Dirk Nowitzki vs. Gary Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Gary Payton and Dirk Nowitzki, 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 / Scoring / Stats / Stats Rankings / 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.

Dirk Nowitzki played 21 years in the NBA, 4 more than Gary Payton, who played 17. Dirk Nowitzki had the first of his seasons in 1998-99, while Gary Payton had his rookie season in 1990-91. 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
Dirk Nowitzki	21	15	1998-99 to 2018-19
Gary Payton	17	15	1990-91 to 2006-07

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
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	1998-99	1990-91
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	-	All-Rookie Second Team
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	47	20.4	8.2	0.9	2.6	3.4	1.0	0.6	0.6	1.6	2.2	2.9	7.1	.405	0.3	1.4	.206	2.1	2.7	.773
difference:	+35	+7.0	+1.0	+0.4	+1.0	+0.4	+5.4	+1.4	+0.4	-0.6	-0.8	+0.3	+0.1	+.045	+0.3	+1.2	+.129	+1.3	+1.5	+.062
Gary Payton	82	27.4	7.2	1.3	1.6	3.0	6.4	2.0	0.2	2.2	3.0	3.2	7.0	.450	0.0	0.2	.077	0.8	1.2	.711

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Gary Payton	5	27.0	4.8	1.0	1.6	2.6	6.4	1.6	0.2	1.8	3.2	2.2	5.4	.407	0.0	0.2	.000	0.4	0.4	1.000


Season 2
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	1999-00	1991-92
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Supersonics Lost West Conf Semis

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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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	82	35.8	17.5	1.2	5.2	6.5	2.5	0.8	0.8	1.7	3.1	6.3	13.6	.461	1.4	3.7	.379	3.5	4.2	.830
difference:	+1	+4.3	+8.1	+0.3	+3.1	+2.9	+3.7	+1.0	+0.5	-0.4		+2.2	+4.5	+.010	+1.4	+3.4	+.249	+2.3	+2.4	+.161
Gary Payton	81	31.5	9.4	1.5	2.1	3.6	6.2	1.8	0.3	2.1	3.1	4.1	9.1	.451	0.0	0.3	.130	1.2	1.8	.669

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Gary Payton	8	27.6	7.6	0.8	1.9	2.6	4.8	1.0	0.3	1.3	3.3	3.4	7.3	.466	0.0	0.3	.000	0.9	1.5	.583


Season 3
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2000-01	1992-93
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Third Team	-
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis	Supersonics Lost West Conf Finals

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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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	82	38.1	21.8	1.5	7.7	9.2	2.1	1.0	1.2	1.9	3.0	7.2	15.2	.474	1.8	4.8	.387	5.5	6.6	.838
difference:		+7.0	+8.3	+0.3	+5.4	+5.8	+2.8	+1.2	+0.9	-0.1		+1.4	+3.5	+.020	+1.7	+4.4	+.181	+3.7	+4.2	+.068
Gary Payton	82	31.1	13.5	1.2	2.3	3.4	4.9	2.2	0.3	1.8	3.0	5.8	11.7	.494	0.1	0.4	.206	1.8	2.4	.770

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	10	39.9	23.4	1.4	6.7	8.1	1.4	1.1	0.8	1.4	3.7	6.9	16.3	.423	1.3	4.6	.283	8.3	9.4	.883
difference:	+9	+8.1	+11.1	+0.2	+4.5	+4.8	+2.3	+0.7	+0.6	-0.4	-0.3	+1.4	+3.9	+.020	+1.2	+4.3	+.116	+7.0	+7.5	+.207
Gary Payton	19	31.8	12.3	1.2	2.2	3.3	3.7	1.8	0.2	1.8	3.4	5.5	12.4	.443	0.1	0.3	.167	1.3	1.9	.676


Season 4
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2001-02	1993-94
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	76	38.0	23.4	1.6	8.4	9.9	2.4	1.1	1.0	1.9	2.9	7.9	16.6	.477	1.8	4.6	.397	5.8	6.8	.853
difference:	+6	+2.9	+6.9	+0.3	+6.4	+6.6	+3.6	+1.2	+0.8	-0.2	-0.1	+0.8	+2.5	+.027	+1.6	+3.9	+.119	+3.8	+3.4	+.258
Gary Payton	82	35.1	16.5	1.3	2.0	3.3	6.0	2.3	0.2	2.1	2.8	7.1	14.1	.504	0.2	0.7	.278	2.0	3.4	.595

