Larry Bird vs. Dominique Wilkins Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Dominique Wilkins and Larry Bird, 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 / 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.

Larry Bird played 13 years in the NBA, 2 less than Dominique Wilkins, who played 15. Larry Bird had the first of his seasons in 1979-80, while Dominique Wilkins had his rookie season in 1982-83. 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
Larry Bird 13 12 1979-80 to 1991-92
Dominique Wilkins 15 10 1982-83 to 1998-99

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

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

Rookie Season

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1979-801982-83
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsHawks Lost East 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%
Larry Bird 82 36.0 21.3 2.6 7.8 10.4 4.5 1.7 0.6 3.2 3.4 8.5 17.8 .474 0.7 1.7 .406 3.7 4.4 .836
difference:+3.1+3.8+0.2+4.7+4.6+2.9+0.7+0.2-1.0-0.8+1.2+2.9+.019+0.7+1.6+.224+0.9+0.3+.154
Dominique Wilkins 82 32.9 17.5 2.8 3.1 5.8 1.6 1.0 0.8 2.2 2.6 7.3 14.9 .493 0.0 0.1 .182 2.8 4.1 .682
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 9 41.3 21.3 2.4 8.8 11.2 4.7 1.6 0.9 3.7 3.3 9.2 19.7 .469 0.4 1.7 .267 2.4 2.8 .880
difference:+6+5.0+5.6+0.3+6.5+6.2+4.4+0.9+0.6-0.4-0.3+3.5+5.7+.064+0.1+1.4+.733+1.6+1.9+.023
Dominique Wilkins 3 36.3 15.7 2.7 2.3 5.0 0.3 0.7 0.3 3.3 3.0 5.7 14.0 .405 0.3 0.3 1.000 4.0 4.7 .857

Season 2

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1980-811983-84
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionHawks Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 82 39.5 21.2 2.3 8.6 10.9 5.5 2.0 0.8 3.5 2.9 8.8 18.3 .478 0.2 0.9 .270 3.5 4.0 .863
difference:+1+2.9+0.4+0.8+4.6+3.7+3.9+0.6+0.3-0.8-0.5+0.4+0.7+.001+0.2+0.8+.270+1.2+2.1+.093
Dominique Wilkins 81 36.6 21.6 3.1 4.0 7.2 1.6 1.4 1.1 2.7 2.4 8.4 17.6 .479 0.0 0.1 .000 4.7 6.1 .770
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 17 44.1 21.9 2.9 11.1 14.0 6.1 2.3 1.0 3.6 3.1 8.6 18.4 .470 0.2 0.5 .375 4.5 5.0 .894
difference:+12+4.7+2.7+1.3+7.1+5.8+3.9+0.1+0.8-0.6-0.5+1.6+1.6+.053+0.2+0.3+.375+0.7+1.2+.055
Dominique Wilkins 5 39.4 19.2 4.2 4.0 8.2 2.2 2.4 0.2 3.0 2.6 7.0 16.8 .417 0.0 0.2 .000 5.2 6.2 .839

Season 3

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1981-821984-85
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game MVP-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsDid 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%
Larry Bird 77 38.0 22.9 2.6 8.3 10.9 5.8 1.9 0.9 3.3 3.2 9.2 18.4 .503 0.1 0.7 .212 4.3 4.9 .863
difference:+4+0.7+4.5+0.2+4.2+4.0+3.3+0.2+0.2-0.5-1.1+1.3+4.9+.052+0.2+0.3+.097+1.7+2.5+.057
Dominique Wilkins 81 37.3 27.4 2.8 4.1 6.9 2.5 1.7 0.7 2.8 2.1 10.5 23.3 .451 0.3 1.0 .309 6.0 7.4 .806
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 12 40.8 17.8 2.8 9.8 12.5 5.6 1.9 1.4 3.2 3.6 7.3 17.2 .427 0.1 0.5 .167 3.1 3.8 .822
Dominique Wilkins DNP------ --- ----------

