Sam Jones vs. David Thompson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of David Thompson and Sam Jones, 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.

Sam Jones played 12 years in the NBA, 4 more than David Thompson, who played 8. Sam Jones had the first of his seasons in 1957-58, while David Thompson had his rookie season in 1976-77. 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
Sam Jones	12	12	1957-58 to 1968-69
David Thompson	8	5	1976-77 to 1983-84

Comparison Season by Season
Jump to season: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8


Rookie Season
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1957-58	1976-77
Team	Boston Celtics	Denver Nuggets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Celtics Lost NBA Finals	Nuggets Lost West Conf Semis

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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		%
Sam Jones	56	10.6	4.6	-	-	2.9	0.7	-	-	-	0.8	1.8	4.2	.429	-	-	-	1.1	1.5	.714
difference:	+26	+26.0	+21.3			+1.2	+3.4				-2.1	+8.2	+15.6	+.078				+4.7	+6.1	+.052
David Thompson	82	36.6	25.9	1.7	2.4	4.1	4.1	1.4	0.6	-	2.9	10.0	19.8	.507	-	-	-	5.8	7.6	.766

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	8	9.4	3.9	-	-	3.0	0.5	-	-	-	0.9	1.3	2.8	.455	-	-	-	1.4	2.0	.688
difference:	+2	+30.1	+20.8			+2.2	+3.5				-2.8	+8.0	+17.4	+.008				+4.6	+6.8	+.009
David Thompson	6	39.5	24.7	2.2	3.0	5.2	4.0	1.5	0.7	-	3.7	9.3	20.2	.463	-	-	-	6.0	8.8	.679


Season 2
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1958-59	1977-78
Team	Boston Celtics	Denver Nuggets
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Nuggets Lost West Conf Finals

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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		%
Sam Jones	71	20.6	10.7	-	-	6.0	1.4	-	-	-	1.4	4.3	9.9	.434	-	-	-	2.1	2.8	.770
difference:	+9	+17.2	+16.5			+1.1	+3.1				-1.3	+6.0	+9.9	+.087				+4.4	+5.6	+.008
David Thompson	80	37.8	27.2	2.0	2.9	4.9	4.5	1.2	1.2	3.1	2.7	10.3	19.8	.521	-	-	-	6.5	8.4	.778

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	11	17.5	10.3	-	-	5.7	1.5	-	-	-	1.3	3.6	9.8	.370	-	-	-	3.0	3.5	.846
difference:	+2	+19.5	+14.9			+1.6	+2.5				-1.3	+6.5	+12.6	+.080				+2.1	+2.7	+.021
David Thompson	13	37.0	25.2	1.4	2.7	4.1	4.0	0.7	1.6	3.0	2.6	10.1	22.4	.450	-	-	-	5.1	6.2	.825


Season 3
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1959-60	1978-79
Team	Boston Celtics	Denver Nuggets
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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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		%
Sam Jones	74	20.4	11.9	-	-	5.1	1.7	-	-	-	1.4	4.8	10.6	.454	-	-	-	2.3	3.0	.764
difference:	+2	+14.7	+12.1			+1.5	+1.3				-1.0	+4.3	+7.2	+.058				+3.5	+4.7	+.011
David Thompson	76	35.1	24.0	1.4	2.2	3.6	3.0	0.9	1.1	2.4	2.4	9.1	17.8	.512	-	-	-	5.8	7.7	.753

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	13	15.2	8.2	-	-	3.2	1.4	-	-	-	1.2	3.5	9.0	.385	-	-	-	1.3	1.6	.810
difference:	+10	+25.5	+19.8			+3.8	+2.6				-2.8	+9.2	+14.0	+.166				+1.4	+2.1	+.083
David Thompson	3	40.7	28.0	2.3	4.7	7.0	4.0	1.3	0.3	4.0	4.0	12.7	23.0	.551	-	-	-	2.7	3.7	.727


Season 4
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1960-61	1979-80
Team	Boston Celtics	Denver Nuggets
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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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		%
Sam Jones	78	26.0	15.0	-	-	5.4	2.8	-	-	-	1.9	6.2	13.7	.449	-	-	-	2.7	3.4	.787
difference:	+39	+5.8	+6.5			+0.9	+0.4				-0.8	+1.2	+2.1	+.019				+3.8	+5.2	+.029
David Thompson	39	31.8	21.5	1.4	3.0	4.5	3.2	1.0	1.0	3.0	2.7	7.4	15.8	.468	0.2	0.5	.368	6.5	8.6	.758

