Kevin Johnson vs. Gary Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Gary Payton and Kevin Johnson, 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 / Games against each other

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.

Kevin Johnson played 12 years in the NBA, 5 less than Gary Payton, who played 17. Kevin Johnson had the first of his seasons in 1987-88, while Gary Payton had his rookie season in 1990-91. 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
Kevin Johnson 12 11 1987-88 to 1999-00
Gary Payton 17 15 1990-91 to 2006-07

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

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

Rookie Season

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1987-881990-91
Team Cleveland Cavaliers, Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Rookie Second Team
Playoffs Did Not PlaySupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 80 24.0 9.2 0.5 1.9 2.4 5.5 1.3 0.3 1.8 1.9 3.4 7.5 .461 0.1 0.3 .208 2.2 2.6 .839
difference:+2+3.4+2.0+0.8+0.3+0.6+0.9+0.7+0.1-0.4-1.1+0.2+0.5+.011+0.1+0.1+.131+1.4+1.4+.128
Gary Payton 82 27.4 7.2 1.3 1.6 3.0 6.4 2.0 0.2 2.2 3.0 3.2 7.0 .450 0.0 0.2 .077 0.8 1.2 .711
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson DNP------ --- ----------
Gary Payton 5 27.0 4.8 1.0 1.6 2.6 6.4 1.6 0.2 1.8 3.2 2.2 5.4 .407 0.0 0.2 .000 0.4 0.4 1.000

Season 2

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1988-891991-92
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement Most Improved Player-
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf FinalsSupersonics Lost West Conf 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%
Kevin Johnson 81 39.2 20.4 0.6 3.6 4.2 12.2 1.7 0.3 4.0 2.8 7.0 13.9 .505 0.0 0.3 .091 6.3 7.1 .882
difference:+7.7+11.0+0.9+1.5+0.6+6.0+0.1-1.9-0.3+2.9+4.8+.054+.039+5.1+5.3+.213
Gary Payton 81 31.5 9.4 1.5 2.1 3.6 6.2 1.8 0.3 2.1 3.1 4.1 9.1 .451 0.0 0.3 .130 1.2 1.8 .669
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 12 41.2 23.8 1.0 3.3 4.3 12.3 1.6 0.4 4.6 2.3 7.5 15.2 .495 0.3 0.8 .300 8.5 9.2 .927
difference:+4+13.6+16.2+0.2+1.4+1.7+7.5+0.6+0.1-3.3-1.0+4.1+7.9+.029+0.3+0.5+.300+7.6+7.7+.344
Gary Payton 8 27.6 7.6 0.8 1.9 2.6 4.8 1.0 0.3 1.3 3.3 3.4 7.3 .466 0.0 0.3 .000 0.9 1.5 .583

Season 3

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1989-901992-93
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf FinalsSupersonics Lost West Conf 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%
Kevin Johnson 74 37.6 22.5 0.6 3.1 3.6 11.4 1.3 0.2 3.6 1.9 7.8 15.7 .499 0.1 0.6 .195 6.8 8.1 .838
difference:+8+6.5+9.0+0.6+0.8+0.2+6.5+0.9+0.1-1.8-1.1+2.0+4.0+.005+0.2+.011+5.0+5.7+.068
Gary Payton 82 31.1 13.5 1.2 2.3 3.4 4.9 2.2 0.3 1.8 3.0 5.8 11.7 .494 0.1 0.4 .206 1.8 2.4 .770
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 16 36.4 21.3 0.6 2.8 3.3 10.6 1.6 0.0 3.9 1.8 7.7 16.1 .479 0.1 0.7 .182 5.8 7.0 .821
difference:+3+4.6+9.0+0.6+0.6+6.9+0.2+0.2-2.1-1.6+2.2+3.7+.036+0.4+.015+4.5+5.1+.145
Gary Payton 19 31.8 12.3 1.2 2.2 3.3 3.7 1.8 0.2 1.8 3.4 5.5 12.4 .443 0.1 0.3 .167 1.3 1.9 .676

Season 4

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1990-911993-94
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf 1st RdSupersonics 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%
Kevin Johnson 77 36.0 22.2 0.7 2.8 3.5 10.1 2.1 0.1 3.5 2.3 7.7 14.9 .516 0.1 0.6 .205 6.7 8.0 .843
difference:+5+0.9+5.7+0.6+0.8+0.2+4.1+0.2+0.1-1.4-0.5+0.6+0.8+.012+0.1+0.1+.073+4.7+4.6+.248
Gary Payton 82 35.1 16.5 1.3 2.0 3.3 6.0 2.3 0.2 2.1 2.8 7.1 14.1 .504 0.2 0.7 .278 2.0 3.4 .595
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 4 36.5 12.8 0.5 2.8 3.3 9.8 0.5 0.3 3.0 2.3 4.0 13.3 .302 0.3 1.8 .143 4.5 7.5 .600
difference:+1+0.3+3.0+0.7+0.6+0.1+4.2+1.1+0.1-1.4-0.7+2.8+0.5+.191+0.3+.190+2.9+3.7+.179
Gary Payton 5 36.2 15.8 1.2 2.2 3.4 5.6 1.6 0.4 1.6 3.0 6.8 13.8 .493 0.6 1.8 .333 1.6 3.8 .421

