John Havlicek vs. Isiah Thomas Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Isiah Thomas and John Havlicek, 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.

John Havlicek played 16 years in the NBA, 3 more than Isiah Thomas, who played 13. John Havlicek had the first of his seasons in 1962-63, while Isiah Thomas had his rookie season in 1981-82. 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
John Havlicek 16 13 1962-63 to 1977-78
Isiah Thomas 13 9 1981-82 to 1993-94

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16

Rookie Season

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1962-631981-82
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 80 27.5 14.3 - - 6.7 2.2 - - - 2.4 6.0 13.6 .445 - - - 2.2 3.0 .728
Isiah Thomas 72 33.8 17.0 0.8 2.1 2.9 7.8 2.1 0.2 4.2 3.5 6.3 14.8 .424 0.2 0.8 .288 4.2 6.0 .704
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 11 23.1 11.8 - - 4.8 1.5 - - - 2.5 5.1 11.4 .448 - - - 1.6 2.5 .667
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 2

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1963-641982-83
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 80 32.3 19.9 - - 5.4 3.0 - - - 2.8 8.0 19.2 .417 - - - 3.9 5.3 .746
Isiah Thomas 81 38.2 22.9 1.3 2.8 4.0 7.8 2.5 0.4 4.0 3.9 9.0 19.0 .472 0.4 1.5 .288 4.5 6.4 .710
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 10 28.9 15.7 - - 4.3 3.2 - - - 2.6 6.1 15.9 .384 - - - 3.5 4.4 .795
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 3

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1964-651983-84
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game NVP
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionPistons 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 %
John Havlicek 75 28.9 18.3 - - 4.9 2.7 - - - 2.7 7.6 18.9 .401 - - - 3.1 4.2 .744
Isiah Thomas 82 36.7 21.3 1.3 2.7 4.0 11.1 2.5 0.4 3.7 4.0 8.2 17.7 .462 0.3 0.8 .338 4.7 6.5 .733
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 12 33.8 18.5 - - 7.3 2.4 - - - 3.7 7.3 20.8 .352 - - - 3.8 4.6 .836
Isiah Thomas 5 39.6 21.4 1.4 2.4 3.8 11.0 2.6 1.2 4.6 4.4 7.8 16.6 .470 0.4 1.2 .333 5.4 7.0 .771

Season 4

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1965-661984-85
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionPistons 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 %
John Havlicek 71 30.6 18.8 - - 6.0 3.0 - - - 2.2 7.5 18.7 .399 - - - 3.9 4.9 .785
Isiah Thomas 81 38.1 21.2 1.4 3.0 4.5 13.9 2.3 0.3 3.7 3.6 8.0 17.4 .458 0.4 1.4 .257 4.9 6.1 .809
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 17 42.3 23.6 - - 9.1 4.1 - - - 4.1 9.0 22.0 .409 - - - 5.6 6.6 .841
Isiah Thomas 9 39.4 24.3 1.2 4.0 5.2 11.2 2.1 0.4 3.3 4.3 9.2 18.4 .500 0.7 1.7 .400 5.2 6.9 .758

Season 5

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1966-671985-86
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game NVP
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Div FinalsPistons 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 %
John Havlicek 81 32.1 21.4 - - 6.6 3.4 - - - 2.6 8.4 19.0 .444 - - - 4.5 5.4 .828
Isiah Thomas 77 36.2 20.9 1.1 2.5 3.6 10.8 2.2 0.3 3.8 3.2 7.9 16.2 .488 0.3 1.1 .310 4.7 6.0 .790
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 9 36.7 27.4 - - 8.1 3.1 - - - 3.3 10.6 23.6 .448 - - - 6.3 7.9 .803
Isiah Thomas 4 40.8 26.5 2.0 3.5 5.5 12.0 2.3 0.8 4.3 4.3 10.3 22.8 .451 0.0 1.3 .000 6.0 9.0 .667

Season 6

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1967-681986-87
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionPistons 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 %
John Havlicek 82 35.6 20.7 - - 6.7 4.7 - - - 2.9 8.1 18.9 .429 - - - 4.5 5.5 .812
Isiah Thomas 81 37.2 20.6 1.0 2.9 3.9 10.0 1.9 0.2 4.2 3.1 7.7 16.7 .463 0.2 1.2 .194 4.9 6.4 .768
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 19 45.4 25.9 - - 8.6 7.5 - - - 3.5 9.7 21.4 .452 - - - 6.6 7.9 .828
Isiah Thomas 15 37.5 24.1 1.4 3.1 4.5 8.7 2.6 0.3 2.8 3.4 8.9 19.8 .451 0.7 2.2 .303 5.5 7.3 .755

Season 7

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1968-691987-88
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionPistons Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 82 38.7 21.6 - - 7.0 5.4 - - - 3.0 8.4 20.8 .405 - - - 4.7 6.0 .780
Isiah Thomas 81 36.1 19.5 0.8 2.6 3.4 8.4 1.7 0.2 3.4 2.7 7.7 16.6 .463 0.4 1.2 .309 3.8 4.9 .774
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 18 47.2 25.4 - - 9.9 5.6 - - - 3.2 9.4 21.2 .445 - - - 6.6 7.7 .855
Isiah Thomas 23 39.6 21.9 1.1 3.5 4.7 8.7 2.9 0.3 3.7 3.1 8.0 18.2 .437 0.6 1.9 .295 5.4 6.6 .828