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	8	44.6	28.4	2.1	11.0	13.1	2.3	2.0	0.8	2.8	3.4	9.1	20.5	.445	2.0	3.5	.571	8.1	9.3	.878
difference:	+3	+8.4	+12.6	+0.9	+8.8	+9.7	+3.3	+0.4	+0.4	-1.2	-0.4	+2.3	+6.7	+.048	+1.4	+1.7	+.238	+6.5	+5.5	+.457
Gary Payton	5	36.2	15.8	1.2	2.2	3.4	5.6	1.6	0.4	1.6	3.0	6.8	13.8	.493	0.6	1.8	.333	1.6	3.8	.421


Season 5
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2002-03	1994-95
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Finals	Supersonics 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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	80	39.0	25.1	1.0	8.9	9.9	3.0	1.4	1.0	1.9	2.6	8.6	18.6	.463	1.9	4.9	.379	6.0	6.9	.881
difference:	+2	+2.2	+4.5	+0.3	+6.8	+6.5	+4.1	+1.1	+0.8	-0.6	-0.1	+0.2	+2.2	+.046	+1.0	+2.1	+.077	+3.0	+2.7	+.165
Gary Payton	82	36.8	20.6	1.3	2.1	3.4	7.1	2.5	0.2	2.5	2.5	8.4	16.4	.509	0.9	2.8	.302	3.0	4.2	.716

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	17	42.5	25.3	0.9	10.6	11.5	2.2	1.2	0.9	2.4	3.1	8.8	18.4	.479	1.6	3.6	.443	6.1	6.6	.912
difference:	+13	+0.5	+7.5	+0.6	+9.6	+9.0	+3.1	+0.1	+0.9	-0.4	-0.2	+0.8	+1.6	+.001	+1.1	+1.1	+.243	+4.8	+3.6	+.495
Gary Payton	4	43.0	17.8	1.5	1.0	2.5	5.3	1.3	0.0	2.0	3.3	8.0	16.8	.478	0.5	2.5	.200	1.3	3.0	.417


Season 6
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2003-04	1995-96
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	All-NBA Third Team	-
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	-	Defensive Player of the Year
	-	Steals Leader
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Supersonics Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	77	37.9	21.8	1.2	7.5	8.7	2.7	1.2	1.4	1.8	2.8	7.9	17.0	.462	1.3	3.8	.341	4.8	5.5	.877
difference:	+4	+1.1	+2.5	+0.1	+4.6	+4.5	+4.8	+1.7	+1.2	-1.4	-0.1	+0.3	+1.2	+.022	+0.1	+0.1	+.013	+2.0	+1.7	+.129
Gary Payton	81	39.0	19.3	1.3	2.9	4.2	7.5	2.9	0.2	3.2	2.7	7.6	15.8	.484	1.2	3.7	.328	2.8	3.8	.748

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	5	42.2	26.6	2.6	9.2	11.8	1.4	1.4	2.6	1.2	3.2	9.0	20.0	.450	1.4	3.0	.467	7.2	8.4	.857
difference:	+16	+1.2	+5.9	+1.7	+5.0	+6.7	+5.4	+0.4	+2.3	-1.8	-0.1	+1.3	+4.1	+.035	+0.6	+1.8	+.057	+3.9	+3.2	+.224
Gary Payton	21	43.4	20.7	0.9	4.2	5.1	6.8	1.8	0.3	3.0	3.3	7.7	15.9	.485	2.0	4.8	.410	3.3	5.2	.633


Season 7
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2004-05	1996-97
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis	Supersonics 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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	78	38.7	26.1	1.2	8.5	9.7	3.1	1.2	1.5	2.3	2.8	8.5	18.5	.459	1.2	2.9	.399	7.9	9.1	.869
difference:	+4	+0.5	+4.3	+0.1	+5.2	+5.1	+4.0	+1.2	+1.3	-0.3	-0.3	+0.1	+0.4	+.017	+0.3	+1.7	+.086	+4.8	+4.8	+.154
Gary Payton	82	39.2	21.8	1.3	3.3	4.6	7.1	2.4	0.2	2.6	2.5	8.6	18.1	.476	1.5	4.6	.313	3.1	4.3	.715

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	13	42.5	23.7	1.9	8.2	10.1	3.3	1.4	1.6	2.5	3.2	7.9	19.7	.402	0.8	2.3	.333	7.1	8.5	.829
difference:	+1	+3.1	+0.1	+0.2	+4.4	+4.7	+5.4	+0.8	+1.3	-0.4	-1.0	+0.9	+1.6	+.010	+1.3	+4.0		+2.9	+3.4	+.009
Gary Payton	12	45.6	23.8	1.7	3.8	5.4	8.7	2.2	0.3	2.9	2.2	8.8	21.3	.412	2.1	6.3	.333	4.2	5.1	.820