Season 4

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1982-831985-86
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards 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 Celtics Lost East Conf SemisHawks Lost East 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%
Larry Bird 79 37.7 23.6 2.4 8.6 11.0 5.8 1.9 0.9 3.0 2.5 9.5 18.7 .504 0.3 1.0 .286 4.4 5.3 .840
difference:+1+1.4+6.7+0.9+4.0+3.1+3.2+0.1+0.3-0.2-0.3+1.9+5.6+.036+0.1+0.1+.100+3.0+3.7+.022
Dominique Wilkins 78 39.1 30.3 3.3 4.6 7.9 2.6 1.8 0.6 3.2 2.2 11.4 24.3 .468 0.2 0.9 .186 7.4 9.0 .818
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 6 40.0 20.5 3.3 9.2 12.5 6.8 2.2 0.5 3.2 2.5 8.2 19.3 .422 0.2 0.7 .250 4.0 4.8 .828
difference:+3+8.1+1.1+5.4+6.5+4.0+1.2+0.3-0.1-0.2+2.2+4.8+.011+0.1+0.1+.050+3.6+4.0+.033
Dominique Wilkins 9 40.0 28.6 2.2 3.8 6.0 2.8 1.0 0.2 3.3 2.7 10.4 24.1 .433 0.1 0.6 .200 7.6 8.8 .861

Season 5

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1983-841986-87
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionHawks Lost East 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%
Larry Bird 79 38.3 24.2 2.3 7.8 10.1 6.6 1.8 0.9 3.0 2.5 9.6 19.5 .492 0.2 0.9 .247 4.7 5.3 .888
difference:+0.7+4.8+0.4+4.2+3.8+3.3+0.3+0.3-0.3-0.6+0.9+3.1+.029+0.2+0.4+.045+3.0+4.1+.070
Dominique Wilkins 79 37.6 29.0 2.7 3.6 6.3 3.3 1.5 0.6 2.7 1.9 10.5 22.6 .463 0.4 1.3 .292 7.7 9.4 .818
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 23 41.8 27.5 2.7 8.3 11.0 5.9 2.3 1.2 3.8 3.1 10.0 19.0 .524 0.3 0.7 .412 7.3 8.3 .879
difference:+14+1.8+0.7+0.3+3.5+3.2+3.1+0.5+0.3-0.9-0.3+0.4+4.3+.114+0.4+.112+0.1+.013
Dominique Wilkins 9 40.0 26.8 3.0 4.8 7.8 2.8 1.8 0.9 2.9 2.8 9.6 23.3 .410 0.3 1.1 .300 7.3 8.2 .892

Season 6

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1984-851987-88
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost NBA FinalsHawks Lost East 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%
Larry Bird 80 39.5 28.7 2.1 8.5 10.5 6.6 1.6 1.2 3.1 2.6 11.5 22.0 .522 0.7 1.6 .427 5.0 5.7 .882
difference:+2+1.7+2.0+0.6+4.8+4.1+3.7+0.3+0.6-0.3-0.5+0.2+3.1+.058+0.2+0.1+.132+1.9+2.7+.056
Dominique Wilkins 78 37.8 30.7 2.7 3.7 6.4 2.9 1.3 0.6 2.8 2.1 11.7 25.1 .464 0.5 1.7 .295 6.9 8.4 .826
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 20 40.8 26.0 2.7 6.5 9.1 5.8 1.7 1.0 2.9 2.7 9.8 21.3 .461 0.4 1.3 .280 6.1 6.8 .890
difference:+8+1.4+5.2+0.4+3.2+2.7+3.0+0.4+0.5-0.4-0.7+1.6+3.7+.004+0.1+0.2+.058+1.9+3.6+.122
Dominique Wilkins 12 39.4 31.2 3.1 3.3 6.4 2.8 1.3 0.5 2.5 2.0 11.4 25.0 .457 0.3 1.5 .222 8.0 10.4 .768

