LeBron James vs. Gary Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Gary Payton and LeBron James, 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 / Scoring / 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.

LeBron James played 22 years in the NBA, 5 more than Gary Payton, who played 17. LeBron James had the first of his seasons in 2003-04, 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
LeBron James	22	18	2003-04 to 2024-25
Gary Payton	17	15	1990-91 to 2006-07

Comparison Season by Season
Jump to season: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17


Rookie Season
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2003-04	1990-91
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	Rookie of the Year	-
	All-Rookie First Team	-
	-	All-Rookie Second Team
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

more >>

Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	79	39.5	20.9	1.3	4.2	5.5	5.9	1.6	0.7	3.5	1.9	7.9	18.9	.417	0.8	2.7	.290	4.4	5.8	.754
difference:	+3	+12.1	+13.7		+2.6	+2.5	+0.5	+0.4	+0.5	-1.3	-1.1	+4.7	+11.9	+.033	+0.8	+2.5	+.213	+3.6	+4.6	+.043
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2004-05	1991-92
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Supersonics Lost West Conf Semis

more >>

2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	80	42.4	27.2	1.4	6.0	7.4	7.2	2.2	0.7	3.3	1.8	9.9	21.1	.472	1.4	3.9	.351	6.0	8.0	.750
difference:	+1	+10.9	+17.8	+0.1	+3.9	+3.8	+1.0	+0.4	+0.4	-1.2	-1.3	+5.8	+12.0	+.021	+1.4	+3.6	+.221	+4.8	+6.2	+.081
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2005-06	1992-93
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost East Conf Semis	Supersonics Lost West Conf Finals

more >>

3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	79	42.5	31.4	0.9	6.1	7.0	6.6	1.6	0.8	3.3	2.3	11.1	23.1	.480	1.6	4.8	.335	7.6	10.3	.738
difference:	+3	+11.4	+17.9	+0.3	+3.8	+3.6	+1.7	+0.6	+0.5	-1.5	-0.7	+5.3	+11.4	+.014	+1.5	+4.4	+.129	+5.8	+7.9	+.032
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	13	46.5	30.8	1.7	6.4	8.1	5.8	1.4	0.7	5.0	3.4	11.2	23.6	.476	1.6	4.8	.333	6.7	9.1	.737
difference:	+6	+14.7	+18.5	+0.5	+4.2	+4.8	+2.1	+0.4	+0.5	-3.2		+5.7	+11.2	+.033	+1.5	+4.5	+.166	+5.4	+7.2	+.061
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2006-07	1993-94
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost NBA Finals	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

more >>

4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	78	40.9	27.3	1.1	5.7	6.7	6.0	1.6	0.7	3.2	2.2	9.9	20.8	.476	1.3	4.0	.319	6.3	9.0	.698
difference:	+4	+5.8	+10.8	+0.2	+3.7	+3.4		+0.7	+0.5	-1.1	-0.6	+2.8	+6.7	+.028	+1.1	+3.3	+.041	+4.3	+5.6	+.103
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	20	44.7	25.1	1.3	6.8	8.1	8.0	1.7	0.5	3.3	2.0	8.3	20.0	.416	1.1	3.8	.280	7.4	9.8	.755
difference:	+15	+8.5	+9.3	+0.1	+4.6	+4.7	+2.4	+0.1	+0.1	-1.7	-1.0	+1.5	+6.2	+.077	+0.5	+2.0	+.053	+5.8	+6.0	+.334
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2007-08	1994-95
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	Scoring Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost East Conf Semis	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

more >>

5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	75	40.4	30.0	1.8	6.1	7.9	7.2	1.8	1.1	3.4	2.2	10.6	21.9	.484	1.5	4.8	.315	7.3	10.3	.712
difference:	+7	+3.6	+9.4	+0.5	+4.0	+4.5	+0.1	+0.7	+0.9	-0.9	-0.3	+2.2	+5.5	+.025	+0.6	+2.0	+.013	+4.3	+6.1	+.004
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	13	42.5	28.2	1.2	6.6	7.8	7.6	1.8	1.3	4.2	2.5	8.7	21.2	.411	1.4	5.4	.257	9.4	12.8	.731
difference:	+9	+0.5	+10.4	+0.3	+5.6	+5.3	+2.3	+0.5	+1.3	-2.2	-0.8	+0.7	+4.4	+.067	+0.9	+2.9	+.057	+8.1	+9.8	+.314
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2008-09	1995-96
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	All-Defensive First Team	All-Defensive First Team
	-	Defensive Player of the Year
	-	Steals Leader
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost East Conf Finals	Supersonics Lost NBA Finals

