Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Bob Cousy Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Bob Cousy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 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 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.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played 20 years in the NBA, 6 more than Bob Cousy, who played 14. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had the first of his seasons in 1969-70, while Bob Cousy had his rookie season in 1950-51. 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
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 20 18 1969-70 to 1988-89
Bob Cousy 14 13 1950-51 to 1969-70

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

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

Rookie Season
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1969-701950-51
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
Achievement All-Rookie First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Bucks Lost East Div FinalsCeltics Lost East Div Semis
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 82 43.1 28.8 - - 14.5 4.1 - - - 3.5 11.4 22.1 .518 - - - 5.9 9.1 .653
difference:+13+13.2+7.6+0.8-0.8+5.6+5.6+.166+1.9+3.8+.103
Bob Cousy 69 - 15.6 - - 6.9 4.9 - - - 2.7 5.8 16.5 .352 - - - 4.0 5.3 .756
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 10 43.5 35.2 - - 16.8 4.1 - - - 2.5 13.9 24.5 .567 - - - 7.4 10.1 .733
difference:+8+21.2+9.3+1.9-1.5+9.4+3.5+.353+2.4+4.1+.100
Bob Cousy 2 - 14.0 - - 7.5 6.0 - - - 4.0 4.5 21.0 .214 - - - 5.0 6.0 .833

Season 2
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1970-711951-52
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionCeltics Lost East Div Semis
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 82 40.1 31.7 - - 16.0 3.3 - - - 3.2 13.0 22.5 .577 - - - 5.7 8.3 .690
difference:+16+0.5+10.0+9.6+3.4-0.3+5.2+1.5+.208+0.5+0.6+.118
Bob Cousy 66 40.6 21.7 - - 6.4 6.7 - - - 2.9 7.8 21.0 .369 - - - 6.2 7.7 .808
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 14 41.2 26.6 - - 17.0 2.5 - - - 3.2 10.9 21.1 .515 - - - 4.9 7.2 .673
difference:+11+4.8+4.4+13.0+3.8-1.1+2.2+0.6+.115+8.8+7.5+.259
Bob Cousy 3 46.0 31.0 - - 4.0 6.3 - - - 4.3 8.7 21.7 .400 - - - 13.7 14.7 .932

Season 3
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1971-721952-53
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement Scoring Leader-
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Bucks Lost West Conf FinalsCeltics Lost East Div Finals
more >>
3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 81 44.2 34.8 - - 16.6 4.6 - - - 2.9 14.3 24.9 .574 - - - 6.2 9.0 .689
difference:+10+2.7+15.0+10.3+3.1-0.3+7.8+6.3+.222+0.5+0.7+.127
Bob Cousy 71 41.5 19.8 - - 6.3 7.7 - - - 3.2 6.5 18.6 .352 - - - 6.7 8.3 .816
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11 46.4 28.7 - - 18.2 5.1 - - - 3.2 12.6 28.9 .437 - - - 3.5 4.9 .704
difference:+5+1.4+3.2+14.0+1.1-0.3+4.9+8.9+.054+6.7+7.3+.132
Bob Cousy 6 45.0 25.5 - - 4.2 6.2 - - - 3.5 7.7 20.0 .383 - - - 10.2 12.2 .836

Season 4
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1972-731953-54
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Bucks Lost West Conf SemisCeltics Lost East Div Finals
more >>
4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 76 42.8 30.2 - - 16.1 5.0 - - - 2.7 12.9 23.3 .554 - - - 4.3 6.1 .713
difference:+4+3.1+11.0+10.6+2.2-0.1+6.1+5.8+.169+1.4+1.2+.074
Bob Cousy 72 39.7 19.2 - - 5.5 7.2 - - - 2.8 6.8 17.5 .385 - - - 5.7 7.3 .787
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 6 46.0 22.8 - - 16.2 2.8 - - - 4.3 9.8 23.0 .428 - - - 3.2 5.8 .543
difference:+2.7+1.8+10.9+3.5-1.0+4.3+3.7+.144+6.8+6.7+.257
Bob Cousy 6 43.3 21.0 - - 5.3 6.3 - - - 3.3 5.5 19.3 .284 - - - 10.0 12.5 .800

Season 5
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1973-741954-55
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Bucks Lost NBA FinalsCeltics Lost East Div 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%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 81 43.8 27.0 3.5 11.0 14.5 4.8 1.4 3.5 - 2.9 11.7 21.7 .539 - - - 3.6 5.2 .702
difference:+10+5.1+5.8+8.5+3.0-0.6+4.3+3.2+.142+2.9+2.8+.105
Bob Cousy 71 38.7 21.2 - - 6.0 7.8 - - - 2.3 7.4 18.5 .397 - - - 6.5 8.0 .807
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 16 47.4 32.2 4.2 11.6 15.8 4.9 1.3 2.4 - 2.6 14.0 25.1 .557 - - - 4.2 5.7 .736
difference:+9+4.7+10.5+9.7+4.4-1.1+6.4+5.2+.176+2.4+1.2+.222
Bob Cousy 7 42.7 21.7 - - 6.1 9.3 - - - 3.7 7.6 19.9 .381 - - - 6.6 6.9 .958