Season 7

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1985-861988-89
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionHawks Lost East 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%
Larry Bird 82 38.0 25.8 2.3 7.5 9.8 6.8 2.0 0.6 3.2 2.2 9.7 19.6 .496 1.0 2.4 .423 5.4 6.0 .896
difference:+2+0.5+0.4+0.9+3.8+2.9+4.2+0.5+0.1-0.9-0.5+0.5+2.4+.032+0.6+1.1+.147+0.1+0.6+.052
Dominique Wilkins 80 37.5 26.2 3.2 3.7 6.9 2.6 1.5 0.7 2.3 1.7 10.2 22.0 .464 0.4 1.3 .276 5.5 6.6 .844
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 18 42.8 25.9 1.9 7.4 9.3 8.2 2.1 0.6 2.6 3.1 9.5 18.4 .517 1.3 3.1 .411 5.6 6.1 .927
difference:+13+0.4+1.3+0.1+4.0+3.9+4.8+1.3+1.0-0.2-2.1+0.9+4.8+.069+0.3+0.3+.117+0.2+1.5+.216
Dominique Wilkins 5 42.4 27.2 2.0 3.4 5.4 3.4 0.8 1.6 2.4 1.0 10.4 23.2 .448 1.0 3.4 .294 5.4 7.6 .711

Season 8

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1986-871989-90
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost NBA FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 74 40.6 28.1 1.7 7.5 9.2 7.6 1.8 0.9 3.2 2.5 10.6 20.2 .525 1.2 3.0 .400 5.6 6.1 .910
difference:+6+4.5+1.4+1.0+3.7+2.7+5.1+0.2+0.3-1.0-0.7+0.5+0.7+.041+0.5+0.7+.078+0.1+1.0+.103
Dominique Wilkins 80 36.1 26.7 2.7 3.8 6.5 2.5 1.6 0.6 2.2 1.8 10.1 20.9 .484 0.7 2.3 .322 5.7 7.1 .807
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 23 44.1 27.0 1.8 8.3 10.0 7.2 1.2 0.8 3.1 2.4 9.4 19.7 .476 0.6 1.8 .341 7.7 8.4 .912
Dominique Wilkins DNP------ --- ----------

Season 9

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1987-881990-91
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsHawks Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 76 39.0 29.9 1.4 7.8 9.3 6.1 1.6 0.8 2.8 2.1 11.6 22.0 .527 1.3 3.1 .414 5.5 6.0 .916
difference:+5+1.0+4.0+1.8+2.0+0.3+2.8+0.1-0.3-0.2+2.1+1.8+.057+0.3+.073+0.4+1.1+.087
Dominique Wilkins 81 38.0 25.9 3.2 5.8 9.0 3.3 1.5 0.8 2.5 1.9 9.5 20.2 .470 1.0 3.1 .341 5.9 7.1 .829
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 17 44.9 24.5 1.7 7.1 8.8 6.8 2.1 0.8 2.9 2.6 8.9 19.9 .450 0.7 1.9 .375 5.9 6.6 .894
difference:+12+5.9+3.7+0.5+1.9+2.4+4.2+0.3+0.2-0.7-1.0+1.9+1.1+.078+0.3+1.1+.242+0.5+0.4+.020
Dominique Wilkins 5 39.0 20.8 1.2 5.2 6.4 2.6 1.8 1.0 2.2 1.6 7.0 18.8 .372 0.4 3.0 .133 6.4 7.0 .914

Season 10

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1988-891991-92
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid Not Play
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 6 31.5 19.3 0.2 6.0 6.2 4.8 1.0 0.8 1.8 3.0 8.2 17.3 .471 0.0 0.0 - 3.0 3.2 .947
difference:+36+6.6+8.8+2.3+1.4+0.8+1.0+0.2+0.2-1.1-1.2+1.9+4.5+.007+0.9+3.0+4.0+5.2+.112
Dominique Wilkins 42 38.1 28.1 2.5 4.6 7.0 3.8 1.2 0.6 2.9 1.8 10.1 21.8 .464 0.9 3.0 .289 7.0 8.4 .835
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Larry Bird nor Dominique Wilkins played in the postseason in their season 10