Season 5

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1991-921994-95
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf SemisSupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 78 37.2 19.7 0.8 3.0 3.7 10.7 1.5 0.3 3.5 2.3 6.9 14.4 .479 0.1 0.6 .217 5.7 7.1 .807
difference:+4+0.4+0.9+0.5+0.9+0.3+3.6+1.0+0.1-1.0-0.2+1.5+2.0+.030+0.8+2.2+.085+2.7+2.9+.091
Gary Payton 82 36.8 20.6 1.3 2.1 3.4 7.1 2.5 0.2 2.5 2.5 8.4 16.4 .509 0.9 2.8 .302 3.0 4.2 .716
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 8 41.9 23.6 1.0 3.1 4.1 11.6 1.5 0.3 3.1 3.0 7.8 16.0 .484 0.4 0.8 .500 7.8 9.0 .861
difference:+4+1.1+5.8+0.5+2.1+1.6+6.3+0.2+0.3-1.1-0.3+0.2+0.8+.006+0.1+1.7+.300+6.5+6.0+.444
Gary Payton 4 43.0 17.8 1.5 1.0 2.5 5.3 1.3 0.0 2.0 3.3 8.0 16.8 .478 0.5 2.5 .200 1.3 3.0 .417

Season 6

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1992-931995-96
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
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 Suns Lost NBA FinalsSupersonics Lost NBA 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%
Kevin Johnson 49 33.5 16.1 0.6 1.5 2.1 7.8 1.7 0.4 3.1 2.0 5.8 11.5 .499 0.0 0.2 .125 4.6 5.6 .819
difference:+32+5.5+3.2+0.7+1.4+2.1+0.3+1.2+0.2-0.1-0.7+1.8+4.3+.015+1.2+3.5+.203+1.8+1.8+.071
Gary Payton 81 39.0 19.3 1.3 2.9 4.2 7.5 2.9 0.2 3.2 2.7 7.6 15.8 .484 1.2 3.7 .328 2.8 3.8 .748
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 23 39.7 17.8 0.4 2.3 2.7 7.9 1.5 0.6 3.7 2.5 6.2 13.0 .480 0.0 0.1 .000 5.4 6.8 .795
difference:+2+3.7+2.9+0.5+1.9+2.4+1.1+0.3+0.3-0.7-0.8+1.5+2.9+.005+2.0+4.7+.410+2.1+1.6+.162
Gary Payton 21 43.4 20.7 0.9 4.2 5.1 6.8 1.8 0.3 3.0 3.3 7.7 15.9 .485 2.0 4.8 .410 3.3 5.2 .633

Season 7

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1993-941996-97
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf SemisSupersonics Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 67 36.6 20.0 0.8 1.7 2.5 9.5 1.9 0.1 3.5 1.9 7.1 14.6 .487 0.1 0.4 .222 5.7 6.9 .819
difference:+15+2.6+1.8+0.5+1.6+2.1+2.4+0.5+0.1-0.9-0.6+1.5+3.5+.011+1.4+4.2+.091+2.6+2.6+.104
Gary Payton 82 39.2 21.8 1.3 3.3 4.6 7.1 2.4 0.2 2.6 2.5 8.6 18.1 .476 1.5 4.6 .313 3.1 4.3 .715
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 10 42.7 26.6 1.0 2.5 3.5 9.6 1.0 0.1 3.4 2.3 9.7 21.2 .458 0.3 1.0 .300 6.9 8.1 .852
difference:+2+2.9+2.8+0.7+1.3+1.9+0.9+1.2+0.2-0.5-0.1+0.9+0.1+.046+1.8+5.3+.033+2.7+3.0+.032
Gary Payton 12 45.6 23.8 1.7 3.8 5.4 8.7 2.2 0.3 2.9 2.2 8.8 21.3 .412 2.1 6.3 .333 4.2 5.1 .820

Season 8

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1994-951997-98
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf SemisSupersonics Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 47 28.8 15.5 0.7 1.8 2.4 7.7 1.0 0.4 2.2 1.9 5.2 11.1 .470 0.1 0.6 .154 5.0 6.1 .810
difference:+35+9.6+3.7+0.2+1.8+2.2+0.6+1.3+0.2-0.6-0.5+1.9+4.5+.017+1.5+4.2+.184+1.6+1.5+.066
Gary Payton 82 38.4 19.2 0.9 3.6 4.6 8.3 2.3 0.2 2.8 2.4 7.1 15.6 .453 1.6 4.8 .338 3.4 4.6 .744
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 10 37.1 24.8 0.7 3.4 4.1 9.3 0.9 0.4 3.4 2.5 8.6 15.0 .573 0.5 1.0 .500 7.1 8.4 .845
difference:+5.6+0.8+0.2+0.9+0.7+2.3+0.9+0.3-0.8-0.6+0.1+3.3+.098+1.4+4.0+.120+2.4+3.4+.095
Gary Payton 10 42.7 24.0 0.9 2.5 3.4 7.0 1.8 0.1 2.6 3.1 8.7 18.3 .475 1.9 5.0 .380 4.7 5.0 .940

