John Havlicek vs. Kawhi Leonard Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Kawhi Leonard 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 / Stats / Stats Rankings

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, 2 more than Kawhi Leonard, who played 14. John Havlicek had the first of his seasons in 1962-63, while Kawhi Leonard had his rookie season in 2011-12. 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
John Havlicek 16 13 1962-63 to 1977-78
Kawhi Leonard 14 12 2011-12 to 2025-26

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14

Rookie Season

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1962-632011-12
Team Boston CelticsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSpurs Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+16+3.5+6.4+1.6+1.1-1.0+2.9+7.3+.048+1.1+1.6+.045
Kawhi Leonard 64 24.0 7.9 1.6 3.5 5.1 1.1 1.3 0.4 0.7 1.4 3.1 6.3 .493 0.6 1.7 .376 1.1 1.4 .773
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+3+4.0+3.2+1.1+0.9-0.9+1.9+5.0+.052+0.7+1.4+.146
Kawhi Leonard 14 27.1 8.6 1.3 4.6 5.9 0.6 1.2 0.4 0.9 1.6 3.2 6.4 .500 1.3 2.9 .450 0.9 1.1 .813

Season 2

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1963-642012-13
Team Boston CelticsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSpurs Lost NBA Finals
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+22+1.1+8.0+0.6+1.4-1.1+3.5+10.1+.077+2.1+3.1+.079
Kawhi Leonard 58 31.2 11.9 1.1 4.9 6.0 1.6 1.7 0.6 1.1 1.7 4.5 9.1 .494 1.1 3.0 .374 1.8 2.2 .825
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+11+8.0+2.2+4.7+2.2-0.7+0.6+5.9+.161+2.0+2.1+.162
Kawhi Leonard 21 36.9 13.5 2.4 6.7 9.0 1.0 1.8 0.5 1.1 1.9 5.5 10.0 .545 1.1 2.8 .390 1.5 2.3 .633

Season 3

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1964-652013-14
Team Boston CelticsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement Finals MVP
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+9+0.2+5.5+1.3+0.7-0.8+2.5+9.1+.121+1.6+2.3+.058
Kawhi Leonard 66 29.1 12.8 1.2 5.1 6.2 2.0 1.7 0.8 1.2 1.9 5.1 9.8 .522 1.0 2.8 .379 1.5 1.9 .802
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+11+1.8+4.2+0.6+0.7-0.8+2.0+10.4+.158+1.5+1.5+.100
Kawhi Leonard 23 32.0 14.3 1.3 5.4 6.7 1.7 1.7 0.6 1.3 2.9 5.3 10.4 .510 1.3 3.2 .419 2.3 3.1 .736

Season 4

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1965-662014-15
Team Boston CelticsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement Defensive Player of the Year
-Achievement Steals Leader
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSpurs Lost West 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%
John Havlicek 71 30.6 18.8 - - 6.0 3.0 - - - 2.2 7.5 18.7 .399 - - - 3.9 4.9 .785
difference:+7+1.2+2.3+1.2+0.5-0.2+1.3+5.9+.080+0.7+1.0+.017
Kawhi Leonard 64 31.8 16.5 1.3 5.9 7.2 2.5 2.3 0.8 1.5 2.0 6.2 12.8 .479 1.0 3.0 .349 3.2 3.9 .802
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+10+6.6+3.3+1.7+1.5-1.5+1.6+6.4+.068+1.7+1.6+.070
Kawhi Leonard 7 35.7 20.3 1.9 5.6 7.4 2.6 1.1 0.6 2.1 2.6 7.4 15.6 .477 1.6 3.7 .423 3.9 5.0 .771

Season 5

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1966-672015-16
Team Boston CelticsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement Defensive Player of the Year
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Div FinalsSpurs Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+9+1.0+0.2+0.2+0.8-0.8+0.7+3.9+.062+0.4+0.8+.046
Kawhi Leonard 72 33.1 21.2 1.3 5.5 6.8 2.6 1.8 1.0 1.5 1.8 7.7 15.1 .506 1.8 4.0 .443 4.1 4.6 .874
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+1+2.8+4.9+1.8+0.3-1.2+2.3+7.0+.052+2.1+2.8+.021
Kawhi Leonard 10 33.9 22.5 1.4 4.9 6.3 2.8 2.6 1.4 1.6 2.1 8.3 16.6 .500 1.7 3.9 .436 4.2 5.1 .824

Season 6

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1967-682016-17
Team Boston CelticsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSpurs Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+8+2.2+4.8+0.9+1.2-1.3+0.5+1.2+.056+1.8+1.7+.068
Kawhi Leonard 74 33.4 25.5 1.1 4.7 5.8 3.5 1.8 0.7 2.1 1.6 8.6 17.7 .485 2.0 5.2 .380 6.3 7.2 .880
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+7+9.6+1.8+0.8+2.9-1.7+0.9+4.6+.073+1.3+0.6+.103
Kawhi Leonard 12 35.8 27.7 1.6 6.2 7.8 4.6 1.7 0.5 2.2 1.8 8.8 16.8 .525 2.1 4.6 .455 7.9 8.5 .931

Season 7

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1968-692017-18
Team Boston CelticsSan Antonio Spurs
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+73+15.4+5.4+2.3+3.1-2.0+2.6+8.5+.063+1.3+1.8+.036
Kawhi Leonard 9 23.3 16.2 0.7 4.0 4.7 2.3 2.0 1.0 1.8 1.0 5.8 12.3 .468 1.2 3.9 .314 3.4 4.2 .816
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
Kawhi Leonard DNP------ --- ----------

Season 8

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1969-702018-19
Team Boston CelticsToronto Raptors
Honors & Awards -Achievement Finals MVP
Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second TeamAchievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+21+7.6+2.4+0.5+3.5-1.1+0.2+0.8+.032+0.1+.010
Kawhi Leonard 60 34.0 26.6 1.3 6.0 7.3 3.3 1.8 0.4 2.0 1.5 9.3 18.8 .496 1.9 5.0 .371 6.1 7.1 .854
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
John Havlicek DNP------ --- ----------
Kawhi Leonard 24 39.1 30.5 2.3 6.8 9.1 3.9 1.7 0.7 3.1 2.3 10.1 20.7 .490 2.3 6.0 .379 8.0 9.0 .884

Season 9

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1970-712019-20
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Clippers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second TeamAchievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Did Not PlayClippers Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+24+13.0+1.8+1.9+2.6-0.5+1.7+4.6+.020+0.6+1.3+.068
Kawhi Leonard 57 32.4 27.1 0.9 6.1 7.1 4.9 1.8 0.6 2.6 2.0 9.3 19.9 .470 2.2 5.7 .378 6.2 7.1 .886
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
John Havlicek DNP------ --- ----------
Kawhi Leonard 13 39.3 28.2 1.8 7.5 9.3 5.5 2.3 0.8 2.5 2.2 10.1 20.6 .489 1.8 5.6 .329 6.2 7.2 .862

Season 10

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1971-722020-21
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Clippers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsClippers Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+30+11.0+2.7+1.7+2.3-0.6+2.0+6.4+.054+0.6+1.0+.051
Kawhi Leonard 52 34.1 24.8 1.1 5.4 6.5 5.2 1.6 0.4 2.0 1.6 8.9 17.5 .512 1.9 4.9 .398 5.0 5.7 .885
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+7.7+3.0+0.7+2.0-0.6+1.3+2.0+.113+1.7+2.2+.021
Kawhi Leonard 11 39.3 30.4 2.0 5.7 7.7 4.4 2.1 0.8 2.2 2.6 11.1 19.4 .573 2.2 5.5 .393 6.0 6.8 .880

Note: Kawhi Leonard didn't play in 2021-22.

Season 11

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1972-732022-23
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Clippers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsClippers Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+28+8.5+0.6+2.7-0.8+1.0+4.5+.062+0.1+.013
Kawhi Leonard 52 33.6 23.8 1.1 5.4 6.5 3.9 1.4 0.5 1.7 1.6 8.6 16.8 .512 2.0 4.8 .416 4.7 5.4 .871
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+10+0.1+10.7+1.3+0.6-0.5+2.7+2.4+.068+2.4+2.3+.058
Kawhi Leonard 2 40.0 34.5 1.5 5.0 6.5 6.0 2.0 0.5 3.0 2.5 12.0 22.0 .545 3.0 5.0 .600 7.5 8.5 .882

Season 12

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1973-742023-24
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Clippers
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionClippers Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+8+6.4+1.1+0.6+0.3+0.3+2.3+0.3+0.5-1.2+2.7+.069+0.9+1.3+.053
Kawhi Leonard 68 34.3 23.7 1.2 4.9 6.1 3.6 1.6 0.9 1.8 1.4 9.0 17.1 .525 2.1 4.9 .417 3.7 4.2 .885
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+16+15.6+15.1+0.1+1.6+1.6+4.0+0.7+0.2-0.9+5.6+10.8+.026+3.9+4.1+.214
Kawhi Leonard 2 29.5 12.0 1.5 6.5 8.0 2.0 2.0 0.5 2.0 1.5 5.5 12.0 .458 0.0 2.5 .000 1.0 1.5 .667

Season 13

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1974-752024-25
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Clippers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsClippers Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
13th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+45+6.3+2.3+1.0+1.0+2.2+0.3+0.3-1.3+0.6+0.4+.043+0.9+0.7+.060
Kawhi Leonard 37 31.9 21.5 0.9 5.0 5.9 3.1 1.6 0.5 1.9 1.5 8.4 16.8 .498 2.1 5.1 .411 2.6 3.3 .810
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+4+4.3+3.9+2.5+2.4+0.1+0.4+0.6-1.8+1.9+0.1+.105+2.0+1.8+.090
Kawhi Leonard 7 37.9 25.0 1.6 6.0 7.6 4.7 1.1 0.7 2.1 1.7 9.4 17.6 .537 2.1 5.3 .405 4.0 5.1 .778

Season 14

John Havlicek Kawhi Leonard
Season 1975-762025-26
Team Boston CelticsLos Angeles Clippers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
14th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
difference:+72+2.2+4.3+0.7+2.9+2.2+0.7+0.1-1.7+1.4+2.2+.021+0.2+0.6+.089
Kawhi Leonard 4 32.0 21.3 0.8 5.5 6.3 3.0 1.3 0.5 1.8 1.0 8.0 17.0 .471 1.8 4.8 .368 3.5 3.8 .933
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF 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
Kawhi Leonard DNP------ --- ----------

Additional Years

* John Havlicek played 2 seasons more than Kawhi Leonard in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 15 to 16, from 1977 to 1978—John Havlicek played in one postseason.

In those 2 extra years over Kawhi Leonard, John Havlicek got these achievements:

Honors & AwardsAchievement 2 All-Star Game