Don Nelson vs. Oscar Robertson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Oscar Robertson and Don Nelson, 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.

Don Nelson and Oscar Robertson both played 14 years in the NBA. Don Nelson had the first of his seasons in 1962-63, while Oscar Robertson had his rookie season in 1960-61. 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
Don Nelson	14	11	1962-63 to 1975-76
Oscar Robertson	14	10	1960-61 to 1973-74

Comparison Season by Season
Jump to season: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14


Rookie Season
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1962-63	1960-61
Team	Chicago Zephyrs	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	Rookie of the Year
	-	Assists Leader
	-	All-Star Game
	-	All-Star Game NVP
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	62	17.3	6.8	-	-	4.5	1.2	-	-	-	2.2	2.1	4.7	.440	-	-	-	2.6	3.6	.729
Oscar Robertson	71	42.7	30.5	-	-	10.1	9.7	-	-	-	3.1	10.6	22.5	.473	-	-	-	9.2	11.2	.822

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Oscar Robertson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 2
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1963-64	1961-62
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	Assists Leader
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost West Div Semis	Royals Lost West Div Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	80	17.6	5.2	-	-	4.0	1.0	-	-	-	2.3	1.7	4.0	.418	-	-	-	1.9	2.5	.741
Oscar Robertson	79	44.3	30.8	-	-	12.5	11.4	-	-	-	3.3	11.0	22.9	.478	-	-	-	8.9	11.0	.803

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	5	11.2	3.4	-	-	2.6	0.4	-	-	-	2.2	1.4	2.6	.538	-	-	-	0.6	0.6	1.000
Oscar Robertson	4	46.3	28.8	-	-	11.0	11.0	-	-	-	4.5	10.5	20.3	.519	-	-	-	7.8	9.8	.795


Season 3
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1964-65	1962-63
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost NBA Finals	Royals Lost East Div Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	39	6.1	2.4	-	-	1.9	0.6	-	-	-	1.0	0.9	2.2	.424	-	-	-	0.5	0.7	.769
Oscar Robertson	80	44.0	28.3	-	-	10.4	9.5	-	-	-	3.7	10.3	19.9	.518	-	-	-	7.7	9.5	.810

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	11	19.3	6.1	-	-	5.4	1.7	-	-	-	2.8	2.2	4.8	.453	-	-	-	1.7	2.3	.760
Oscar Robertson	12	47.5	31.8	-	-	13.0	9.0	-	-	-	3.4	10.3	22.0	.470	-	-	-	11.1	12.8	.864


Season 4
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1965-66	1963-64
Team	Boston Celtics	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	Season MVP
	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	Assists Leader
	-	All-Star Game
	-	All-Star Game NVP
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Royals Lost East Div Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	75	23.5	10.2	-	-	5.4	1.1	-	-	-	2.5	3.6	8.2	.439	-	-	-	3.0	4.3	.684
Oscar Robertson	79	45.1	31.4	-	-	9.9	11.0	-	-	-	3.5	10.6	22.0	.483	-	-	-	10.1	11.9	.853

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	17	18.6	8.4	-	-	5.0	0.8	-	-	-	2.9	2.9	6.9	.424	-	-	-	2.5	3.1	.808
Oscar Robertson	10	47.1	29.3	-	-	8.9	8.4	-	-	-	3.0	9.2	20.2	.455	-	-	-	10.9	12.7	.858


Season 5
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1966-67	1964-65
Team	Boston Celtics	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	Assists Leader
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Div Finals	Royals Lost East Div Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	79	15.2	7.5	-	-	3.7	0.8	-	-	-	1.8	2.9	6.4	.446	-	-	-	1.8	2.4	.742
Oscar Robertson	75	45.6	30.4	-	-	9.0	11.5	-	-	-	2.7	10.8	22.4	.480	-	-	-	8.9	10.6	.839

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	9	15.8	7.1	-	-	4.7	1.0	-	-	-	1.3	3.0	6.6	.458	-	-	-	1.1	1.9	.588
Oscar Robertson	4	48.8	28.0	-	-	4.8	12.0	-	-	-	3.5	9.5	22.3	.427	-	-	-	9.0	9.8	.923


Season 6
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1967-68	1965-66
Team	Boston Celtics	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	Assists Leader
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Royals Lost East Div Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	82	18.3	10.0	-	-	5.3	1.3	-	-	-	2.2	3.8	7.7	.494	-	-	-	2.4	3.3	.728
Oscar Robertson	76	46.0	31.3	-	-	7.7	11.1	-	-	-	3.0	10.8	22.7	.475	-	-	-	9.8	11.6	.842

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	19	24.6	12.5	-	-	7.5	1.7	-	-	-	2.6	4.8	9.2	.520	-	-	-	2.9	3.9	.743
Oscar Robertson	5	44.8	31.8	-	-	7.6	7.8	-	-	-	4.0	9.8	24.0	.408	-	-	-	12.2	13.6	.897


