Oscar Robertson vs. Kenny Smith Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Kenny Smith and Oscar Robertson, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

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.

Oscar Robertson played 14 years in the NBA, 4 more than Kenny Smith, who played 10. Oscar Robertson had the first of his seasons in 1960-61, while Kenny Smith had his rookie season in 1987-88. 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.

Rookie Season
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1960-61	1987-88
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Sacramento Kings
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	Rookie of the Year	-
	-	All-Rookie First Team
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	71	42.7	30.5	-	-	10.1	9.7	-	-	-	3.1	10.6	22.5	.473	-	-	-	9.2	11.2	.822
difference:	+10	+7.1	+16.7			+7.8	+2.6				-0.8	+5.2	+11.1	+.004				+6.5	+7.9	+.003
Kenny Smith	61	35.6	13.8	0.7	1.6	2.3	7.1	1.5	0.1	3.0	2.3	5.4	11.4	.477	0.2	0.6	.308	2.7	3.3	.819
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Oscar Robertson nor Kenny Smith played in the postseason in their season 1

Season 2
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1961-62	1988-89
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Sacramento Kings
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Royals Lost West Div Semis	Did Not Play

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2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	79	44.3	30.8	-	-	12.5	11.4	-	-	-	3.3	11.0	22.9	.478	-	-	-	8.9	11.0	.803
difference:	+2	+5.5	+13.5			+9.7	+3.7				-1.2	+4.2	+8.3	+.016				+5.7	+6.6	+.066
Kenny Smith	81	38.8	17.3	0.6	2.2	2.8	7.7	1.3	0.1	3.1	2.1	6.8	14.6	.462	0.6	1.6	.359	3.2	4.4	.737
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	4	46.3	28.8	-	-	11.0	11.0	-	-	-	4.5	10.5	20.3	.519	-	-	-	7.8	9.8	.795
Kenny Smith	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 3
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1962-63	1989-90
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Royals Lost East Div Finals	Did Not Play

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3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	80	44.0	28.3	-	-	10.4	9.5	-	-	-	3.7	10.3	19.9	.518	-	-	-	7.7	9.5	.810
difference:	+1	+13.4	+16.4			+8.4	+3.9				-1.9	+5.5	+9.6	+.052				+5.7	+7.0	+.011
Kenny Smith	79	30.6	11.9	0.2	1.8	2.0	5.6	1.0	0.1	2.1	1.8	4.8	10.3	.466	0.3	1.1	.313	2.0	2.5	.821
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	12	47.5	31.8	-	-	13.0	9.0	-	-	-	3.4	10.3	22.0	.470	-	-	-	11.1	12.8	.864
Kenny Smith	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 4
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1963-64	1990-91
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Royals Lost East Div Finals	Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	79	45.1	31.4	-	-	9.9	11.0	-	-	-	3.5	10.6	22.0	.483	-	-	-	10.1	11.9	.853
difference:	+1	+10.5	+13.7			+7.8	+3.9				-1.8	+3.9	+9.1	+.037				+6.4	+7.5	+.009
Kenny Smith	78	34.6	17.7	0.5	1.6	2.1	7.1	1.4	0.1	3.0	1.7	6.7	12.9	.520	0.6	1.7	.363	3.7	4.4	.844
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	10	47.1	29.3	-	-	8.9	8.4	-	-	-	3.0	9.2	20.2	.455	-	-	-	10.9	12.7	.858
difference:	+7	+9.4	+14.0			+6.2	+0.4				-1.3	+3.2	+7.5	+.019				+8.2	+9.7	+.031
Kenny Smith	3	37.7	15.3	1.3	1.3	2.7	8.0	1.3	0.3	2.0	1.7	6.0	12.7	.474	0.7	1.3	.500	2.7	3.0	.889

Season 5
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1964-65	1991-92
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Royals Lost East Div Semis	Did Not Play

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5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	75	45.6	30.4	-	-	9.0	11.5	-	-	-	2.7	10.8	22.4	.480	-	-	-	8.9	10.6	.839
difference:	+6	+11.8	+16.4			+6.8	+4.6				-1.3	+5.5	+11.2	+.005				+6.2	+7.5	+.027
Kenny Smith	81	33.8	14.0	0.4	1.8	2.2	6.9	1.3	0.1	2.8	1.4	5.3	11.2	.475	0.7	1.7	.394	2.7	3.1	.866
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	4	48.8	28.0	-	-	4.8	12.0	-	-	-	3.5	9.5	22.3	.427	-	-	-	9.0	9.8	.923
Kenny Smith	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 6
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1965-66	1992-93
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Royals Lost East Div Semis	Rockets Lost West Conf Semis