Season 6
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1974-751955-56
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayCeltics Lost East Div 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%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 65 42.3 30.0 3.0 11.0 14.0 4.1 1.0 3.3 - 3.2 12.5 24.4 .513 - - - 5.0 6.6 .763
difference:+7+3.9+11.2+7.2+4.8-0.3+6.4+7.4+.153+1.6+1.2+.081
Bob Cousy 72 38.4 18.8 - - 6.8 8.9 - - - 2.9 6.1 17.0 .360 - - - 6.6 7.8 .844
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar DNP------ --- ----------
Bob Cousy 3 41.3 26.3 - - 8.0 8.7 - - - 1.3 9.3 18.7 .500 - - - 7.7 8.3 .920

Season 7
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1975-761956-57
Team Los Angeles LakersBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVPAchievement Season MVP
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement Rebounds Leader-
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 82 41.2 27.7 3.3 13.5 16.9 5.0 1.5 4.1 - 3.6 11.1 21.1 .529 - - - 5.5 7.8 .703
difference:+18+4.3+7.1+12.1+2.5-1.5+3.6+1.3+.151+0.2+0.9+.118
Bob Cousy 64 36.9 20.6 - - 4.8 7.5 - - - 2.1 7.5 19.8 .378 - - - 5.7 6.9 .821
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar DNP------ --- ----------
Bob Cousy 10 44.0 20.2 - - 6.1 9.3 - - - 2.7 6.7 20.7 .324 - - - 6.8 9.1 .747

Season 8
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1976-771957-58
Team Los Angeles LakersBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Conf FinalsCeltics Lost NBA Finals
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 82 36.8 26.2 3.2 10.0 13.3 3.9 1.2 3.2 - 3.2 10.8 18.7 .579 - - - 4.6 6.5 .701
difference:+17+2.6+8.2+8.3+3.2-1.1+4.0+0.7+.226+0.3+1.5+.149
Bob Cousy 65 34.2 18.0 - - 5.0 7.1 - - - 2.1 6.8 19.4 .353 - - - 4.3 5.0 .850
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 11 42.5 34.6 4.6 13.1 17.7 4.1 1.7 3.5 - 3.8 13.4 22.0 .607 - - - 7.9 10.9 .725
difference:+1.0+16.6+11.2+3.4-2.0+7.3+4.2+.265+2.1+4.1+.128
Bob Cousy 11 41.5 18.0 - - 6.5 7.5 - - - 1.8 6.1 17.8 .342 - - - 5.8 6.8 .853

Season 9
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1977-781958-59
Team Los Angeles LakersBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
-Achievement Assists Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 62 36.5 25.8 3.0 9.9 12.9 4.3 1.7 3.0 3.4 2.9 10.7 19.4 .550 - - - 4.4 5.6 .783
difference:+3+0.5+5.8+7.4+4.3-0.8+3.3+.166+0.7+0.3+.072
Bob Cousy 65 37.0 20.0 - - 5.5 8.6 - - - 2.1 7.4 19.4 .384 - - - 5.1 5.9 .855
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 3 44.7 27.0 4.7 9.0 13.7 3.7 0.7 4.0 4.7 4.7 12.7 24.3 .521 - - - 1.7 3.0 .556
difference:+8+2.9+7.5+6.8+7.1-2.2+6.2+4.2+.195+4.7+5.5+.189
Bob Cousy 11 41.8 19.5 - - 6.9 10.8 - - - 2.5 6.5 20.1 .326 - - - 6.4 8.5 .745

Season 10
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1978-791959-60
Team Los Angeles LakersBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement Assists Leader
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 80 39.5 23.8 2.6 10.2 12.8 5.4 1.0 4.0 3.5 2.9 9.7 16.8 .577 - - - 4.4 5.9 .736
difference:+5+5.0+4.4+8.1+4.1-1.0+2.1+2.9+.193+0.1+0.5+.056
Bob Cousy 75 34.5 19.4 - - 4.7 9.5 - - - 1.9 7.6 19.7 .384 - - - 4.3 5.4 .792
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 8 45.9 28.5 2.3 10.4 12.6 4.8 1.0 4.1 3.6 3.3 11.0 19.0 .579 - - - 6.5 7.8 .839
difference:+5+9.9+13.2+8.9+4.1-1.2+4.8+1.2+.274+3.5+3.9+.074
Bob Cousy 13 36.0 15.3 - - 3.7 8.9 - - - 2.1 6.2 20.2 .305 - - - 3.0 3.9 .765