Season 7
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1968-69	1966-67
Team	Boston Celtics	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Royals Lost East Div Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	82	21.6	11.6	-	-	5.6	1.1	-	-	-	2.4	4.6	9.4	.485	-	-	-	2.5	3.2	.776
Oscar Robertson	79	43.9	30.5	-	-	6.2	10.7	-	-	-	2.9	10.6	21.5	.493	-	-	-	9.3	10.7	.873

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	18	19.3	12.4	-	-	4.6	1.2	-	-	-	2.8	4.8	9.3	.518	-	-	-	2.8	3.3	.833
Oscar Robertson	4	45.8	24.8	-	-	4.0	11.3	-	-	-	2.3	8.3	16.0	.516	-	-	-	8.3	9.3	.892


Season 8
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1969-70	1967-68
Team	Boston Celtics	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	82	27.1	15.4	-	-	7.3	1.8	-	-	-	2.9	5.6	11.2	.501	-	-	-	4.1	5.3	.775
Oscar Robertson	65	42.5	29.2	-	-	6.0	9.7	-	-	-	3.1	10.2	20.3	.500	-	-	-	8.9	10.2	.873

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Oscar Robertson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 9
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1970-71	1968-69
Team	Boston Celtics	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	Assists Leader
	-	All-Star Game
	-	All-Star Game NVP
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

more >>

Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	82	27.5	13.9	-	-	6.9	1.9	-	-	-	2.8	5.0	10.7	.468	-	-	-	3.9	5.2	.744
Oscar Robertson	79	43.8	24.7	-	-	6.4	9.8	-	-	-	2.9	8.3	17.1	.486	-	-	-	8.1	9.7	.838

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Oscar Robertson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 10
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1971-72	1969-70
Team	Boston Celtics	Cincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Finals	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	82	25.4	13.8	-	-	5.5	2.3	-	-	-	2.7	4.7	9.9	.480	-	-	-	4.3	5.5	.788
Oscar Robertson	69	41.5	25.3	-	-	6.1	8.1	-	-	-	2.5	9.4	18.4	.511	-	-	-	6.6	8.1	.809

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	11	28.0	13.2	-	-	5.5	1.9	-	-	-	2.7	4.7	9.0	.525	-	-	-	3.7	4.4	.854
Oscar Robertson	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 11
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1972-73	1970-71
Team	Boston Celtics	Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Finals	NBA Champion

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	72	19.8	10.8	-	-	4.4	1.4	-	-	-	2.2	4.3	9.0	.476	-	-	-	2.2	2.6	.846
Oscar Robertson	81	39.4	19.4	-	-	5.7	8.2	-	-	-	2.5	7.3	14.7	.496	-	-	-	4.8	5.6	.850

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Don Nelson	13	23.3	11.0	-	-	2.9	1.2	-	-	-	2.2	3.6	7.8	.465	-	-	-	3.8	4.3	.875
Oscar Robertson	14	37.1	18.3	-	-	5.0	8.9	-	-	-	2.8	7.3	15.0	.486	-	-	-	3.7	4.9	.754


Season 12
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1973-74	1971-72
Team	Boston Celtics	Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Bucks Lost West Conf Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
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
Oscar Robertson	64	37.3	17.4	-	-	5.0	7.7	-	-	-	1.8	6.5	13.9	.472	-	-	-	4.3	5.2	.836

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
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
Oscar Robertson	11	34.5	13.1	-	-	5.8	7.5	-	-	-	2.6	5.2	12.7	.407	-	-	-	2.7	3.3	.833


Season 13
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1974-75	1972-73
Team	Boston Celtics	Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Conf Finals	Bucks Lost West Conf Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
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
Oscar Robertson	73	37.5	15.5	-	-	4.9	7.5	-	-	-	2.3	6.1	13.5	.454	-	-	-	3.3	3.8	.847

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
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
Oscar Robertson	6	42.7	21.2	-	-	4.7	7.5	-	-	-	3.5	8.0	16.0	.500	-	-	-	5.2	5.7	.912


Season 14
	Don Nelson	Oscar Robertson
Season	1975-76	1973-74
Team	Boston Celtics	Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Bucks Lost NBA Finals

more >>

Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
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
Oscar Robertson	70	35.4	12.7	1.0	3.0	4.0	6.4	1.1	0.1	-	1.9	4.8	11.0	.438	-	-	-	3.0	3.6	.835

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
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
Oscar Robertson	16	43.1	14.0	0.9	2.4	3.4	9.3	0.9	0.3	-	2.9	5.6	12.5	.450	-	-	-	2.8	3.3	.846

Don Nelson vs. Oscar Robertson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Oscar Robertson and Don Nelson, 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

Season 2

Season 3

Season 4

Season 5

Season 6

Season 7

Season 8

Season 9

Season 10

Season 11

Season 12

Season 13

Season 14