James Harden vs. Donald Royal Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Donald Royal and James Harden, 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.

James Harden played 15 years in the NBA, 7 more than Donald Royal, who played 8. James Harden had the first of his seasons in 2009-10, while Donald Royal had his rookie season in 1989-90. 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
James Harden 15 15 2009-10 to 2023-24
Donald Royal 8 6 1989-90 to 1997-98

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15

Rookie Season
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2009-101989-90
Team Oklahoma City ThunderMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie Second Team-
Playoffs Thunder Lost West 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 %
James Harden 76 22.9 9.9 0.6 2.6 3.2 1.8 1.1 0.3 1.4 2.6 3.1 7.6 .403 1.2 3.3 .375 2.6 3.2 .808
Donald Royal 66 11.3 5.9 1.0 1.0 2.1 0.7 0.5 0.1 1.2 1.6 1.8 3.9 .459 0.0 0.0 .000 2.3 3.0 .777
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 20.0 7.7 0.2 2.3 2.5 1.8 1.0 0.2 0.5 2.3 2.0 5.2 .387 1.0 2.7 .375 2.7 3.2 .842
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Note: Donald Royal didn't play in 1990-91.

Season 2
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2010-111991-92
Team Oklahoma City ThunderSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Thunder Lost West Conf FinalsSpurs 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 %
James Harden 82 26.7 12.2 0.5 2.6 3.1 2.1 1.1 0.3 1.3 2.5 3.6 8.3 .436 1.4 4.0 .349 3.5 4.2 .843
Donald Royal 60 12.0 4.2 1.1 1.0 2.1 0.6 0.4 0.1 0.7 1.2 1.3 3.0 .449 0.0 0.0 - 1.5 2.2 .692
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 31.6 13.0 0.6 4.8 5.4 3.6 1.2 0.8 1.6 2.8 3.9 8.2 .475 1.4 4.5 .303 3.9 4.7 .825
Donald Royal 3 19.0 5.0 1.7 2.3 4.0 0.0 0.7 0.7 2.0 2.3 1.7 3.0 .556 0.0 0.0 - 1.7 3.0 .556

Season 3
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2011-121992-93
Team Oklahoma City ThunderOrlando Magic
Honors & Awards Achievement Sixth Man of the Year-
Playoffs Thunder Lost NBA FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 62 31.4 16.8 0.5 3.6 4.1 3.7 1.0 0.2 2.2 2.4 5.0 10.1 .491 1.8 4.7 .390 5.0 6.0 .846
Donald Royal 77 21.2 9.2 1.5 2.3 3.8 1.0 0.5 0.3 1.5 2.3 2.5 5.1 .496 0.0 0.0 .000 4.1 5.1 .815
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 20 31.5 16.3 0.7 4.5 5.1 3.4 1.6 0.1 2.1 3.4 4.7 10.7 .435 1.6 3.9 .410 5.4 6.3 .857
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Season 4
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2012-131993-94
Team Houston RocketsOrlando Magic
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdMagic 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 %
James Harden 78 38.3 25.9 0.8 4.1 4.9 5.8 1.8 0.5 3.8 2.3 7.5 17.1 .438 2.3 6.2 .368 8.6 10.2 .851
Donald Royal 74 18.3 7.4 1.3 2.1 3.4 0.8 0.7 0.2 1.0 1.6 2.4 4.7 .501 0.0 0.0 .000 2.7 3.6 .740
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 40.5 26.3 0.8 5.8 6.7 4.5 2.0 1.0 4.5 3.0 7.5 19.2 .391 2.5 7.3 .341 8.8 11.0 .803
Donald Royal 3 15.0 7.0 0.3 1.0 1.3 1.7 0.3 0.0 0.7 1.0 2.0 4.7 .429 0.0 0.0 - 3.0 4.0 .750

Season 5
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2013-141994-95
Team Houston RocketsOrlando Magic
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdMagic Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 73 38.0 25.4 0.8 3.9 4.7 6.1 1.6 0.4 3.6 2.4 7.5 16.5 .456 2.4 6.6 .366 7.9 9.1 .866
Donald Royal 70 26.3 9.1 1.2 2.8 4.0 2.8 0.6 0.2 1.8 2.2 2.9 6.2 .475 0.0 0.1 .000 3.2 4.3 .746
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 43.8 26.8 0.8 3.8 4.7 5.8 2.0 0.2 3.5 3.5 8.3 22.2 .376 2.7 9.0 .296 7.5 8.3 .900
Donald Royal 18 11.0 2.1 0.3 0.7 1.1 0.5 0.2 0.0 0.7 1.2 0.6 1.8 .333 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.1 .750

Season 6
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2014-151995-96
Team Houston RocketsOrlando Magic
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf FinalsMagic Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 81 36.8 27.4 0.9 4.7 5.7 7.0 1.9 0.7 4.0 2.6 8.0 18.1 .440 2.6 6.9 .375 8.8 10.2 .868
Donald Royal 64 15.0 5.3 0.9 1.5 2.4 0.7 0.5 0.2 0.8 1.5 1.7 3.4 .491 0.0 0.0 .000 2.0 2.6 .762
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 37.4 27.2 0.7 5.0 5.7 7.5 1.6 0.4 4.5 2.9 7.6 17.3 .439 2.4 6.3 .383 9.6 10.5 .916
Donald Royal 7 13.1 3.6 0.6 1.0 1.6 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.3 1.0 1.0 1.7 .583 0.0 0.0 - 1.6 2.3 .688