Season 8
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2005-06	1997-98
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost NBA Finals	Supersonics Lost West Conf Semis

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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		%
Dirk Nowitzki	81	38.1	26.6	1.4	7.6	9.0	2.8	0.7	1.0	1.9	2.0	9.3	19.3	.480	1.4	3.3	.406	6.7	7.4	.901
difference:	+1	+0.3	+7.4	+0.5	+4.0	+4.4	+5.5	+1.6	+0.8	-0.9	-0.4	+2.2	+3.7	+.027	+0.2	+1.5	+.068	+3.3	+2.8	+.157
Gary Payton	82	38.4	19.2	0.9	3.6	4.6	8.3	2.3	0.2	2.8	2.4	7.1	15.6	.453	1.6	4.8	.338	3.4	4.6	.744

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	23	42.7	27.0	2.0	9.6	11.7	2.9	1.1	0.6	2.1	2.8	8.5	18.2	.468	1.0	2.9	.343	8.9	10.0	.895
difference:	+13		+3.0	+1.1	+7.1	+8.3	+4.1	+0.7	+0.5	-0.5	-0.3	+0.2	+0.1	+.007	+0.9	+2.1	+.037	+4.2	+5.0	+.045
Gary Payton	10	42.7	24.0	0.9	2.5	3.4	7.0	1.8	0.1	2.6	3.1	8.7	18.3	.475	1.9	5.0	.380	4.7	5.0	.940


Season 9
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2006-07	1998-99
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Did Not Play

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9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	78	36.2	24.6	1.6	7.3	8.9	3.4	0.7	0.8	2.1	2.2	8.6	17.2	.502	0.9	2.2	.416	6.4	7.1	.904
difference:	+28	+4.0	+2.9	+0.4	+3.7	+4.0	+5.3	+1.5	+0.6	-1.0	-0.1	+0.6	+1.3	+.068	+0.8	+3.4	+.121	+2.4	+1.6	+.183
Gary Payton	50	40.2	21.7	1.2	3.6	4.9	8.7	2.2	0.2	3.1	2.3	8.0	18.5	.434	1.7	5.6	.295	4.0	5.5	.721

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	6	39.8	19.7	4.2	7.2	11.3	2.3	1.8	1.3	2.3	3.3	6.0	15.7	.383	0.7	3.2	.211	7.0	8.3	.840
Gary Payton	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 10
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2007-08	1999-00
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	All-NBA Second Team	-
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	77	36.0	23.6	1.2	7.3	8.6	3.5	0.7	0.9	2.1	2.6	8.2	17.1	.479	1.0	2.9	.359	6.2	7.1	.879
difference:	+5	+5.8	+0.6		+2.1	+2.1	+5.4	+1.2	+0.7	-0.6	-0.4	+0.9	+3.2	+.031	+1.2	+3.4	+.019	+2.4	+1.9	+.144
Gary Payton	82	41.8	24.2	1.2	5.2	6.5	8.9	1.9	0.2	2.7	2.2	9.1	20.3	.448	2.2	6.3	.340	3.8	5.2	.735

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	5	42.2	26.8	2.0	10.0	12.0	4.0	0.2	1.4	2.0	2.6	8.6	18.2	.473	1.2	3.6	.333	8.4	10.4	.808
difference:		+2.0	+1.0	+0.4	+4.0	+4.4	+3.4	+1.6	+1.2	-1.6	-0.6	+1.4	+4.4	+.031	+0.6	+1.0	+.058	+4.4	+5.2	+.039
Gary Payton	5	44.2	25.8	1.6	6.0	7.6	7.4	1.8	0.2	3.6	3.2	10.0	22.6	.442	1.8	4.6	.391	4.0	5.2	.769


Season 11
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2008-09	2000-01
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis	Did Not Play

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11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	81	37.7	25.9	1.1	7.3	8.4	2.4	0.8	0.8	1.9	2.2	9.6	20.0	.479	0.8	2.1	.359	6.0	6.7	.890
difference:	+2	+3.4	+2.8	+0.2	+3.7	+3.8	+5.7	+0.8	+0.5	-0.7	-0.1	+0.4	+0.1	+.023	+0.5	+1.3	+.016	+2.6	+2.2	+.124
Gary Payton	79	41.1	23.1	0.9	3.6	4.6	8.1	1.6	0.3	2.6	2.3	9.2	20.1	.456	1.3	3.4	.375	3.4	4.5	.766

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	10	39.4	26.8	1.2	8.9	10.1	3.1	0.9	0.8	2.3	2.1	8.8	17.0	.518	0.6	2.1	.286	8.6	9.3	.925
Gary Payton	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 12
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2009-10	2001-02
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	81	37.5	25.0	1.0	6.7	7.7	2.7	0.9	1.0	1.8	2.6	8.9	18.5	.481	0.6	1.5	.421	6.6	7.2	.915
difference:	+1	+2.8	+2.9		+2.8	+2.9	+6.3	+0.7	+0.7	-0.7	-0.4	+0.1	+0.7	+.014	+0.3	+1.4	+.107	+3.3	+3.1	+.118
Gary Payton	82	40.3	22.1	1.0	3.9	4.8	9.0	1.6	0.3	2.5	2.2	9.0	19.2	.467	0.9	2.9	.314	3.3	4.1	.797

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	6	38.8	26.7	1.2	7.0	8.2	3.0	0.8	0.7	1.7	2.5	9.7	17.7	.547	0.7	1.2	.571	6.7	7.0	.952
difference:	+1	+2.4	+4.5	+0.8	+0.4	+0.4	+2.8	+0.2	+0.3	-0.9	-0.1	+0.7	+3.5	+.122	+0.1	+1.8	+.304	+3.3	+1.2	+.366
Gary Payton	5	41.2	22.2	2.0	6.6	8.6	5.8	0.6	0.4	2.6	2.4	9.0	21.2	.425	0.8	3.0	.267	3.4	5.8	.586


Season 13
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2010-11	2002-03
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Seattle Supersonics, Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards	Finals MVP	-
	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Bucks Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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13th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	73	34.3	23.0	0.7	6.3	7.0	2.6	0.5	0.6	1.9	2.4	8.4	16.2	.517	0.9	2.3	.393	5.4	6.1	.892
difference:	+7	+5.8	+2.6	+0.3	+3.1	+2.8	+5.7	+1.2	+0.3	-0.4	-0.1	+0.1	+2.1	+.063	+0.2		+.096	+2.3	+1.7	+.182
Gary Payton	80	40.1	20.4	1.0	3.2	4.2	8.3	1.7	0.3	2.3	2.3	8.3	18.3	.454	0.7	2.3	.297	3.1	4.4	.710

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	21	39.3	27.7	0.6	7.6	8.1	2.5	0.6	0.6	3.1	2.2	9.1	18.9	.485	1.1	2.4	.460	8.3	8.9	.941
difference:	+15	+2.5	+9.2	+0.1	+5.3	+5.1	+6.2	+0.7	+0.4	-0.9	-0.8	+1.1	+0.2	+.056	+0.9	+0.1	+.393	+6.0	+5.6	+.241
Gary Payton	6	41.8	18.5	0.7	2.3	3.0	8.7	1.3	0.2	2.2	3.0	8.0	18.7	.429	0.2	2.5	.067	2.3	3.3	.700


Season 14
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2011-12	2003-04
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Third Team	-
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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14th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	62	33.5	21.6	0.7	6.0	6.7	2.2	0.7	0.5	1.9	2.1	7.6	16.7	.457	1.3	3.4	.368	5.1	5.7	.896
difference:	+20	+1.0	+7.0	+0.2	+2.7	+2.5	+3.3	+0.5	+0.3	-0.1		+1.7	+4.2	+.014	+0.6	+1.4	+.035	+2.9	+2.6	+.182
Gary Payton	82	34.5	14.6	0.9	3.3	4.2	5.5	1.2	0.2	1.8	2.1	5.9	12.5	.471	0.7	2.0	.333	2.2	3.1	.714

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	4	38.5	26.8	0.8	5.5	6.3	1.8	0.8	0.0	2.5	2.3	8.5	19.3	.442	0.3	1.5	.167	9.5	10.5	.905
difference:	+18	+3.5	+19.0	+0.1	+3.1	+3.0	+3.5	+0.2	+0.2	-1.2	-0.4	+5.4	+10.8	+.076	+0.3	+1.0	+.083	+8.5	+9.2	+.155
Gary Payton	22	35.0	7.8	0.9	2.4	3.3	5.3	1.0	0.2	1.3	2.7	3.1	8.5	.366	0.6	2.5	.250	1.0	1.3	.750