Season 9

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1995-961998-99
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 56 35.8 18.7 0.8 3.2 3.9 9.2 1.5 0.2 3.0 2.6 6.1 12.0 .507 0.4 1.0 .368 6.1 7.1 .859
difference:+6+4.4+3.0+0.4+0.4+1.0+0.5+0.7-0.1-0.3+1.9+6.5+.073+1.3+4.6+.073+2.1+1.6+.138
Gary Payton 50 40.2 21.7 1.2 3.6 4.9 8.7 2.2 0.2 3.1 2.3 8.0 18.5 .434 1.7 5.6 .295 4.0 5.5 .721
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 4 37.8 17.3 0.5 3.8 4.3 10.8 0.5 0.5 2.8 2.0 6.8 14.3 .474 0.3 1.0 .250 3.5 4.3 .824
Gary Payton DNP------ --- ----------

Season 10

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1996-971999-00
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf 1st RdSupersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 70 38.0 20.1 0.8 2.8 3.6 9.3 1.5 0.2 3.1 2.0 6.3 12.7 .496 1.3 2.9 .441 6.3 7.4 .852
difference:+12+3.8+4.1+0.4+2.4+2.9+0.4+0.4-0.4-0.2+2.8+7.6+.048+0.9+3.4+.101+2.5+2.2+.117
Gary Payton 82 41.8 24.2 1.2 5.2 6.5 8.9 1.9 0.2 2.7 2.2 9.1 20.3 .448 2.2 6.3 .340 3.8 5.2 .735
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 5 41.6 16.8 1.6 2.8 4.4 6.0 2.6 0.0 3.6 3.0 5.2 17.6 .295 0.6 4.4 .136 5.8 6.6 .879
difference:+2.6+9.0+3.2+3.2+1.4+0.8+0.2-0.2+4.8+5.0+.147+1.2+0.2+.255+1.8+1.4+.110
Gary Payton 5 44.2 25.8 1.6 6.0 7.6 7.4 1.8 0.2 3.6 3.2 10.0 22.6 .442 1.8 4.6 .391 4.0 5.2 .769

Season 11

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1997-982000-01
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 50 25.8 9.5 0.7 2.6 3.3 4.9 0.5 0.2 2.0 1.1 3.1 6.9 .447 0.1 0.5 .154 3.2 3.7 .871
difference:+29+15.3+13.6+0.2+1.0+1.3+3.2+1.1+0.1-0.6-1.2+6.1+13.2+.009+1.2+2.9+.221+0.2+0.8+.105
Gary Payton 79 41.1 23.1 0.9 3.6 4.6 8.1 1.6 0.3 2.6 2.3 9.2 20.1 .456 1.3 3.4 .375 3.4 4.5 .766
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 4 30.5 13.8 0.5 1.8 2.3 4.8 0.5 0.3 1.5 1.5 5.8 10.5 .548 0.3 1.0 .250 2.0 3.0 .667
Gary Payton DNP------ --- ----------

Note: Kevin Johnson didn't play in 1998-99.

Season 12

Kevin Johnson Gary Payton
Season 1999-002001-02
Team Phoenix SunsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Suns Lost West Conf SemisSupersonics 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%
Kevin Johnson 6 18.8 6.7 0.0 2.7 2.7 4.0 0.3 0.0 1.2 1.0 2.7 4.7 .571 0.2 0.2 1.000 1.2 1.2 1.000
difference:+76+21.5+15.4+1.0+1.2+2.1+5.0+1.3+0.3-1.3-1.2+6.3+14.5+.104+0.7+2.7+.686+2.1+2.9+.203
Gary Payton 82 40.3 22.1 1.0 3.9 4.8 9.0 1.6 0.3 2.5 2.2 9.0 19.2 .467 0.9 2.9 .314 3.3 4.1 .797
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Kevin Johnson 9 14.3 3.2 0.0 1.4 1.4 2.6 0.3 0.1 1.4 1.1 1.3 4.1 .324 0.0 0.3 .000 0.6 0.7 .833
difference:+4+26.9+19.0+2.0+5.2+7.2+3.2+0.3+0.3-1.2-1.3+7.7+17.1+.101+0.8+2.7+.267+2.8+5.1+.247
Gary Payton 5 41.2 22.2 2.0 6.6 8.6 5.8 0.6 0.4 2.6 2.4 9.0 21.2 .425 0.8 3.0 .267 3.4 5.8 .586

Additional Years

* Gary Payton played 5 seasons more than Kevin Johnson in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 13 to 17, from 2003 to 2007—Gary Payton played in 5 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship.

In those 5 extra years over Kevin Johnson, Gary Payton got these achievements:

Honors & AwardsAchievement 1 All-Star Game