.6	+3.9	+.084
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
	Derek Fisher	Yao Ming
Season	2003-04	2010-11
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost NBA Finals	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		%
Derek Fisher	82	21.6	7.1	0.4	1.5	1.9	2.3	1.3	0.0	1.0	1.4	2.5	7.0	.352	0.6	2.2	.291	1.5	1.9	.797
difference:	+77	+3.4	+3.1	+1.0	+2.5	+3.5	+1.5	+1.3	+1.6	-0.4	-1.2	+1.1	+0.4	+.134	+0.6	+2.2		+1.5	+1.3	+.141
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
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Derek Fisher	22	23.1	7.5	0.5	2.1	2.5	2.2	0.8	0.0	0.9	2.1	2.7	6.7	.405	1.0	2.5	.418	1.0	1.6	.657
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-