Dikembe Mutombo vs. Jeff Ruland Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Jeff Ruland and Dikembe Mutombo, 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 / Games against each other

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.

Dikembe Mutombo played 18 years in the NBA, 10 more than Jeff Ruland, who played 8. Dikembe Mutombo had the first of his seasons in 1991-92, while Jeff Ruland had his rookie season in 1981-82. 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
Dikembe Mutombo 18 13 1991-92 to 2008-09
Jeff Ruland 8 4 1981-82 to 1992-93

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

Rookie Season

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1991-921981-82
Team Denver NuggetsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayBullets Lost East Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 71 38.3 16.6 4.5 7.8 12.3 2.2 0.6 3.0 3.5 3.8 6.0 12.2 .493 0.0 0.0 - 4.5 7.0 .642
Jeff Ruland 82 27.0 14.4 3.1 6.2 9.3 1.6 0.5 0.7 2.9 3.9 5.1 9.1 .561 0.0 0.0 .333 4.2 5.5 .752
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo ------- --- ----------
Jeff Ruland 7 33.9 17.0 4.1 5.3 9.4 0.7 0.4 0.6 3.3 3.4 5.4 11.3 .481 0.0 0.1 .000 6.1 8.0 .768

Season 2

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1992-931982-83
Team Denver NuggetsWashington Bullets
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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 82 36.9 13.8 4.2 8.9 13.0 1.8 0.5 3.5 2.6 3.5 4.9 9.5 .510 0.0 0.0 - 4.1 6.0 .681
Jeff Ruland 79 36.2 19.4 3.7 7.3 11.0 3.0 0.9 1.0 3.8 3.9 7.3 13.3 .552 0.0 0.0 .333 4.7 6.9 .689
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo ------- --- ----------
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 3

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1993-941983-84
Team Denver NuggetsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement Blocks Leader-
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisBullets 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 82 34.8 12.0 3.5 8.4 11.8 1.5 0.7 4.1 2.5 3.2 4.5 7.8 .569 0.0 0.0 .000 3.1 5.4 .583
Jeff Ruland 75 41.1 22.2 3.5 8.8 12.3 3.9 0.9 1.0 4.6 3.8 8.0 13.8 .579 0.0 0.1 .143 6.2 8.5 .733
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 12 42.6 13.3 3.3 8.7 12.0 1.8 0.7 5.8 2.5 3.5 4.2 9.0 .463 0.0 0.0 - 4.9 8.2 .602
Jeff Ruland 4 46.8 24.0 4.0 8.8 12.8 7.8 0.5 0.8 4.8 3.8 9.3 17.8 .521 0.0 0.3 .000 5.5 6.8 .815

Season 4

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1994-951984-85
Team Denver NuggetsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement Defensive Player of the Year-
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdBullets 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 82 37.8 11.5 3.9 8.7 12.5 1.4 0.5 3.9 2.3 3.5 4.3 7.7 .556 0.0 0.0 - 3.0 4.6 .654
Jeff Ruland 37 38.8 18.9 3.4 7.6 11.1 4.4 0.8 0.7 4.8 3.5 6.8 11.9 .569 0.0 0.1 .000 5.4 7.9 .685
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 3 28.0 6.0 1.3 5.0 6.3 0.3 0.0 2.3 2.3 5.0 2.0 3.3 .600 0.0 0.0 - 2.0 3.0 .667
Jeff Ruland 4 40.5 17.5 3.0 5.5 8.5 5.3 2.3 1.0 5.8 3.8 7.0 11.8 .596 0.0 0.5 .000 3.5 5.0 .700

Season 5

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1995-961985-86
Team Denver NuggetsWashington Bullets
Honors & Awards Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayBullets 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 74 36.7 11.0 3.4 8.4 11.8 1.5 0.5 4.5 2.0 3.5 3.8 7.7 .499 0.0 0.0 .000 3.3 4.8 .695
Jeff Ruland 30 37.1 19.0 3.6 7.1 10.7 5.3 0.8 0.8 4.0 3.3 7.1 12.8 .554 0.0 0.1 .000 4.8 6.7 .725
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo ------- --- ----------
Jeff Ruland 2 27.0 14.0 2.5 3.5 6.0 5.0 0.0 1.0 3.0 3.0 3.5 7.0 .500 0.0 0.0 - 7.0 8.5 .824

Season 6

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1996-971986-87
Team Atlanta HawksPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement Defensive Player of the Year-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Hawks Lost East Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 80 37.2 13.3 3.4 8.3 11.6 1.4 0.6 3.3 2.3 3.1 4.8 9.0 .527 0.0 0.0 - 3.8 5.4 .705
Jeff Ruland 5 23.2 9.4 2.4 3.2 5.6 2.0 0.0 0.8 2.0 2.6 3.8 5.6 .679 0.0 0.0 - 1.8 2.4 .750
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 10 41.5 15.4 3.7 8.6 12.3 1.3 0.1 2.6 2.0 3.0 5.4 8.6 .628 0.0 0.0 - 4.6 6.4 .719
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Note: Jeff Ruland didn't play in 1987-88, 1988-89, 1989-90 and 1990-91.

