Steve Nash vs. Jerry West Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Jerry West and Steve Nash, 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.

Steve Nash played 18 years in the NBA, 4 more than Jerry West, who played 14. Steve Nash had the first of his seasons in 1996-97, while Jerry West had his rookie season in 1960-61. 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
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	1996-97	1960-61
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Suns Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Lakers Lost West Div Finals

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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		%
Steve Nash	65	10.5	3.3	0.2	0.7	1.0	2.1	0.3	0.0	1.0	1.4	1.1	2.7	.423	0.4	0.8	.418	0.6	0.8	.824
difference:	+14	+24.9	+14.3			+6.7	+2.1				-1.3	+5.6	+13.3	+.004				+3.6	+5.5	+.158
Jerry West	79	35.4	17.6	-	-	7.7	4.2	-	-	-	2.7	6.7	16.0	.419	-	-	-	4.2	6.3	.666
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	4	3.8	1.3	0.3	0.0	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.5	1.3	0.5	2.3	.222	0.3	1.0	.250	0.0	0.0	-
difference:	+8	+34.6	+21.6			+8.4	+5.0				-2.0	+7.8	+14.5	+.268				+6.4	+8.8
Jerry West	12	38.4	22.9	-	-	8.7	5.3	-	-	-	3.3	8.3	16.8	.490	-	-	-	6.4	8.8	.726

Season 2
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	1997-98	1961-62
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Suns Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Lakers Lost NBA 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		%
Steve Nash	76	21.9	9.1	0.4	1.7	2.1	3.4	0.8	0.1	1.3	1.9	3.5	7.7	.459	1.1	2.6	.415	1.0	1.1	.860
difference:	+1	+19.3	+21.7			+5.8	+2.0				-0.4	+7.2	+16.2	+.014				+8.5	+11.2	+.091
Jerry West	75	41.2	30.8	-	-	7.9	5.4	-	-	-	2.3	10.7	23.9	.445	-	-	-	9.5	12.3	.769
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	4	12.8	5.5	0.5	2.0	2.5	1.8	0.5	0.0	0.8	1.8	2.0	4.5	.444	0.3	1.3	.200	1.3	2.0	.625
difference:	+9	+30.0	+26.0			+4.3	+2.6				-1.1	+9.1	+19.3	+.021				+8.0	+9.5	+.182
Jerry West	13	42.8	31.5	-	-	6.8	4.4	-	-	-	2.9	11.1	23.8	.465	-	-	-	9.3	11.5	.807

Season 3
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	1998-99	1962-63
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Steve Nash	40	31.7	7.9	0.8	2.1	2.9	5.5	0.9	0.1	2.1	2.5	2.9	7.9	.363	1.2	3.3	.374	1.0	1.2	.826
difference:	+15	+7.6	+19.2			+4.1	+0.1				-0.2	+7.3	+14.2	+.098				+5.7	+7.5	+.048
Jerry West	55	39.3	27.1	-	-	7.0	5.6	-	-	-	2.7	10.2	22.1	.461	-	-	-	6.7	8.7	.778
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Jerry West	13	41.4	27.8	-	-	8.2	4.7	-	-	-	2.6	11.1	22.0	.503	-	-	-	5.7	7.7	.740

Season 4
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	1999-00	1963-64
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Lakers Lost West Div Semis

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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		%
Steve Nash	56	27.4	8.6	0.6	1.6	2.2	4.9	0.7	0.1	1.8	2.2	3.1	6.5	.477	1.1	2.7	.403	1.3	1.5	.882
difference:	+16	+13.0	+20.1			+3.8	+0.7				-0.6	+7.2	+14.7	+.007				+6.8	+8.3	+.050
Jerry West	72	40.4	28.7	-	-	6.0	5.6	-	-	-	2.8	10.3	21.2	.484	-	-	-	8.1	9.8	.832
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Jerry West	5	41.2	31.2	-	-	7.2	3.4	-	-	-	4.0	11.4	23.0	.496	-	-	-	8.4	10.6	.792

Season 5
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2000-01	1964-65
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Steve Nash	70	34.1	15.6	0.7	2.5	3.2	7.3	1.0	0.1	2.9	2.3	5.5	11.3	.487	1.3	3.1	.406	3.3	3.7	.895
difference:	+4	+7.3	+15.4			+2.8	+2.4				-0.7	+5.6	+11.1	+.010				+5.5	+7.0	+.074
Jerry West	74	41.4	31.0	-	-	6.0	4.9	-	-	-	3.0	11.1	22.4	.497	-	-	-	8.8	10.7	.821
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	10	37.0	13.6	0.6	2.6	3.2	6.4	0.6	0.1	2.5	1.9	4.5	10.8	.417	1.6	3.9	.410	3.0	3.4	.882
difference:	+1	+5.7	+27.0			+2.5	+1.1				-1.5	+9.6	+21.1	+.025				+9.5	+10.6	+.008
Jerry West	11	42.7	40.6	-	-	5.7	5.3	-	-	-	3.4	14.1	31.9	.442	-	-	-	12.5	14.0	.890