more >>

6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	81	37.7	28.4	1.3	6.3	7.6	7.2	1.7	1.1	3.0	1.7	9.7	19.9	.489	1.6	4.7	.344	7.3	9.4	.780
difference:		+1.3	+9.1		+3.4	+3.4	+0.3	+1.2	+0.9	-0.2	-1.0	+2.1	+4.1	+.005	+0.4	+1.0	+.016	+4.5	+5.6	+.032
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	14	41.4	35.3	1.4	7.8	9.1	7.3	1.6	0.9	2.7	2.1	11.4	22.3	.510	1.9	5.8	.333	10.6	14.2	.749
difference:	+7	+2.0	+14.6	+0.5	+3.6	+4.0	+0.5	+0.2	+0.6	-0.3	-1.2	+3.7	+6.4	+.025	+0.1	+1.0	+.077	+7.3	+9.0	+.116
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2009-10	1996-97
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	All-Defensive First Team	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost East Conf Semis	Supersonics Lost West Conf Semis

more >>

7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	76	39.0	29.7	0.9	6.4	7.3	8.6	1.6	1.0	3.4	1.6	10.1	20.1	.503	1.7	5.1	.333	7.8	10.2	.767
difference:	+6	+0.2	+7.9	+0.4	+3.1	+2.7	+1.5	+0.8	+0.8	-0.8	-0.9	+1.5	+2.0	+.027	+0.2	+0.5	+.020	+4.7	+5.9	+.052
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	11	41.8	29.1	1.4	7.9	9.3	7.6	1.7	1.8	3.8	2.1	9.6	19.2	.502	1.8	4.5	.400	8.0	10.9	.733
difference:	+1	+3.8	+5.3	+0.3	+4.1	+3.9	+1.1	+0.5	+1.5	-0.9	-0.1	+0.8	+2.1	+.090	+0.3	+1.8	+.067	+3.8	+5.8	+.087
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2010-11	1997-98
Team	Miami Heat	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	All-NBA First Team
	All-Defensive First Team	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Heat Lost NBA Finals	Supersonics Lost West Conf Semis

more >>

8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	79	38.8	26.7	1.0	6.5	7.5	7.0	1.6	0.6	3.6	2.1	9.6	18.8	.510	1.2	3.5	.330	6.4	8.4	.759
difference:	+3	+0.4	+7.5	+0.1	+2.9	+2.9	+1.3	+0.7	+0.4	-0.8	-0.3	+2.5	+3.2	+.057	+0.4	+1.3	+.008	+3.0	+3.8	+.015
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	21	43.9	23.7	1.6	6.8	8.4	5.9	1.7	1.2	3.1	2.7	8.3	17.8	.466	1.4	4.0	.353	5.7	7.4	.763
difference:	+11	+1.2	+0.3	+0.7	+4.3	+5.0	+1.1	+0.1	+1.1	-0.5	-0.4	+0.4	+0.5	+.009	+0.5	+1.0	+.027	+1.0	+2.4	+.177
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2011-12	1998-99
Team	Miami Heat	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	Finals MVP	-
	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	All-Defensive First Team	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

more >>

9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	62	37.5	27.1	1.5	6.4	7.9	6.2	1.9	0.8	3.4	1.5	10.0	18.9	.531	0.9	2.4	.362	6.2	8.1	.771
difference:	+12	+2.7	+5.4	+0.3	+2.8	+3.0	+2.5	+0.3	+0.6	-0.3	-0.8	+2.0	+0.4	+.097	+0.8	+3.2	+.067	+2.2	+2.6	+.050
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	23	42.7	30.3	2.3	7.4	9.7	5.6	1.9	0.7	3.5	2.0	10.9	21.8	.500	1.0	3.7	.259	7.5	10.2	.739
Gary Payton	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 10
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2012-13	1999-00
Team	Miami Heat	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	Finals MVP	-
	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	All-NBA First Team
	All-Defensive First Team	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

more >>

10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	76	37.9	26.8	1.3	6.8	8.0	7.3	1.7	0.9	3.0	1.4	10.1	17.8	.565	1.4	3.3	.406	5.3	7.0	.753
difference:	+6	+3.9	+2.6	+0.1	+1.6	+1.5	+1.6	+0.2	+0.7	-0.3	-0.8	+1.0	+2.5	+.117	+0.8	+3.0	+.066	+1.5	+1.8	+.018
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	23	41.7	25.9	1.6	6.8	8.4	6.6	1.8	0.8	3.0	1.9	9.2	18.8	.491	1.6	4.2	.375	5.9	7.6	.777
difference:	+18	+2.5	+0.1		+0.8	+0.8	+0.8		+0.6	-0.6	-1.3	+0.8	+3.8	+.049	+0.2	+0.4	+.016	+1.9	+2.4	+.008
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
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2013-14	2000-01
Team	Miami Heat	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Third Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Defensive Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Heat Lost NBA Finals	Did Not Play