Season 11
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1979-801960-61
Team Los Angeles LakersBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 82 38.3 24.8 2.3 8.5 10.8 4.5 1.0 3.4 3.6 2.6 10.2 16.9 .604 0.0 0.0 - 4.4 5.8 .765
difference:+6+5.8+6.7+6.4+3.2+3.4+1.3+.233+0.2+0.1+.014
Bob Cousy 76 32.5 18.1 - - 4.4 7.7 - - - 2.6 6.8 18.2 .371 - - - 4.6 5.9 .779
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 15 41.2 31.9 3.4 8.7 12.1 3.1 1.1 3.9 3.7 3.4 13.2 23.1 .572 0.0 0.0 - 5.5 7.0 .790
difference:+5+7.5+15.2+7.8+6.0-0.1+8.2+8.4+.232+1.2+1.8+.029
Bob Cousy 10 33.7 16.7 - - 4.3 9.1 - - - 3.3 5.0 14.7 .340 - - - 6.7 8.8 .761

Season 12
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1980-811961-62
Team Los Angeles LakersBoston Celtics
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 Lakers Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 80 37.2 26.2 2.5 7.8 10.3 3.4 0.7 2.9 3.1 3.1 10.5 18.2 .574 0.0 0.0 - 5.3 6.9 .766
difference:+5+9.0+10.5+6.8+4.4-1.3+4.3+2.5+.183+2.0+2.5+.012
Bob Cousy 75 28.2 15.7 - - 3.5 7.8 - - - 1.8 6.2 15.7 .391 - - - 3.3 4.4 .754
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 3 44.7 26.7 4.3 12.3 16.7 4.0 1.0 2.7 3.7 4.7 10.0 21.7 .462 0.0 0.0 - 6.7 9.3 .714
difference:+11+10.8+10.7+12.1+4.8-1.6+3.9+4.5+.105+3.0+3.9+.030
Bob Cousy 14 33.9 16.0 - - 4.6 8.8 - - - 3.1 6.1 17.2 .357 - - - 3.7 5.4 .684

Season 13
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1981-821962-63
Team Los Angeles LakersBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
13th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 76 35.2 23.9 2.3 6.4 8.7 3.0 0.8 2.7 3.0 2.9 9.9 17.1 .579 0.0 0.0 - 4.1 5.8 .706
difference:+9.2+10.7+6.2+3.8-0.6+4.7+4.1+.182+1.2+1.9+.029
Bob Cousy 76 26.0 13.2 - - 2.5 6.8 - - - 2.3 5.2 13.0 .397 - - - 2.9 3.9 .735
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 14 35.2 20.4 2.4 6.1 8.5 3.6 1.0 3.2 2.9 3.2 8.2 15.8 .520 0.0 0.0 - 3.9 6.2 .632
difference:+1+5.0+6.3+6.0+5.3-0.2+2.7+0.1+.167+0.9+2.6+.198
Bob Cousy 13 30.2 14.1 - - 2.5 8.9 - - - 3.4 5.5 15.7 .353 - - - 3.0 3.6 .830

Note: Bob Cousy didn't play in 1963-64, 1964-65, 1965-66, 1966-67, 1967-68 and 1968-69.

Season 14
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bob Cousy
Season 1982-831969-70
Team Los Angeles LakersCincinnati Royals
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsDid 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%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 79 32.3 21.8 2.1 5.4 7.5 2.5 0.8 2.2 2.5 2.8 9.1 15.5 .588 0.0 0.0 - 3.5 4.7 .749
difference:+72+27.4+21.1+6.8+1.1-1.2+9.0+15.1+.255+3.1+4.3+.251
Bob Cousy 7 4.9 0.7 - - 0.7 1.4 - - - 1.6 0.1 0.4 .333 - - - 0.4 0.4 1.000
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 15 39.2 27.1 1.7 6.0 7.7 2.8 1.1 3.7 3.3 4.1 10.9 19.1 .568 0.0 0.1 .000 5.3 7.1 .755
Bob Cousy DNP------ --- ----------

Additional Years

* Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played 6 seasons more than Bob Cousy in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 15 to 20, from 1984 to 1989—Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played in 6 Playoffs and won 3 NBA Championships.

In those 6 extra years over Bob Cousy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar got these achievements:

Honors & AwardsAchievement 1 Finals MVP
Achievement 2 All-NBA First Team
Achievement 1 All-NBA Second Team
Achievement 1 All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement 6 All-Star Game
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