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6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	76	46.0	31.3	-	-	7.7	11.1	-	-	-	3.0	10.8	22.7	.475	-	-	-	9.8	11.6	.842
difference:	+6	+16.5	+18.3			+5.7	+5.7				-1.7	+6.1	+13.6	+.045				+7.4	+8.9	+.036
Kenny Smith	82	29.5	13.0	0.3	1.6	2.0	5.4	1.0	0.1	2.0	1.3	4.7	9.1	.520	1.2	2.7	.438	2.4	2.7	.878
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	5	44.8	31.8	-	-	7.6	7.8	-	-	-	4.0	9.8	24.0	.408	-	-	-	12.2	13.6	.897
difference:	+7	+12.2	+17.0			+5.6	+3.6				-2.5	+4.5	+13.3	+.084				+9.9	+10.6	+.119
Kenny Smith	12	32.6	14.8	0.2	1.8	2.0	4.2	0.8	0.1	2.2	1.5	5.3	10.7	.492	1.9	3.8	.500	2.3	3.0	.778

Season 7
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1966-67	1993-94
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Royals Lost East Div Semis	NBA Champion

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7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	79	43.9	30.5	-	-	6.2	10.7	-	-	-	2.9	10.6	21.5	.493	-	-	-	9.3	10.7	.873
difference:	+1	+15.6	+18.9			+4.4	+6.5				-1.3	+6.2	+12.4	+.013				+7.6	+8.7	+.002
Kenny Smith	78	28.3	11.6	0.3	1.5	1.8	4.2	0.8	0.1	1.6	1.6	4.4	9.1	.480	1.1	2.8	.405	1.7	2.0	.871
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	4	45.8	24.8	-	-	4.0	11.3	-	-	-	2.3	8.3	16.0	.516	-	-	-	8.3	9.3	.892
difference:	+19	+15.5	+14.0			+1.7	+7.2				-0.6	+4.6	+7.8	+.061				+6.5	+7.0	+.084
Kenny Smith	23	30.3	10.8	0.2	2.1	2.3	4.1	1.0	0.2	1.4	1.7	3.7	8.2	.455	1.5	3.3	.447	1.8	2.3	.808

Season 8
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1967-68	1994-95
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	NBA Champion

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8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	65	42.5	29.2	-	-	6.0	9.7	-	-	-	3.1	10.2	20.3	.500	-	-	-	8.9	10.2	.873
difference:	+16	+17.4	+18.8			+4.1	+5.7				-1.8	+6.7	+13.0	+.016				+7.3	+8.4	+.022
Kenny Smith	81	25.1	10.4	0.3	1.6	1.9	4.0	0.9	0.1	1.5	1.3	3.5	7.3	.484	1.8	4.1	.429	1.6	1.8	.851
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Kenny Smith	22	29.6	10.8	0.3	1.9	2.2	4.5	0.6	0.1	1.4	2.1	3.5	8.1	.438	2.1	4.7	.442	1.6	1.8	.900

Season 9
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1968-69	1995-96
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Houston Rockets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Rockets Lost West Conf Semis

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9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	79	43.8	24.7	-	-	6.4	9.8	-	-	-	2.9	8.3	17.1	.486	-	-	-	8.1	9.7	.838
difference:	+11	+20.0	+16.2			+5.0	+6.2				-1.2	+5.3	+10.3	+.053				+6.8	+8.1	+.017
Kenny Smith	68	23.8	8.5	0.3	1.1	1.4	3.6	0.7	0.0	1.5	1.7	3.0	6.8	.433	1.3	3.5	.382	1.3	1.6	.821
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Kenny Smith	8	23.9	8.9	0.5	1.0	1.5	4.8	0.6	0.0	1.0	1.8	2.9	6.6	.434	1.5	3.9	.387	1.6	1.6	1.000

Season 10
	Oscar Robertson	Kenny Smith
Season	1969-70	1996-97
Team	Cincinnati Royals	Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Oscar Robertson	69	41.5	25.3	-	-	6.1	8.1	-	-	-	2.5	9.4	18.4	.511	-	-	-	6.6	8.1	.809
difference:	+21	+25.6	+19.0			+5.2	+5.7				-1.9	+7.3	+13.4	+.088				+5.8	+7.2	+.058
Kenny Smith	48	15.9	6.3	0.1	0.8	0.9	2.4	0.4	0.0	1.5	0.6	2.1	5.0	.423	1.2	2.8	.437	0.8	0.9	.867
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Oscar Robertson nor Kenny Smith played in the postseason in their season 10

Additional Years
* Oscar Robertson played 4 seasons more than Kenny Smith in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 11 to 14, from 1971 to 1974—Oscar Robertson played in 4 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those 4 extra years over Kenny Smith, Oscar Robertson got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	1 All-NBA Second Team 2 All-Star Game