Neil Johnston vs. Isaiah Thomas Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Isaiah Thomas and Neil Johnston, 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

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.

Neil Johnston played 8 years in the NBA, 4 less than Isaiah Thomas, who played 12. Neil Johnston had the first of his seasons in 1951-52, while Isaiah Thomas had his rookie season in 2011-12. 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 achivements, 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
Neil Johnston 8 4 1951-52 to 1958-59
Isaiah Thomas 12 4 2011-12 to 2023-24

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12

Rookie Season
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1951-522011-12
Team Philadelphia WarriorsSacramento Kings
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Rookie Second Team
Playoffs Warriors Lost East Div SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 64 15.5 6.0 - - 5.3 0.6 - - - 2.4 2.2 4.7 .472 - - - 1.6 2.4 .662
Isaiah Thomas 65 25.5 11.5 0.7 1.8 2.6 4.1 0.8 0.1 1.6 1.9 3.9 8.8 .448 1.3 3.4 .379 2.4 2.8 .832
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 3 10.7 5.3 - - 3.3 0.3 - - - 2.7 1.7 3.3 .500 - - - 2.0 2.7 .750
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 2
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1952-532012-13
Team Philadelphia WarriorsSacramento Kings
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 70 45.2 22.3 - - 13.9 2.8 - - - 3.5 7.2 15.9 .452 - - - 7.9 11.3 .700
Isaiah Thomas 79 26.9 13.9 0.4 1.7 2.0 4.0 0.8 0.0 1.8 2.1 4.6 10.5 .440 1.5 4.1 .358 3.2 3.6 .882
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 3
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1953-542013-14
Team Philadelphia WarriorsSacramento Kings
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 72 45.8 24.4 - - 11.1 2.8 - - - 3.6 8.2 18.3 .449 - - - 8.0 10.7 .747
Isaiah Thomas 72 34.7 20.3 0.7 2.3 2.9 6.3 1.3 0.1 3.0 2.6 6.9 15.2 .453 1.8 5.1 .349 4.8 5.7 .850
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 4
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1954-552014-15
Team Philadelphia WarriorsPhoenix Suns, Boston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayCeltics Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 72 40.5 22.7 - - 15.1 3.0 - - - 3.5 7.2 16.4 .440 - - - 8.2 10.7 .766
Isaiah Thomas 67 25.8 16.4 0.5 1.8 2.3 4.2 0.9 0.1 2.1 2.2 5.0 11.9 .420 1.9 5.2 .373 4.5 5.2 .868
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas 4 29.8 17.5 0.3 2.8 3.0 7.0 0.8 0.0 3.5 2.5 4.5 13.5 .333 0.8 4.5 .167 7.8 8.0 .969

Season 5
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1955-562015-16
Team Philadelphia WarriorsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionCeltics Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 70 37.1 22.1 - - 12.5 3.2 - - - 3.6 7.1 15.6 .457 - - - 7.8 9.8 .801
Isaiah Thomas 82 32.2 22.2 0.6 2.4 3.0 6.2 1.1 0.1 2.7 2.0 7.2 16.9 .428 2.0 5.7 .359 5.8 6.6 .871
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 10 39.7 20.3 - - 14.3 5.1 - - - 4.1 6.9 16.9 .408 - - - 6.5 9.2 .707
Isaiah Thomas 6 36.7 24.2 0.3 2.7 3.0 5.0 0.7 0.8 2.3 3.0 7.8 19.8 .395 2.2 7.7 .283 6.3 7.8 .809

Season 6
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1956-572016-17
Team Philadelphia WarriorsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Warriors Lost East Div SemisCeltics Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 69 36.7 22.8 - - 12.4 2.9 - - - 3.3 7.5 16.9 .447 - - - 7.8 9.4 .826
Isaiah Thomas 76 33.8 28.9 0.6 2.1 2.7 5.9 0.9 0.2 2.8 2.2 9.0 19.4 .463 3.2 8.5 .379 7.8 8.5 .909
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 2 42.0 19.0 - - 17.5 4.5 - - - 4.5 8.5 26.5 .321 - - - 2.0 3.0 .667
Isaiah Thomas 15 34.7 23.3 0.3 2.8 3.1 6.7 0.9 0.1 3.3 2.3 7.4 17.4 .425 2.4 7.2 .333 6.1 7.4 .820

Season 7
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1957-582017-18
Team Philadelphia WarriorsCleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Warriors Lost East Div FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 71 33.9 19.5 - - 11.1 2.3 - - - 3.3 6.7 15.5 .429 - - - 6.2 7.6 .819
Isaiah Thomas 32 26.9 15.2 0.5 1.6 2.1 4.8 0.5 0.1 3.0 1.8 4.9 13.2 .373 1.7 5.9 .293 3.7 4.1 .893
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 8 23.6 10.9 - - 8.6 1.8 - - - 2.3 3.8 9.8 .385 - - - 3.4 4.1 .818
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 8
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season 1958-592018-19
Team Philadelphia WarriorsDenver Nuggets
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlayDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston 28 14.0 6.3 - - 5.0 0.8 - - - 1.8 1.9 5.9 .329 - - - 2.5 3.1 .784
Isaiah Thomas 12 15.1 8.1 0.4 0.7 1.1 1.9 0.4 0.1 1.5 1.4 2.8 8.3 .343 1.0 3.6 .279 1.4 2.3 .630
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 9
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season -2019-20
Team -Washington Wizards
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Did Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas 40 23.1 12.2 0.3 1.4 1.7 3.7 0.3 0.2 1.9 1.9 4.4 10.7 .408 2.0 4.7 .413 1.6 1.9 .816
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 10
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season -2020-21
Team -New Orleans Pelicans
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Did Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas 3 16.0 7.7 0.3 1.0 1.3 1.7 0.3 0.0 2.0 1.0 3.0 9.0 .333 1.0 4.0 .250 0.7 0.7 1.000
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 11
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season -2021-22
Team -Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Charlotte Hornets
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Did Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas 22 15.2 8.4 0.2 1.1 1.3 1.5 0.3 0.2 0.7 1.5 3.0 7.6 .401 1.3 3.8 .337 1.0 1.2 .846
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas ------- --- ----------

Note: Isaiah Thomas didn't play in 2022-23.

Season 12
Neil Johnston Isaiah Thomas
Season -2023-24
Team -Phoenix Suns
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Suns Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas 6 3.2 1.3 0.0 0.0 0 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 1.7 .300 0.3 0.7 .500 0.0 0.0 -
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Neil Johnston ------- --- ----------
Isaiah Thomas 1 4.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 .000 0.0 1.0 .000 0.0 0.0 -
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