Season 11

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1989-901992-93
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf 1st RdHawks Lost East 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%
Larry Bird 75 39.3 24.3 1.2 8.3 9.5 7.5 1.4 0.8 3.2 2.3 9.6 20.2 .473 0.9 2.6 .333 4.3 4.6 .930
difference:+4+2.0+5.6+1.4+4.1+2.7+4.3+0.4+0.4-0.6-0.7+0.8+2.1+.005+0.8+1.9+.047+3.0+4.2+.102
Dominique Wilkins 71 37.3 29.9 2.6 4.2 6.8 3.2 1.0 0.4 2.6 1.6 10.4 22.3 .468 1.7 4.5 .380 7.3 8.8 .828
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 5 41.4 24.4 1.4 7.8 9.2 8.8 1.0 1.0 3.6 2.0 8.8 19.8 .444 1.0 3.8 .263 5.8 6.4 .906
difference:+2+3.7+5.6+2.6+6.5+3.9+5.8+0.7-0.3-0.7+1.9+5.2+.017+0.2+.013+1.9+3.6+.139
Dominique Wilkins 3 37.7 30.0 4.0 1.3 5.3 3.0 1.0 0.3 3.3 2.7 10.7 25.0 .427 1.0 4.0 .250 7.7 10.0 .767

Season 12

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1990-911993-94
Team Boston CelticsAtlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 60 38.0 19.4 0.9 7.6 8.5 7.2 1.8 1.0 3.1 2.0 7.7 17.0 .454 1.3 3.3 .389 2.7 3.1 .891
difference:+14+2.4+6.6+1.6+3.6+2.0+4.9+0.6+0.6-0.8-0.3+1.7+4.5+.014+0.2+0.7+.101+3.3+4.0+.044
Dominique Wilkins 74 35.6 26.0 2.5 4.0 6.5 2.3 1.2 0.4 2.3 1.7 9.4 21.5 .440 1.1 4.0 .288 6.0 7.1 .847
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 10 39.6 17.1 0.8 6.4 7.2 6.5 1.3 0.3 1.9 2.8 6.2 15.2 .408 0.3 2.1 .143 4.4 5.1 .863
Dominique Wilkins DNP------ --- ----------

Season 13

Larry Bird Dominique Wilkins
Season 1991-921994-95
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf SemisCeltics Lost East 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%
Larry Bird 45 36.9 20.2 1.0 8.6 9.6 6.8 0.9 0.7 2.8 1.8 7.8 16.8 .466 1.2 2.8 .406 3.3 3.6 .926
difference:+32+5.4+2.4+1.0+5.4+4.4+4.6+0.1+0.5-0.6-0.1+1.4+1.6+.042+0.3+1.0+.018+0.2+0.8+.144
Dominique Wilkins 77 31.5 17.8 2.0 3.2 5.2 2.2 0.8 0.2 2.2 1.7 6.4 15.2 .424 1.5 3.8 .388 3.5 4.4 .782
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Larry Bird 4 26.8 11.3 0.5 4.0 4.5 5.3 0.3 0.5 1.5 1.8 5.3 10.5 .500 0.0 1.3 .000 0.8 1.0 .750
difference:+10.7+7.7+3.8+2.5+6.3+3.3+0.2+0.3-0.8+1.2+4.8+.074+2.0+3.0+.471+3.2+3.5+.139
Dominique Wilkins 4 37.5 19.0 4.3 6.5 10.8 2.0 0.5 0.8 2.3 1.8 6.5 15.3 .426 2.0 4.3 .471 4.0 4.5 .889

Additional Years

* Dominique Wilkins played 2 seasons more than Larry Bird in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 14 to 15, from 1997 to 1999—Dominique Wilkins played in one postseason.