Season 15
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2012-13	2004-05
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Boston Celtics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Celtics Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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15th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	53	31.3	17.3	0.7	6.2	6.8	2.5	0.7	0.7	1.3	1.8	6.5	13.7	.471	1.2	3.0	.414	3.1	3.6	.860
difference:	+24	+1.7	+6.0	+0.1	+3.8	+3.7	+3.6	+0.4	+0.5	-0.6	-0.2	+2.1	+4.3	+.003	+0.7	+1.3	+.088	+1.1	+1.0	+.099
Gary Payton	77	33.0	11.3	0.6	2.4	3.1	6.1	1.1	0.2	1.9	1.6	4.4	9.4	.468	0.5	1.7	.326	2.0	2.6	.761

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Gary Payton	7	34.1	10.3	1.1	3.0	4.1	4.6	0.9	0.1	1.6	1.4	4.7	10.6	.446	0.1	2.0	.071	0.7	0.9	.833


Season 16
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2013-14	2005-06
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Miami Heat
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	NBA Champion

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16th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	80	32.9	21.7	0.5	5.7	6.2	2.7	0.9	0.6	1.5	2.1	7.9	15.9	.497	1.6	4.1	.398	4.2	4.7	.899
difference:	+1	+4.4	+14.0	+0.1	+3.2	+3.3	+0.5		+0.5	-0.2		+5.1	+9.1	+.077	+0.8	+1.3	+.111	+3.0	+3.1	+.105
Gary Payton	81	28.5	7.7	0.4	2.5	2.9	3.2	0.9	0.1	1.3	2.1	2.8	6.8	.420	0.8	2.8	.287	1.2	1.6	.794

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	7	37.6	19.1	0.7	7.3	8.0	1.6	0.9	0.9	2.1	2.9	7.7	18.0	.429	0.1	1.7	.083	3.6	4.4	.806
difference:	+16	+13.3	+13.3	+0.4	+5.8	+6.3		+0.1	+0.8	-1.3	-0.5	+5.6	+13.0	+.007	+0.6	+0.8	+.210	+2.8	+3.3	+.086
Gary Payton	23	24.3	5.8	0.3	1.5	1.7	1.6	1.0	0.1	0.8	2.4	2.1	5.0	.422	0.7	2.5	.293	0.8	1.1	.720


Season 17
	Dirk Nowitzki	Gary Payton
Season	2014-15	2006-07
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Miami Heat
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Heat Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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17th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	77	29.6	17.3	0.6	5.4	5.9	1.9	0.5	0.4	1.1	2.1	6.3	13.8	.459	1.4	3.6	.380	3.3	3.8	.882
difference:	+9	+7.5	+12.0	+0.3	+3.7	+4.0	+1.1	+0.1	+0.4	-0.1	-0.4	+4.2	+8.4	+.066	+0.9	+1.8	+.120	+2.7	+3.0	+.215
Gary Payton	68	22.1	5.3	0.3	1.7	1.9	3.0	0.6	0.0	1.0	1.7	2.1	5.4	.393	0.5	1.8	.260	0.6	0.8	.667

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Dirk Nowitzki	5	36.2	21.2	0.8	9.6	10.4	2.4	0.4	0.4	2.0	3.2	7.6	16.8	.452	0.8	3.4	.235	5.2	5.6	.929
difference:	+3	+20.2	+21.2	+0.8	+7.6	+8.4	+0.9	+0.4	+0.4		-1.7	+7.6	+15.3	+.452	+0.8	+2.9	+.235	+5.2	+5.6
Gary Payton	2	16.0	0.0	0.0	2.0	2.0	1.5	0.0	0.0	2.0	1.5	0.0	1.5	.000	0.0	0.5	.000	0.0	0.0	-


Additional Years
* Dirk Nowitzki played 4 seasons more than Gary Payton in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 18 to 21, from 2016 to 2019—Dirk Nowitzki played in one postseason. In those 4 extra years over Gary Payton, Dirk Nowitzki got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	1 All-Star Game

Dirk Nowitzki vs. Gary Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Gary Payton and Dirk Nowitzki, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Their Careers

Comparison Season by Season

Rookie Season

Rookie Season Stats Comparison

Season 2

2nd Season Stats Comparison

Season 3

3rd Season Stats Comparison

Season 4

4th Season Stats Comparison

Season 5

5th Season Stats Comparison

Season 6

6th Season Stats Comparison

Season 7

7th Season Stats Comparison

Season 8

8th Season Stats Comparison

Season 9

9th Season Stats Comparison

Season 10

10th Season Stats Comparison

Season 11

11th Season Stats Comparison

Season 12

12th Season Stats Comparison

Season 13

13th Season Stats Comparison

Season 14

14th Season Stats Comparison

Season 15

15th Season Stats Comparison

Season 16

16th Season Stats Comparison

Season 17

17th Season Stats Comparison

Additional Years