Elvin Hayes vs. Elfrid Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Elfrid Payton and Elvin Hayes, 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.

Elvin Hayes played 16 years in the NBA, 8 more than Elfrid Payton, who played 8. Elvin Hayes had the first of his seasons in 1968-69, while Elfrid Payton had his rookie season in 2014-15. 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
Elvin Hayes 16 10 1968-69 to 1983-84
Elfrid Payton 8 2 2014-15 to 2021-22

Comparison Season by Season

Rookie Season

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1968-692014-15
Team San Diego RocketsOrlando Magic
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Div SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 82 45.1 28.4 - - 17.1 1.4 - - - 3.2 11.3 25.4 .447 - - - 5.7 9.1 .626
Elfrid Payton 82 30.4 8.9 1.3 3.0 4.3 6.5 1.7 0.2 2.5 2.4 3.7 8.6 .425 0.1 0.5 .262 1.4 2.6 .551
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 6 46.3 25.8 - - 13.8 0.8 - - - 3.5 10.0 19.0 .526 - - - 5.8 8.8 .660
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 2

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1969-702015-16
Team San Diego RocketsOrlando Magic
Honors & Awards Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
Elvin Hayes 82 44.7 27.5 - - 16.9 2.0 - - - 3.3 11.1 24.6 .452 - - - 5.2 7.6 .688
Elfrid Payton 73 29.4 10.7 1.1 2.5 3.6 6.4 1.2 0.3 2.4 2.2 4.4 10.0 .436 0.4 1.3 .326 1.5 2.6 .589
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes ------- --- ----------
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 3

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1970-712016-17
Team San Diego RocketsOrlando Magic
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
Elvin Hayes 82 44.3 28.7 - - 16.6 2.3 - - - 2.7 11.6 27.0 .428 - - - 5.5 8.2 .672
Elfrid Payton 82 29.4 12.8 1.1 3.6 4.7 6.5 1.1 0.5 2.2 2.2 5.2 11.1 .471 0.5 1.8 .274 1.8 2.6 .692
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes ------- --- ----------
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 4

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1971-722017-18
Team Houston RocketsOrlando Magic, Phoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
Elvin Hayes 82 42.2 25.2 - - 14.6 3.3 - - - 2.8 10.1 23.4 .434 - - - 4.9 7.5 .649
Elfrid Payton 63 28.7 12.7 1.0 3.3 4.3 6.2 1.3 0.3 2.7 2.3 5.2 10.6 .493 0.5 1.5 .326 1.7 2.7 .649
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes ------- --- ----------
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 5

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1972-732018-19
Team Baltimore BulletsNew Orleans Pelicans
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Bullets 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 %
Elvin Hayes 81 41.3 21.2 - - 14.5 1.6 - - - 2.9 8.8 19.8 .444 - - - 3.6 5.4 .671
Elfrid Payton 42 29.8 10.6 1.2 4.1 5.2 7.6 1.0 0.4 2.7 1.9 4.3 9.8 .434 0.8 2.5 .314 1.3 1.8 .743
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 5 45.6 25.8 - - 11.4 1.0 - - - 3.2 10.6 21.0 .505 - - - 4.6 6.6 .697
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 6

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1973-742019-20
Team Capital BulletsNew York Knicks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Bullets 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 %
Elvin Hayes 81 44.5 21.4 4.4 13.7 18.1 2.0 1.1 3.0 - 3.1 8.5 20.1 .423 - - - 4.4 6.1 .721
Elfrid Payton 45 27.7 10.0 1.2 3.6 4.7 7.2 1.6 0.4 2.1 2.0 4.3 9.8 .439 0.3 1.5 .203 1.1 1.9 .570
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 7 46.1 25.9 4.4 11.4 15.9 3.0 0.7 2.1 - 3.3 10.9 20.4 .531 - - - 4.1 5.9 .707
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 7

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1974-752020-21
Team Washington BulletsNew York Knicks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Bullets Lost NBA FinalsKnicks 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 %
Elvin Hayes 82 42.3 23.0 2.7 9.5 12.2 2.5 1.9 2.3 - 2.9 9.0 20.3 .443 - - - 5.0 6.5 .766
Elfrid Payton 63 23.6 10.1 1.0 2.4 3.4 3.2 0.7 0.1 1.6 1.8 4.3 9.9 .432 0.4 1.6 .286 1.2 1.7 .682
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 17 44.2 25.5 2.7 8.2 10.9 2.2 1.5 2.3 - 4.1 10.2 21.9 .468 - - - 5.1 7.5 .677
Elfrid Payton 2 6.5 0.5 0.0 0.0 0 0.5 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.5 0.0 2.5 .000 0.0 0.0 - 0.5 1.0 .500