more >>

11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	77	37.7	27.1	1.1	5.9	6.9	6.3	1.6	0.3	3.5	1.6	10.0	17.6	.567	1.5	4.0	.379	5.7	7.6	.750
difference:	+2	+3.4	+4.0	+0.2	+2.3	+2.3	+1.8			-0.9	-0.7	+0.8	+2.5	+.111	+0.2	+0.6	+.004	+2.3	+3.1	+.016
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	20	38.2	27.4	0.7	6.4	7.1	4.8	1.8	0.6	3.1	2.3	9.6	17.0	.565	1.8	4.3	.407	6.5	8.0	.806
Gary Payton	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 12
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2014-15	2001-02
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost NBA Finals	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

more >>

12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	69	36.1	25.3	0.7	5.3	6.0	7.4	1.6	0.7	3.9	2.0	9.0	18.5	.488	1.7	4.9	.354	5.4	7.7	.710
difference:	+13	+4.2	+3.2	+0.3	+1.4	+1.2	+1.6		+0.4	-1.4	-0.2		+0.7	+.021	+0.8	+2.0	+.040	+2.1	+3.6	+.087
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	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	20	42.2	30.1	1.9	9.5	11.3	8.5	1.7	1.1	4.1	2.9	11.4	27.2	.417	1.3	5.5	.227	6.1	8.4	.731
difference:	+15	+1.0	+7.9	+0.1	+2.9	+2.7	+2.7	+1.1	+0.7	-1.5	-0.5	+2.4	+6.0	+.008	+0.5	+2.5	+.040	+2.7	+2.6	+.145
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


Season 13
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2015-16	2002-03
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Seattle Supersonics, Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards	Finals MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Bucks Lost East Conf 1st Rd

more >>

13th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	76	35.6	25.3	1.5	6.0	7.4	6.8	1.4	0.6	3.3	1.9	9.7	18.6	.520	1.1	3.7	.309	4.7	6.5	.731
difference:	+4	+4.5	+4.9	+0.5	+2.8	+3.2	+1.5	+0.3	+0.3	-1.0	-0.4	+1.4	+0.3	+.066	+0.4	+1.4	+.012	+1.6	+2.1	+.021
Gary Payton	80	40.1	20.4	1.0	3.2	4.2	8.3	1.7	0.3	2.3	2.3	8.3	18.3	.454	0.7	2.3	.297	3.1	4.4	.710

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	21	39.1	26.3	2.0	7.5	9.5	7.6	2.3	1.3	3.6	2.6	10.4	19.9	.525	1.5	4.5	.340	3.9	5.9	.661
difference:	+15	+2.7	+7.8	+1.3	+5.2	+6.5	+1.1	+1.0	+1.1	-1.4	-0.4	+2.4	+1.2	+.096	+1.3	+2.0	+.273	+1.6	+2.6	+.039
Gary Payton	6	41.8	18.5	0.7	2.3	3.0	8.7	1.3	0.2	2.2	3.0	8.0	18.7	.429	0.2	2.5	.067	2.3	3.3	.700


Season 14
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2016-17	2003-04
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost NBA Finals	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

more >>

14th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	74	37.8	26.4	1.3	7.3	8.6	8.7	1.2	0.6	4.1	1.8	9.9	18.2	.548	1.7	4.6	.363	4.8	7.2	.674
difference:	+8	+3.3	+11.8	+0.4	+4.0	+4.4	+3.2		+0.4	-2.3	-0.3	+4.0	+5.7	+.077	+1.0	+2.6	+.030	+2.6	+4.1	+.040
Gary Payton	82	34.5	14.6	0.9	3.3	4.2	5.5	1.2	0.2	1.8	2.1	5.9	12.5	.471	0.7	2.0	.333	2.2	3.1	.714

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	18	41.3	32.8	1.1	8.1	9.1	7.8	1.9	1.3	4.0	2.4	12.1	21.3	.565	2.4	5.9	.411	6.3	9.0	.698
difference:	+4	+6.3	+25.0	+0.2	+5.7	+5.8	+2.5	+0.9	+1.1	-2.7	-0.3	+9.0	+12.8	+.199	+1.8	+3.4	+.161	+5.3	+7.7	+.052
Gary Payton	22	35.0	7.8	0.9	2.4	3.3	5.3	1.0	0.2	1.3	2.7	3.1	8.5	.366	0.6	2.5	.250	1.0	1.3	.750


