George Mikan vs. D'Angelo Russell Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of D'Angelo Russell and George Mikan, 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.

George Mikan played 7 years in the NBA, 4 less than D'Angelo Russell, who played 11. George Mikan had the first of his seasons in 1948-49, while D'Angelo Russell had his rookie season in 2015-16. 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
George Mikan 7 7 1948-49 to 1955-56
D'Angelo Russell 11 4 2015-16 to 2025-26

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7

Rookie Season

George Mikan D'Angelo Russell
Season 1948-492015-16
Team Minneapolis LakersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-Rookie Second Team
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid not play
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 60 - 28.3 - - - 3.6 - - - 4.3 9.7 23.4 .416 - - - 8.9 11.5 .772
difference:+20+15.1+0.3-2.5+4.8+11.4+.006+7.1+9.1+.035
D'Angelo Russell 80 28.2 13.2 0.6 2.8 3.4 3.3 1.2 0.2 2.5 1.8 4.9 12.0 .410 1.6 4.6 .351 1.8 2.4 .737
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 10 - 30.3 - - - 2.1 - - - 4.4 10.3 22.7 .454 - - - 9.7 12.1 .802
D'Angelo Russell DNP------ --- ----------

Season 2

George Mikan D'Angelo Russell
Season 1949-502016-17
Team Minneapolis LakersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid not play
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 68 - 27.4 - - - 2.9 - - - 4.4 9.5 23.5 .407 - - - 8.3 10.7 .779
difference:+5+11.8+1.9-2.3+3.9+9.7+.002+6.0+7.7+.003
D'Angelo Russell 63 28.7 15.6 0.5 3.0 3.5 4.8 1.4 0.3 2.8 2.1 5.6 13.8 .405 2.1 6.1 .352 2.3 3.0 .782
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 12 - 31.3 - - - 3.0 - - - 3.9 10.1 26.3 .383 - - - 11.2 14.2 .788
D'Angelo Russell DNP------ --- ----------

Season 3

George Mikan D'Angelo Russell
Season 1950-512017-18
Team Minneapolis LakersBrooklyn Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div FinalsDid not play
more >>
3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 68 - 28.4 - - 14.1 3.1 - - - 4.5 10.0 23.3 .428 - - - 8.5 10.5 .803
difference:+20+12.9+10.2+2.1-2.6+4.2+9.3+.014+6.5+7.8+.063
D'Angelo Russell 48 25.7 15.5 0.6 3.3 3.9 5.2 0.8 0.4 3.1 1.9 5.8 14.0 .414 1.9 5.8 .324 2.0 2.7 .740
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 7 - 24.0 - - 10.6 1.3 - - - 3.6 8.9 21.7 .408 - - - 6.3 7.9 .800
D'Angelo Russell DNP------ --- ----------

Season 4

George Mikan D'Angelo Russell
Season 1951-522018-19
Team Minneapolis LakersBrooklyn Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNets Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 64 40.2 23.8 - - 13.5 3.0 - - - 4.5 8.5 22.1 .385 - - - 6.8 8.7 .780
difference:+17+10.0+2.7+9.6+4.0-2.8+0.4+3.4+.049+4.8+6.2
D'Angelo Russell 81 30.2 21.1 0.7 3.2 3.9 7.0 1.2 0.2 3.1 1.7 8.1 18.7 .434 2.9 7.8 .369 2.0 2.5 .780
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 13 42.5 23.6 - - 15.9 2.8 - - - 4.8 7.6 20.1 .379 - - - 8.4 10.6 .790
difference:+8+12.9+4.2+12.3+0.8-2.4+0.2+0.5+.020+6.2+8.0+.056
D'Angelo Russell 5 29.6 19.4 0.4 3.2 3.6 3.6 1.4 0.2 2.8 2.4 7.4 20.6 .359 2.4 7.4 .324 2.2 2.6 .846

Season 5

George Mikan D'Angelo Russell
Season 1952-532019-20
Team Minneapolis LakersGolden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game MVP-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid not play
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 70 37.9 20.6 - - 14.4 2.9 - - - 4.1 7.1 17.9 .399 - - - 6.3 8.1 .780
difference:+25+5.6+2.5+10.5+3.4-2.2+0.9+0.9+.027+2.7+3.7+.029
D'Angelo Russell 45 32.3 23.1 0.4 3.6 3.9 6.3 1.1 0.3 3.3 1.9 8.0 18.8 .426 3.5 9.6 .367 3.6 4.4 .809
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 12 38.6 19.8 - - 15.4 1.9 - - - 4.7 6.5 17.8 .366 - - - 6.8 9.3 .732
D'Angelo Russell DNP------ --- ----------

Season 6

George Mikan D'Angelo Russell
Season 1953-542020-21
Team Minneapolis LakersMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid not play
more >>
6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 72 32.8 18.1 - - 14.3 2.4 - - - 3.7 6.1 16.1 .380 - - - 5.9 7.6 .777
difference:+30+4.3+0.9+11.7+3.4-2.1+0.6+0.6+.051+3.2+4.1+.012
D'Angelo Russell 42 28.5 19.0 0.4 2.3 2.6 5.8 1.1 0.4 2.7 1.6 6.7 15.5 .431 2.9 7.4 .387 2.7 3.5 .765
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 13 32.6 19.4 - - 13.2 1.9 - - - 4.3 6.7 14.6 .458 - - - 6.0 7.4 .813
D'Angelo Russell DNP------ --- ----------

Note: George Mikan didn't play in 1954-55.

Season 7

George Mikan D'Angelo Russell
Season 1955-562021-22
Team Minneapolis LakersMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div SemisTimberwolves Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 37 20.7 10.5 - - 8.3 1.4 - - - 4.1 4.0 10.1 .395 - - - 2.5 3.3 .770
difference:+28+11.3+7.6+5.0+5.7-2.1+2.2+4.9+.016+0.5+0.4+.055
D'Angelo Russell 65 32.0 18.1 0.4 2.9 3.3 7.1 1.0 0.3 2.5 2.0 6.2 15.0 .411 2.7 8.0 .340 3.0 3.7 .825
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
George Mikan 3 20.0 12.0 - - 9.3 1.7 - - - 4.7 4.3 11.7 .371 - - - 3.3 4.3 .769
difference:+3+12.7+6.8+5.0-1.9+0.3+0.3+.038+1.3+1.6+.019
D'Angelo Russell 6 32.7 12.0 0.0 2.5 2.5 6.7 1.5 0.0 2.8 2.8 4.0 12.0 .333 2.0 5.2 .387 2.0 2.7 .750

Additional Years

* D'Angelo Russell played 4 seasons more than George Mikan in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 8 to 11, from 2023 to 2026—D'Angelo Russell played in two Playoffs and one NBA Cup.