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	10	25.8	13.1	-	-	5.4	2.2	-	-	-	2.2	5.0	11.2	.446	-	-	-	3.1	3.5	.886
David Thompson	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 5
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1961-62	1980-81
Team	Boston Celtics	Denver Nuggets
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	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		%
Sam Jones	78	30.6	18.4	-	-	5.9	3.0	-	-	-	1.9	7.6	16.5	.464	-	-	-	3.1	3.8	.818
difference:	+1	+3.4	+7.1			+2.2					-1.1	+1.9	+2.3	+.042				+3.3	+4.2	+.023
David Thompson	77	34.0	25.5	1.4	2.3	3.7	3.0	0.7	0.8	3.2	3.0	9.5	18.8	.506	0.1	0.5	.256	6.4	8.0	.795

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	14	36.0	20.6	-	-	7.1	3.1	-	-	-	2.1	8.8	19.8	.444	-	-	-	3.0	4.3	.700
David Thompson	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Season 6
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1962-63	1981-82
Team	Boston Celtics	Denver Nuggets
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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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		%
Sam Jones	76	30.6	19.7	-	-	5.2	3.2	-	-	-	2.1	8.2	17.2	.476	-	-	-	3.4	4.3	.793
difference:	+15	+10.2	+4.8			+2.8	+1.3				-0.3	+3.1	+6.6	+.010				+1.1	+1.3	+.021
David Thompson	61	20.4	14.9	0.9	1.5	2.4	1.9	0.6	0.5	2.3	2.4	5.1	10.6	.486	0.1	0.2	.286	4.5	5.6	.814

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	13	34.6	23.8	-	-	6.2	2.5	-	-	-	3.2	9.2	19.1	.484	-	-	-	5.3	6.4	.831
difference:	+10	+12.6	+12.1			+2.9	+0.5				-0.5	+4.2	+8.1	+.029				+4.0	+4.1	+.260
David Thompson	3	22.0	11.7	1.3	2.0	3.3	2.0	0.3	0.0	2.7	2.7	5.0	11.0	.455	0.3	1.0	.333	1.3	2.3	.571


Season 7
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1963-64	1982-83
Team	Boston Celtics	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Supersonics Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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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		%
Sam Jones	76	31.3	19.4	-	-	4.6	2.7	-	-	-	2.5	8.1	17.9	.450	-	-	-	3.3	4.2	.783
difference:	+1	+2.6	+3.5			+1.0	+0.3				-0.6	+2.2	+5.6	+.031				+0.7	+0.9	+.001
David Thompson	75	28.7	15.9	1.3	2.3	3.6	3.0	0.6	0.4	2.2	1.9	5.9	12.3	.481	0.0	0.1	.200	4.0	5.1	.784

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	10	35.6	23.2	-	-	4.7	2.3	-	-	-	2.4	9.1	18.0	.506	-	-	-	5.0	6.8	.735
difference:	+8	+3.1	+11.2			+4.7	+1.2				-1.1	+4.6	+5.5	+.146				+2.0	+1.8	+.135
David Thompson	2	32.5	12.0	0.0	0.0	0	3.5	0.5	0.5	2.0	3.5	4.5	12.5	.360	0.0	0.0	-	3.0	5.0	.600


Season 8
	Sam Jones	David Thompson
Season	1964-65	1983-84
Team	Boston Celtics	Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
Honors & Awards	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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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		%
Sam Jones	80	36.1	25.9	-	-	5.1	2.8	-	-	-	2.2	10.3	22.7	.452	-	-	-	5.4	6.5	.820
difference:	+61	+17.7	+13.3			+2.8	+2.1				-0.6	+5.6	+14.0	+.087				+2.1	+2.7	+.029
David Thompson	19	18.4	12.6	0.9	1.4	2.3	0.7	0.5	0.7	1.4	1.6	4.7	8.7	.539	0.0	0.1	.000	3.3	3.8	.849

Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Jones	12	41.3	28.6	-	-	4.6	2.5	-	-	-	3.3	11.3	24.5	.459	-	-	-	6.1	7.0	.869
David Thompson	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-


Additional Years
* Sam Jones played 4 seasons more than David Thompson in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 9 to 12, from 1966 to 1969—Sam Jones played in 4 Playoffs and won 3 NBA Championships. In those 4 extra years over David Thompson, Sam Jones got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	2 All-NBA Second Team 2 All-Star Game

Sam Jones vs. David Thompson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of David Thompson and Sam Jones, 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

Additional Years