Season 7
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2015-161996-97
Team Houston RocketsOrlando Magic, Golden State Warriors, Charlotte Hornets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdHornets 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 %
James Harden 82 38.1 29.0 0.8 5.3 6.1 7.5 1.7 0.6 4.6 2.8 8.7 19.7 .439 2.9 8.0 .359 8.8 10.2 .860
Donald Royal 62 13.8 3.5 0.8 1.6 2.5 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.8 1.6 1.0 2.4 .425 0.0 0.0 .000 1.5 1.9 .803
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 5 38.6 26.6 1.4 3.8 5.2 7.6 2.4 0.2 5.2 2.6 8.2 20.0 .410 2.6 8.4 .310 7.6 9.0 .844
Donald Royal 1 4.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0 .000 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 -

Season 8
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2016-171997-98
Team Houston RocketsOrlando Magic, Charlotte Hornets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Assists Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf SemisHornets 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 %
James Harden 81 36.4 29.1 1.2 7.0 8.1 11.2 1.5 0.5 5.7 2.7 8.3 18.9 .440 3.2 9.3 .347 9.2 10.9 .847
Donald Royal 31 10.4 2.5 0.6 0.7 1.3 0.5 0.2 0.0 0.3 1.1 0.8 2.2 .362 0.0 0.0 - 0.9 1.1 .879
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 37.0 28.5 0.6 4.8 5.5 8.5 1.9 0.5 5.4 3.9 8.2 19.8 .413 2.9 10.5 .278 9.2 10.5 .878
Donald Royal 4 7.0 2.3 0.0 1.0 1.0 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.3 1.0 0.8 1.8 .429 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.0 .750

Season 9
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2017-18-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf Finals-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 72 35.4 30.4 0.6 4.8 5.4 8.8 1.8 0.7 4.4 2.3 9.0 20.1 .449 3.7 10.0 .367 8.7 10.1 .858
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 36.5 28.6 0.8 4.4 5.2 6.8 2.2 0.6 3.8 2.7 9.3 22.6 .410 3.1 10.2 .299 6.9 7.8 .887
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Season 10
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2018-19-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
James Harden 78 36.8 36.1 0.8 5.8 6.6 7.5 2.0 0.7 5.0 3.1 10.8 24.5 .442 4.8 13.2 .368 9.7 11.0 .879
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 38.5 31.6 0.8 6.0 6.8 6.6 2.2 0.9 4.6 3.7 9.9 24.0 .413 4.4 12.5 .350 7.5 8.9 .837
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Season 11
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2019-20-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
James Harden 68 36.5 34.3 1.0 5.5 6.6 7.5 1.8 0.9 4.5 3.3 9.9 22.3 .444 4.4 12.4 .355 10.2 11.8 .865
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 12 37.3 29.6 1.0 4.6 5.6 7.7 1.5 0.8 3.8 3.6 9.1 19.0 .478 3.3 9.8 .333 8.2 9.7 .845
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Season 12
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2020-21-
Team Houston Rockets, Brooklyn Nets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nets 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 %
James Harden 44 36.6 24.6 0.8 7.1 7.9 10.8 1.2 0.8 4.0 2.3 7.8 16.7 .466 2.8 7.6 .362 6.3 7.3 .861
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 9 35.8 20.2 0.8 5.6 6.3 8.6 1.7 0.7 2.9 2.6 5.7 12.0 .472 2.7 7.3 .364 6.2 6.9 .903
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Season 13
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2021-22-
Team Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers 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 %
James Harden 65 37.2 22.0 0.8 6.8 7.7 10.3 1.3 0.6 4.4 2.4 6.3 15.3 .410 2.3 6.9 .330 7.2 8.2 .877
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 12 39.9 18.6 0.9 4.8 5.7 8.6 0.8 0.7 4.2 2.4 5.3 13.2 .405 2.3 6.3 .368 5.6 6.3 .893
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Season 14
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2022-23-
Team Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement Assists Leader-
Playoffs 76ers 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 %
James Harden 58 36.8 21.0 0.7 5.4 6.1 10.7 1.2 0.5 3.4 1.9 6.4 14.5 .441 2.8 7.2 .385 5.4 6.2 .867
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 38.8 20.3 0.5 5.6 6.2 8.3 1.8 0.4 3.2 2.5 6.5 16.6 .393 2.8 7.5 .378 4.4 5.0 .873
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------

Season 15
James Harden Donald Royal
Season 2023-24-
Team Los Angeles Clippers-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Clippers 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 %
James Harden 72 34.3 16.6 0.5 4.7 5.1 8.5 1.1 0.8 2.6 1.8 4.9 11.4 .428 2.6 6.8 .381 4.2 4.8 .878
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 40.3 21.2 0.5 4.0 4.5 8.0 1.0 1.0 2.3 2.2 6.7 14.8 .449 3.0 7.8 .383 4.8 5.3 .906
Donald Royal ------- --- ----------
Share: