Julius Erving vs. Nikola Jokic Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Nikola Jokic and Julius Erving, 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.

Julius Erving played 11 years in the NBA, 1 more than Nikola Jokic, who played 10. Julius Erving had the first of his seasons in 1976-77, while Nikola Jokic 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
Julius Erving 11 11 1976-77 to 1986-87
Nikola Jokic 10 7 2015-16 to 2024-25

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10

Rookie Season

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1976-772015-16
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game MVP-
Playoffs 76ers Lost NBA FinalsDid 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%
Julius Erving 82 35.9 21.6 2.3 6.1 8.5 3.7 1.9 1.4 - 3.1 8.4 16.7 .499 - - - 4.9 6.3 .777
difference:+2+14.2+11.6+1.4+1.5+1.3+0.9+0.8-0.5+4.6+9.2+.013+3.0+3.9+.034
Nikola Jokic 80 21.7 10.0 2.3 4.7 7.0 2.4 1.0 0.6 1.3 2.6 3.8 7.5 .512 0.4 1.1 .333 1.9 2.4 .811
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 19 39.9 27.3 2.2 4.3 6.4 4.5 2.2 1.2 - 2.4 10.7 20.5 .523 - - - 5.8 7.1 .821
Nikola Jokic DNP------ --- ----------

Season 2

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1977-782016-17
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf FinalsDid 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%
Julius Erving 74 32.8 20.6 2.4 4.1 6.5 3.8 1.8 1.3 3.2 2.8 8.3 16.4 .502 - - - 4.1 4.9 .845
difference:+1+4.9+3.9+0.5+2.8+3.3+1.1+1.0+0.5-0.9-0.1+1.5+4.7+.076+1.5+1.8+.020
Nikola Jokic 73 27.9 16.7 2.9 6.9 9.8 4.9 0.8 0.8 2.3 2.9 6.8 11.7 .578 0.6 1.9 .324 2.6 3.1 .825
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 10 35.8 21.8 4.0 5.7 9.7 4.0 1.5 1.8 3.5 3.0 8.8 18.0 .489 - - - 4.2 5.6 .750
Nikola Jokic DNP------ --- ----------

Season 3

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1978-792017-18
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf SemisDid 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%
Julius Erving 78 35.9 23.1 2.5 4.7 7.2 4.6 1.7 1.3 4.0 2.7 9.2 18.7 .491 - - - 4.8 6.4 .745
difference:+3+3.3+4.6+0.1+3.4+3.5+1.5+0.5+0.5-1.2-0.1+2.5+5.2+.008+1.3+2.2+.105
Nikola Jokic 75 32.6 18.5 2.6 8.1 10.7 6.1 1.2 0.8 2.8 2.8 6.7 13.5 .499 1.5 3.7 .396 3.5 4.2 .850
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 9 41.3 25.4 3.2 4.6 7.8 5.9 2.0 1.9 4.2 2.4 9.9 19.1 .517 - - - 5.7 7.4 .761
Nikola Jokic DNP------ --- ----------

Season 4

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1979-802018-19
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost NBA FinalsNuggets Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 78 36.1 26.9 2.8 4.6 7.4 4.6 2.2 1.8 3.6 2.7 10.7 20.7 .519 0.1 0.3 .200 5.4 6.8 .787
difference:+2+4.8+6.8+0.1+3.4+3.4+2.7+0.8+1.1-0.5-0.2+3.0+5.6+.008+0.9+3.1+.107+1.8+2.4+.034
Nikola Jokic 80 31.3 20.1 2.9 8.0 10.8 7.3 1.4 0.7 3.1 2.9 7.7 15.1 .511 1.0 3.4 .307 3.6 4.4 .821
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 18 38.6 24.4 1.7 5.8 7.6 4.4 2.0 2.1 3.1 3.1 9.2 18.8 .488 0.1 0.5 .222 6.0 7.6 .794
difference:+4+1.2+0.7+2.2+3.3+5.4+4.0+0.9+1.2-0.5-0.8+0.2+0.2+.018+1.5+3.5+.171+1.3+2.0+.052
Nikola Jokic 14 39.8 25.1 3.9 9.1 13.0 8.4 1.1 0.9 2.6 3.9 9.4 18.6 .506 1.6 4.0 .393 4.7 5.6 .846

Season 5

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1980-812019-20
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf FinalsNuggets Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 82 35.0 24.6 3.0 5.0 8.0 4.4 2.1 1.8 3.2 2.8 9.7 18.6 .521 0.0 0.2 .222 5.1 6.5 .787
difference:+9+3.0+4.7+0.7+2.5+1.7+2.6+0.9+1.2-0.1-0.2+2.0+3.9+.007+1.1+3.3+.092+1.7+2.4+.030
Nikola Jokic 73 32.0 19.9 2.3 7.5 9.7 7.0 1.2 0.6 3.1 3.0 7.7 14.7 .528 1.1 3.5 .314 3.4 4.1 .817
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 16 37.0 22.9 3.3 3.9 7.1 3.4 1.4 2.6 3.4 3.4 8.9 18.8 .475 0.0 0.1 .000 5.1 6.7 .757
difference:+3+0.5+1.5+1.4+4.0+2.7+2.3+0.3+1.8-0.1-0.2+0.5+0.7+.044+2.2+5.1+.429+1.6+2.5+.078
Nikola Jokic 19 36.5 24.4 1.9 7.9 9.8 5.7 1.1 0.8 3.3 3.6 9.4 18.1 .519 2.2 5.2 .429 3.5 4.2 .835

Season 6

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1981-822020-21
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost NBA FinalsNuggets Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 81 34.4 24.4 2.7 4.2 6.9 3.9 2.0 1.7 2.6 2.8 9.6 17.6 .546 0.0 0.1 .273 5.1 6.7 .763
difference:+9+0.2+2.0+0.1+3.8+3.9+4.4+0.7+1.0-0.5-0.1+0.6+0.4+.020+1.3+3.2+.115+0.3+1.2+.105
Nikola Jokic 72 34.6 26.4 2.8 8.0 10.8 8.3 1.3 0.7 3.1 2.7 10.2 18.0 .566 1.3 3.3 .388 4.8 5.5 .868
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 21 37.1 22.0 2.7 4.7 7.4 4.7 1.8 1.8 3.2 2.6 8.0 15.4 .519 0.0 0.3 .167 5.9 7.9 .752
difference:+11+2.6+7.8+1.0+3.2+4.2+0.3+1.2+0.9-0.8-0.3+3.6+7.4+.010+2.0+5.0+.210+1.3+2.4+.084
Nikola Jokic 10 34.5 29.8 3.7 7.9 11.6 5.0 0.6 0.9 2.4 2.3 11.6 22.8 .509 2.0 5.3 .377 4.6 5.5 .836

Season 7

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1982-832021-22
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Achievement All-Star Game MVP-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNuggets 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%
Julius Erving 72 33.6 21.4 2.4 4.4 6.8 3.7 1.6 1.8 2.7 2.8 8.4 16.3 .517 0.0 0.1 .286 4.6 6.0 .759
difference:+2+0.1+5.7+0.4+6.6+7.0+4.2+0.1+0.9-1.1-0.2+1.9+1.4+.066+1.3+3.8+.051+0.5+0.3+.051
Nikola Jokic 74 33.5 27.1 2.8 11.0 13.8 7.9 1.5 0.9 3.8 2.6 10.3 17.7 .583 1.3 3.9 .337 5.1 6.3 .810
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 13 37.9 18.4 2.5 5.2 7.6 3.4 1.2 2.1 3.0 3.2 7.3 16.2 .450 0.0 0.1 .000 3.8 5.2 .721
difference:+8+3.7+12.6+0.9+4.6+5.6+2.4+0.4+1.1-1.8-0.8+4.9+5.0+.125+1.0+3.5+.278+1.8+1.4+.127
Nikola Jokic 5 34.2 31.0 3.4 9.8 13.2 5.8 1.6 1.0 4.8 4.0 12.2 21.2 .575 1.0 3.6 .278 5.6 6.6 .848

Season 8

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1983-842022-23
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards -Achievement Finals MVP
Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf 1st RdNBA 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%
Julius Erving 77 34.8 22.4 2.5 4.4 6.9 4.0 1.8 1.8 3.0 2.8 8.8 17.2 .512 0.1 0.3 .333 4.7 6.3 .754
difference:+8+1.1+2.1+0.1+5.0+4.9+5.8+0.5+1.1-0.6-0.3+0.6+2.4+.120+0.7+1.9+.050+0.2+0.3+.068
Nikola Jokic 69 33.7 24.5 2.4 9.4 11.8 9.8 1.3 0.7 3.6 2.5 9.4 14.8 .632 0.8 2.2 .383 4.9 6.0 .822
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 5 38.8 18.2 1.8 4.6 6.4 5.0 1.6 1.2 4.2 2.8 7.2 15.2 .474 0.0 0.2 .000 3.8 4.4 .864
difference:+15+0.7+11.8+1.7+5.4+7.1+4.5+0.5+0.2-0.7-0.7+4.2+5.5+.074+1.8+3.6+.461+1.8+2.6+.065
Nikola Jokic 20 39.5 30.0 3.5 10.0 13.5 9.5 1.1 1.0 3.5 3.5 11.4 20.7 .548 1.8 3.8 .461 5.6 7.0 .799

Season 9

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1984-852023-24
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf FinalsNuggets 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%
Julius Erving 78 32.5 20.0 2.2 3.1 5.3 3.0 1.7 1.4 2.7 2.6 7.8 15.8 .494 0.0 0.2 .214 4.3 5.7 .765
difference:+1+2.1+6.4+0.6+6.4+7.1+6.0+0.3+0.5-0.3-0.1+2.6+2.1+.089+1.1+2.7+.145+0.2+0.2+.052
Nikola Jokic 79 34.6 26.4 2.8 9.5 12.4 9.0 1.4 0.9 3.0 2.5 10.4 17.9 .583 1.1 2.9 .359 4.5 5.5 .817
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 13 33.4 17.1 2.2 3.4 5.6 3.7 1.9 0.8 2.8 2.6 6.5 14.4 .449 0.0 0.1 .000 4.2 4.8 .857
difference:+1+6.8+11.6+1.4+6.4+7.8+5.0+0.5+0.1-0.5-0.1+4.6+5.9+.096+1.2+4.3+.264+1.1+1.1+.044
Nikola Jokic 12 40.2 28.7 3.6 9.8 13.4 8.7 1.4 0.7 3.3 2.7 11.1 20.3 .545 1.2 4.4 .264 5.3 5.9 .901

Season 10

Julius Erving Nikola Jokic
Season 1985-862024-25
Team Philadelphia 76ersDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf SemisNuggets Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 74 33.4 18.1 2.3 2.7 5.0 3.4 1.5 1.1 2.9 2.6 7.0 14.7 .480 0.1 0.4 .281 3.9 5.0 .785
difference:+4+3.3+11.5+0.6+7.2+7.7+6.8+0.3+0.5-0.4-0.3+4.2+4.8+.096+1.9+4.3+.136+1.3+1.4+.015
Nikola Jokic 70 36.7 29.6 2.9 9.9 12.7 10.2 1.8 0.6 3.3 2.3 11.2 19.5 .576 2.0 4.7 .417 5.2 6.4 .800
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Julius Erving 12 36.1 17.7 2.2 3.7 5.8 4.2 0.9 1.3 3.3 2.7 6.8 15.0 .450 0.2 0.9 .182 4.0 5.4 .738
difference:+2+4.1+8.5+0.1+6.9+6.9+3.8+1.1+0.4-0.6-0.7+2.6+4.1+.039+1.7+4.2+.198+1.6+1.8+.034
Nikola Jokic 14 40.2 26.2 2.1 10.6 12.7 8.0 2.0 0.9 3.9 3.4 9.4 19.1 .489 1.9 5.1 .380 5.6 7.2 .772

Additional Years

* Julius Erving played 1 season more than Nikola Jokic in the NBA.

In that period—his season 11 in 1987—Julius Erving played in the Playoffs.

In that extra year over Nikola Jokic, Julius Erving got these achievements:

Honors & AwardsAchievement 1 All-Star Game