Season 15
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2017-18	2004-05
Team	Cleveland Cavaliers	Boston Celtics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Cavaliers Lost NBA Finals	Celtics Lost East Conf 1st Rd

more >>

15th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	82	36.9	27.5	1.2	7.5	8.6	9.1	1.4	0.9	4.2	1.7	10.5	19.3	.542	1.8	5.0	.367	4.7	6.5	.731
difference:	+5	+3.9	+16.2	+0.6	+5.1	+5.5	+3.0	+0.3	+0.7	-2.3	-0.1	+6.1	+9.9	+.074	+1.3	+3.3	+.041	+2.7	+3.9	+.030
Gary Payton	77	33.0	11.3	0.6	2.4	3.1	6.1	1.1	0.2	1.9	1.6	4.4	9.4	.468	0.5	1.7	.326	2.0	2.6	.761

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	22	41.9	34.0	1.4	7.7	9.1	9.0	1.4	1.0	4.3	2.4	12.5	23.2	.539	1.8	5.2	.342	7.2	9.7	.746
difference:	+15	+7.8	+23.7	+0.3	+4.7	+5.0	+4.4	+0.5	+0.9	-2.7	-1.0	+7.8	+12.6	+.093	+1.7	+3.2	+.271	+6.5	+8.8	+.087
Gary Payton	7	34.1	10.3	1.1	3.0	4.1	4.6	0.9	0.1	1.6	1.4	4.7	10.6	.446	0.1	2.0	.071	0.7	0.9	.833


Season 16
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2018-19	2005-06
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Miami Heat
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Third Team	-
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	NBA Champion

more >>

16th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	55	35.2	27.4	1.0	7.4	8.5	8.3	1.3	0.6	3.6	1.7	10.1	19.9	.510	2.0	5.9	.339	5.1	7.6	.665
difference:	+26	+6.7	+19.7	+0.6	+4.9	+5.6	+5.1	+0.4	+0.5	-2.3	-0.4	+7.3	+13.1	+.090	+1.2	+3.1	+.052	+3.9	+6.0	+.129
Gary Payton	81	28.5	7.7	0.4	2.5	2.9	3.2	0.9	0.1	1.3	2.1	2.8	6.8	.420	0.8	2.8	.287	1.2	1.6	.794

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Gary Payton	23	24.3	5.8	0.3	1.5	1.7	1.6	1.0	0.1	0.8	2.4	2.1	5.0	.422	0.7	2.5	.293	0.8	1.1	.720


Season 17
	LeBron James	Gary Payton
Season	2019-20	2006-07
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Miami Heat
Honors & Awards	Finals MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Heat Lost East Conf 1st Rd

more >>

17th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	67	34.6	25.3	1.0	6.9	7.8	10.2	1.2	0.5	3.9	1.8	9.6	19.4	.493	2.2	6.3	.348	3.9	5.7	.693
difference:	+1	+12.5	+20.0	+0.7	+5.2	+5.9	+7.2	+0.6	+0.5	-2.9	-0.1	+7.5	+14.0	+.100	+1.7	+4.5	+.088	+3.3	+4.9	+.026
Gary Payton	68	22.1	5.3	0.3	1.7	1.9	3.0	0.6	0.0	1.0	1.7	2.1	5.4	.393	0.5	1.8	.260	0.6	0.8	.667

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
LeBron James	21	36.3	27.6	1.3	9.4	10.8	8.8	1.2	0.9	4.0	1.9	10.2	18.2	.560	2.1	5.7	.370	5.1	7.1	.720
difference:	+19	+20.3	+27.6	+1.3	+7.4	+8.8	+7.3	+1.2	+0.9	-2.0	-0.4	+10.2	+16.7	+.560	+2.1	+5.2	+.370	+5.1	+7.1
Gary Payton	2	16.0	0.0	0.0	2.0	2.0	1.5	0.0	0.0	2.0	1.5	0.0	1.5	.000	0.0	0.5	.000	0.0	0.0	-


Additional Years
* LeBron James played 5 seasons more than Gary Payton in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 18 to 22, from 2021 to 2025—LeBron James played in 4 Playoffs and one NBA Cup. In those 5 extra years over Gary Payton, LeBron James got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	2 All-NBA Second Team 3 All-NBA Third Team 1 Cup MVP 1 Cup All-Tournament Team 5 All-Star Game

LeBron James vs. Gary Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Gary Payton and LeBron James, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Their Careers

Comparison Season by Season

Rookie Season

Rookie Season Stats Comparison

Season 2

2nd Season Stats Comparison

Season 3

3rd Season Stats Comparison

Season 4

4th Season Stats Comparison

Season 5

5th Season Stats Comparison

Season 6

6th Season Stats Comparison

Season 7

7th Season Stats Comparison

Season 8

8th Season Stats Comparison

Season 9

9th Season Stats Comparison

Season 10

10th Season Stats Comparison

Season 11

11th Season Stats Comparison

Season 12

12th Season Stats Comparison

Season 13

13th Season Stats Comparison

Season 14

14th Season Stats Comparison

Season 15

15th Season Stats Comparison

Season 16

16th Season Stats Comparison

Season 17

17th Season Stats Comparison

Additional Years