Season 7

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1997-981991-92
Team Atlanta HawksPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement Defensive Player of the Year-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Hawks 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 82 35.6 13.4 3.4 8.0 11.4 1.0 0.4 3.4 2.0 3.1 4.9 9.1 .537 0.0 0.0 - 3.7 5.5 .670
Jeff Ruland 13 16.1 3.9 1.2 2.4 3.6 0.4 0.5 0.3 1.5 3.5 1.5 2.9 .526 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.2 .688
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 4 34.0 8.0 3.3 9.5 12.8 0.3 0.3 2.3 2.0 2.5 2.8 6.0 .458 0.0 0.0 - 2.5 4.0 .625
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 8

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1998-991992-93
Team Atlanta HawksDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Playoffs Hawks Lost East Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 50 36.6 10.8 3.8 8.4 12.2 1.1 0.3 2.9 1.9 2.9 3.5 6.8 .512 0.0 0.0 - 3.9 5.7 .684
Jeff Ruland 11 5.0 1.1 0.8 0.8 1.6 0.2 0.2 0.0 0.5 1.5 0.5 1.0 .455 0.0 0.0 - 0.2 0.4 .500
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 9 42.2 12.6 4.0 9.9 13.9 1.2 0.6 2.6 2.0 3.1 4.4 7.9 .563 0.0 0.0 - 3.7 5.2 .702
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 9

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 1999-00-
Team Atlanta Hawks-
Honors & Awards Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 82 36.4 11.5 3.7 10.4 14.1 1.3 0.3 3.3 2.1 3.0 3.9 7.0 .562 0.0 0.0 - 3.6 5.1 .708
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo ------- --- ----------
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 10

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2000-01-
Team Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement Defensive Player of the Year-
Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers Lost NBA Finals-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 75 34.5 10.0 4.1 9.4 13.5 1.0 0.4 2.7 1.9 2.7 3.6 7.4 .484 0.0 0.0 - 2.8 3.9 .725
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 23 42.7 13.9 4.9 8.8 13.7 0.7 0.7 3.1 1.6 2.4 4.4 9.0 .490 0.0 0.0 .000 5.0 6.4 .777
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 11

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2001-02-
Team Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 80 36.3 11.5 3.2 7.6 10.8 1.0 0.4 2.4 2.0 3.0 4.0 8.0 .501 0.0 0.0 - 3.5 4.6 .764
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 5 34.6 8.8 2.8 7.8 10.6 0.6 0.4 1.8 2.2 3.2 2.8 6.2 .452 0.0 0.0 - 3.2 5.2 .615
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 12

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2002-03-
Team New Jersey Nets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Nets Lost NBA Finals-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 24 21.4 5.8 2.3 4.1 6.4 0.8 0.2 1.5 1.4 2.3 2.0 5.5 .374 0.0 0.0 - 1.7 2.3 .727
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 10 11.5 1.8 0.8 1.9 2.7 0.6 0.3 0.9 0.8 2.1 0.7 1.5 .467 0.0 0.0 - 0.4 0.4 1.000
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 13

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2003-04-
Team New York Knicks-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Knicks 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 65 23.0 5.6 2.2 4.5 6.7 0.4 0.3 1.9 0.8 2.2 2.2 4.5 .478 0.0 0.0 - 1.2 1.8 .681
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 3 12.3 2.3 1.3 2.0 3.3 0.0 0.3 1.3 1.0 2.0 0.7 2.0 .333 0.0 0.0 - 1.0 1.0 1.000
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 14

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2004-05-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Rockets 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 80 15.2 4.0 1.9 3.5 5.3 0.1 0.2 1.3 0.6 1.7 1.4 2.7 .498 0.0 0.0 - 1.3 1.8 .741
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 7 14.4 3.1 1.6 3.4 5.0 0.3 0.3 1.0 1.0 2.1 0.9 1.6 .545 0.0 0.0 - 1.4 1.9 .769
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 15

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2005-06-
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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 64 14.9 2.6 1.6 3.2 4.8 0.1 0.3 0.9 0.5 2.0 0.8 1.5 .526 0.0 0.0 - 1.1 1.4 .758
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo ------- --- ----------
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 16

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2006-07-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Rockets 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 75 17.2 3.1 2.2 4.3 6.5 0.2 0.3 1.0 0.5 2.1 1.1 2.0 .556 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.2 .690
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 7 5.7 1.3 0.7 0.9 1.6 0.1 0.0 0.4 0.0 0.7 0.4 0.4 1.000 0.0 0.0 - 0.4 0.4 1.000
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 17

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2007-08-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Rockets 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 39 15.9 3.0 1.7 3.4 5.1 0.1 0.3 1.2 0.4 1.4 1.1 2.1 .538 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.2 .711
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 6 20.5 3.8 1.7 4.8 6.5 0.3 0.2 1.8 0.2 1.7 1.3 2.2 .615 0.0 0.0 - 1.2 1.8 .636
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------

Season 18

Dikembe Mutombo Jeff Ruland
Season 2008-09-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Rockets 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 %
Dikembe Mutombo 9 10.7 1.8 1.3 2.3 3.7 0.0 0.0 1.2 0.7 1.2 0.6 1.4 .385 0.0 0.0 - 0.7 1.0 .667
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Dikembe Mutombo 2 10.0 0.0 0.5 4.0 4.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 0.0 2.5 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 1.0 .000
Jeff Ruland ------- --- ----------