Season 8

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1969-701988-89
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 81 41.6 24.2 - - 7.8 6.8 - - - 2.6 9.1 19.6 .464 - - - 6.0 7.1 .844
Isiah Thomas 80 36.6 18.2 0.6 2.8 3.4 8.3 1.7 0.3 3.7 2.6 7.1 15.3 .464 0.4 1.5 .273 3.6 4.4 .818
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------
Isiah Thomas 17 37.2 18.2 1.4 2.9 4.3 8.3 1.6 0.2 2.5 2.3 6.8 16.4 .412 0.5 1.8 .267 4.2 5.6 .740

Season 9

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1970-711989-90
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards -Achievement Finals MVP
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 81 45.4 28.9 - - 9.0 7.5 - - - 2.5 11.0 24.5 .450 - - - 6.8 8.4 .818
Isiah Thomas 81 37.0 18.4 0.9 2.9 3.8 9.4 1.7 0.2 4.0 2.5 7.1 16.3 .438 0.5 1.7 .309 3.6 4.7 .775
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------
Isiah Thomas 20 37.9 20.5 1.1 4.4 5.5 8.2 2.2 0.4 3.6 3.3 7.4 16.0 .463 1.6 3.4 .471 4.1 5.1 .794

Season 10

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1971-721990-91
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsPistons 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 %
John Havlicek 82 45.1 27.5 - - 8.2 7.5 - - - 2.2 10.9 23.9 .458 - - - 5.6 6.7 .834
Isiah Thomas 48 34.5 16.2 0.7 2.6 3.3 9.3 1.6 0.2 3.9 2.5 6.0 13.9 .435 0.4 1.4 .292 3.7 4.8 .782
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 11 47.0 27.4 - - 8.4 6.4 - - - 3.2 9.8 21.4 .460 - - - 7.7 9.0 .859
Isiah Thomas 13 33.5 13.5 1.0 3.2 4.2 8.5 1.0 0.2 3.2 3.2 4.6 11.5 .403 0.5 1.7 .273 3.8 5.3 .725

Season 11

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1972-731991-92
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsPistons 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 %
John Havlicek 80 42.1 23.8 - - 7.1 6.6 - - - 2.4 9.6 21.3 .450 - - - 4.6 5.4 .858
Isiah Thomas 78 37.4 18.5 0.9 2.3 3.2 7.2 1.5 0.2 3.2 2.5 7.2 16.2 .446 0.3 1.1 .291 3.7 4.8 .772
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 12 39.9 23.8 - - 5.2 5.4 - - - 2.0 9.3 19.6 .477 - - - 5.1 6.2 .824
Isiah Thomas 5 40.0 14.0 0.6 4.6 5.2 7.4 1.0 0.0 3.2 3.6 4.4 13.0 .338 0.8 2.2 .364 4.4 5.6 .786

Season 12

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1973-741992-93
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 76 40.7 22.6 1.8 4.6 6.4 5.9 1.3 0.4 - 2.6 9.0 19.8 .456 - - - 4.6 5.5 .832
Isiah Thomas 79 37.0 17.6 0.9 2.0 2.9 8.5 1.6 0.2 3.6 2.8 6.7 15.9 .418 0.8 2.5 .308 3.5 4.8 .737
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 18 45.1 27.1 1.6 4.9 6.4 6.0 1.3 0.3 - 2.4 11.1 22.8 .484 - - - 4.9 5.6 .881
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 13

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1974-751993-94
Team Boston CelticsDetroit Pistons
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 82 38.2 19.2 1.9 4.0 5.9 5.3 1.3 0.2 - 2.8 7.8 17.2 .455 - - - 3.5 4.0 .870
Isiah Thomas 58 30.2 14.8 0.8 1.9 2.7 6.9 1.2 0.1 3.5 2.2 5.5 13.2 .417 0.7 2.2 .310 3.1 4.4 .702
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 11 42.2 21.1 1.6 3.5 5.2 4.6 1.5 0.1 - 3.5 7.5 17.5 .432 - - - 6.0 6.9 .868
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 14

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1975-76-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
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 %
John Havlicek 76 34.2 17.0 1.5 2.6 4.1 3.7 1.3 0.4 - 2.7 6.6 14.8 .450 - - - 3.7 4.4 .844
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 15 33.7 13.2 1.2 2.5 3.7 3.4 0.8 0.3 - 2.1 5.3 12.0 .444 - - - 2.5 3.1 .809
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 15

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1976-77-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics 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 %
John Havlicek 79 36.9 17.7 1.4 3.5 4.8 5.1 1.1 0.2 - 2.6 7.3 16.2 .452 - - - 3.0 3.6 .816
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 9 41.7 18.3 1.7 3.8 5.4 6.9 0.9 0.4 - 3.7 6.9 18.6 .371 - - - 4.6 5.6 .820
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 16

John Havlicek Isiah Thomas
Season 1977-78-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
John Havlicek 82 34.1 16.1 1.1 2.9 4.0 4.0 1.1 0.3 2.5 2.3 6.7 14.8 .449 - - - 2.8 3.3 .855
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------
Isiah Thomas ------- --- ----------