Season 6
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2001-02	1965-66
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	All-NBA Third Team	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Semis	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Steve Nash	82	34.6	17.9	0.6	2.5	3.1	7.7	0.6	0.0	2.8	2.0	6.4	13.3	.483	1.9	4.2	.455	3.2	3.6	.887
difference:	+3	+6.1	+13.4			+4.0	+1.6				-1.1	+4.0	+8.6	+.010				+7.4	+8.8	+.027
Jerry West	79	40.7	31.3	-	-	7.1	6.1	-	-	-	3.1	10.4	21.9	.473	-	-	-	10.6	12.4	.860
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	8	40.5	19.5	0.9	3.1	4.0	8.8	0.5	0.0	3.8	2.5	6.4	14.8	.432	2.5	5.6	.444	4.3	4.4	.971
difference:	+6	+3.7	+14.7			+2.3	+3.2				-0.4	+6.8	+10.7	+.086				+3.5	+4.5	+.099
Jerry West	14	44.2	34.2	-	-	6.3	5.6	-	-	-	2.9	13.2	25.5	.518	-	-	-	7.8	8.9	.872

Season 7
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2002-03	1966-67
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	All-NBA Third Team	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf Finals	Lakers Lost West Div Semis

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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		%
Steve Nash	82	33.1	17.7	0.8	2.1	2.9	7.3	1.0	0.1	2.3	1.6	6.3	13.6	.465	1.4	3.3	.413	3.8	4.1	.909
difference:	+16	+7.4	+11.0			+3.0	+0.5				-0.8	+3.5	+7.4	+.001				+5.3	+6.3	+.031
Jerry West	66	40.5	28.7	-	-	5.9	6.8	-	-	-	2.4	9.8	21.0	.464	-	-	-	9.1	10.4	.878
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	20	36.4	16.1	0.8	2.8	3.5	7.3	0.9	0.1	2.6	2.4	5.8	12.9	.447	1.9	3.8	.487	2.8	3.2	.873
difference:	+19	+35.4	+16.1			+2.5	+7.3				-2.4	+5.8	+12.9					+2.8	+3.2
Jerry West	1	1.0	0.0	-	-	1.0	0.0	-	-	-	0.0	0.0	0.0	-	-	-	-	0.0	0.0	-

Season 8
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2003-04	1967-68
Team	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Mavericks Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Steve Nash	78	33.5	14.5	0.8	2.2	3.0	8.8	0.9	0.1	2.7	1.8	5.1	10.8	.470	1.3	3.3	.405	2.9	3.2	.916
difference:	+27	+4.1	+11.8			+2.8	+2.7				-1.2	+4.2	+7.4	+.044				+4.8	+6.3	+.105
Jerry West	51	37.6	26.3	-	-	5.8	6.1	-	-	-	3.0	9.3	18.2	.514	-	-	-	7.7	9.5	.811
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	5	39.2	13.6	1.2	4.0	5.2	9.0	0.8	0.0	2.4	2.8	5.4	14.0	.386	1.2	3.2	.375	1.6	1.8	.889
difference:	+10	+2.3	+17.2			+0.2	+3.5				-0.3	+5.6	+6.9	+.141				+7.2	+9.5	+.108
Jerry West	15	41.5	30.8	-	-	5.4	5.5	-	-	-	3.1	11.0	20.9	.527	-	-	-	8.8	11.3	.781

Season 9
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2004-05	1968-69
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	Finals MVP
	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Second Team
	-	All-Defensive Second Team
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Suns Lost West Conf Finals	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Steve Nash	75	34.3	15.5	0.8	2.6	3.3	11.5	1.0	0.1	3.3	1.8	5.7	11.4	.502	1.3	2.9	.431	2.8	3.2	.887
difference:	+14	+4.9	+10.4			+1.0	+4.6				-0.8	+3.2	+7.6	+.031				+5.2	+6.6	+.066
Jerry West	61	39.2	25.9	-	-	4.3	6.9	-	-	-	2.6	8.9	19.0	.471	-	-	-	8.0	9.8	.821
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	15	40.7	23.9	0.6	4.2	4.8	11.3	0.9	0.2	4.7	2.4	9.3	17.9	.520	1.4	3.6	.389	3.8	4.1	.919
difference:	+3	+1.4	+7.0			+0.9	+3.8				-0.5	+1.6	+5.6	+.057				+5.3	+7.2	+.115
Jerry West	18	42.1	30.9	-	-	3.9	7.5	-	-	-	2.9	10.9	23.5	.463	-	-	-	9.1	11.3	.804