Season 8

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1975-762021-22
Team Washington BulletsPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Bullets Lost East Conf SemisSuns 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 %
Elvin Hayes 80 37.2 19.8 2.6 8.4 11.0 1.5 1.3 2.5 - 3.7 8.1 17.3 .470 - - - 3.6 5.7 .628
Elfrid Payton 50 11.0 3.0 0.4 1.3 1.8 2.0 0.5 0.1 0.9 0.8 1.3 3.5 .383 0.1 0.4 .222 0.2 0.6 .375
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 7 43.6 20.0 2.3 10.3 12.6 1.4 0.7 4.0 - 3.4 7.7 17.4 .443 - - - 4.6 7.9 .582
Elfrid Payton 2 4.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 0 1.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.5 .667 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 -

Season 9

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1976-77-
Team Washington Bullets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Bullets 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 %
Elvin Hayes 82 41.0 23.7 3.5 9.0 12.5 1.9 1.1 2.7 - 3.8 9.3 18.5 .501 - - - 5.1 7.5 .687
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 9 45.0 21.0 3.2 10.3 13.6 1.9 1.1 2.4 - 4.3 8.2 19.2 .428 - - - 4.6 6.6 .695
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 10

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1977-78-
Team Washington Bullets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA Champion-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 81 40.1 19.7 4.1 9.1 13.3 1.8 1.2 2.0 2.8 3.9 7.9 17.4 .451 - - - 4.0 6.3 .634
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 21 41.3 21.8 4.9 8.4 13.3 2.0 1.5 2.5 2.8 4.1 9.0 18.3 .491 - - - 3.8 6.3 .594
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 11

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1978-79-
Team Washington Bullets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Bullets Lost NBA Finals-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 82 37.9 21.8 3.8 8.3 12.1 1.7 0.9 2.3 2.9 3.8 8.8 18.0 .487 - - - 4.3 6.5 .654
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 19 41.4 22.5 4.9 9.1 14.0 2.0 0.9 2.7 2.9 4.2 8.9 20.8 .429 - - - 4.6 6.8 .669
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 12

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1979-80-
Team Washington Bullets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Bullets 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 %
Elvin Hayes 81 39.3 23.0 3.3 7.7 11.1 1.6 0.8 2.3 2.7 3.8 9.4 20.7 .454 0.0 0.2 .231 4.1 5.9 .699
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 2 46.0 20.0 5.0 6.0 11.0 3.0 0.0 2.0 2.0 4.0 8.0 20.5 .390 0.0 0.0 - 4.0 5.0 .800
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 13

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1980-81-
Team Washington Bullets-
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 %
Elvin Hayes 81 36.2 17.8 2.9 6.8 9.7 1.2 0.8 2.1 2.3 3.7 7.2 16.0 .451 0.0 0.1 .000 3.3 5.4 .617
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes ------- --- ----------
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 14

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1981-82-
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 %
Elvin Hayes 82 37.0 16.1 3.3 5.9 9.1 1.8 0.8 1.3 2.5 3.5 6.3 13.4 .472 0.0 0.1 .000 3.4 5.1 .664
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes 3 41.3 14.0 2.3 7.7 10.0 1.0 0.7 3.3 2.0 4.0 5.7 16.7 .340 0.0 0.0 - 2.7 5.0 .533
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 15

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1982-83-
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 %
Elvin Hayes 81 28.4 12.9 2.5 5.1 7.6 2.0 0.6 1.0 2.5 2.9 5.2 11.0 .476 0.0 0.0 .500 2.4 3.5 .683
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes ------- --- ----------
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 16

Elvin Hayes Elfrid Payton
Season 1983-84-
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 %
Elvin Hayes 81 12.3 5.0 1.1 2.1 3.2 0.9 0.2 0.3 1.0 1.5 2.0 4.8 .406 0.0 0.0 .000 1.1 1.6 .652
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elvin Hayes ------- --- ----------
Elfrid Payton ------- --- ----------