Season 10
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2005-06	1969-70
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	-	Scoring Leader
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Suns Lost West Conf Finals	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Steve Nash	79	35.4	18.8	0.6	3.6	4.2	10.5	0.8	0.2	3.5	1.5	6.8	13.4	.512	1.9	4.3	.439	3.3	3.5	.921
difference:	+5	+6.6	+12.4			+0.4	+3.0				-0.7	+4.4	+9.2	+.015				+5.4	+7.1	+.097
Jerry West	74	42.0	31.2	-	-	4.6	7.5	-	-	-	2.2	11.2	22.6	.497	-	-	-	8.7	10.6	.824
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	20	39.9	20.4	0.5	3.2	3.7	10.2	0.4	0.3	3.4	1.9	7.3	14.6	.502	1.6	4.4	.368	4.2	4.6	.912
difference:	+2	+6.2	+10.8				+1.8				-1.2	+3.6	+8.6	+.033				+5.2	+7.2	+.110
Jerry West	18	46.1	31.2	-	-	3.7	8.4	-	-	-	3.1	10.9	23.2	.469	-	-	-	9.4	11.8	.802

Season 11
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2006-07	1970-71
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Suns Lost West Conf Semis	Did Not Play

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11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	76	35.3	18.6	0.4	3.1	3.5	11.6	0.8	0.1	3.8	1.5	6.8	12.8	.532	2.1	4.5	.455	2.9	3.3	.899
difference:	+7	+5.9	+8.3			+1.1	+2.1				-1.1	+2.9	+6.8	+.038				+4.7	+5.8	+.067
Jerry West	69	41.2	26.9	-	-	4.6	9.5	-	-	-	2.6	9.7	19.6	.494	-	-	-	7.6	9.1	.832
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	11	37.5	18.9	0.4	2.8	3.2	13.3	0.4	0.1	4.4	1.9	6.7	14.5	.463	1.7	3.5	.487	3.7	4.2	.891
Jerry West	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 12
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2007-08	1971-72
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	All-NBA Second Team	-
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	-	Assists Leader
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
	-	All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs	Suns Lost West Conf 1st Rd	NBA Champion

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12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	81	34.3	16.9	0.3	3.1	3.5	11.1	0.7	0.1	3.6	1.4	6.0	11.9	.504	2.2	4.7	.470	2.7	3.0	.906
difference:	+4	+4.3	+8.9			+0.7	+1.4				-1.3	+3.5	+8.1	+.027				+4.0	+5.2	+.092
Jerry West	77	38.6	25.8	-	-	4.2	9.7	-	-	-	2.7	9.5	20.0	.477	-	-	-	6.7	8.2	.814
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	5	36.6	16.2	0.2	2.6	2.8	7.8	0.4	0.2	2.4	2.0	6.4	14.0	.457	1.2	4.0	.300	2.2	2.4	.917
difference:	+10	+3.9	+6.7			+2.1	+1.1				-0.6	+2.1	+8.7	+.081				+3.7	+4.7	+.087
Jerry West	15	40.5	22.9	-	-	4.9	8.9	-	-	-	2.6	8.5	22.7	.376	-	-	-	5.9	7.1	.830

Season 13
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2008-09	1972-73
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	-	All-Defensive First Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Lakers Lost NBA Finals

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13th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	74	33.6	15.7	0.3	2.8	3.0	9.7	0.7	0.1	3.4	1.5	5.8	11.5	.503	1.5	3.3	.439	2.6	2.8	.933
difference:	+5	+2.1	+7.1			+1.2	+0.9				-0.5	+3.2	+7.2	+.024				+2.3	+3.3	+.128
Jerry West	69	35.7	22.8	-	-	4.2	8.8	-	-	-	2.0	9.0	18.7	.479	-	-	-	4.9	6.1	.805
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Jerry West	17	37.5	23.6	-	-	4.5	7.8	-	-	-	2.9	8.9	19.8	.449	-	-	-	5.8	7.5	.780

Season 14
	Steve Nash	Jerry West
Season	2009-10	1973-74
Team	Phoenix Suns	Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	Assists Leader	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Suns Lost West Conf Finals	Lakers Lost West Conf Semis

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14th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	81	32.8	16.5	0.4	2.9	3.3	11.0	0.5	0.1	3.6	1.3	6.2	12.2	.507	1.5	3.6	.426	2.6	2.8	.938
difference:	+50	+1.6	+3.8	+0.6	+0.1	+0.4	+4.4	+2.1	+0.6		-1.3	+1.3	+4.5	+.060				+2.7	+3.6	+.105
Jerry West	31	31.2	20.3	1.0	2.8	3.7	6.6	2.6	0.7	-	2.6	7.5	16.7	.447	-	-	-	5.3	6.4	.833
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Steve Nash	16	33.7	17.8	0.4	2.9	3.3	10.1	0.3	0.1	3.8	1.3	6.2	11.9	.518	1.2	3.1	.380	4.2	4.7	.893
difference:	+15	+19.7	+13.8	+0.4	+0.9	+1.3	+9.1	+0.3	+0.1		-0.3	+4.2	+2.9	+.296				+4.2	+4.7
Jerry West	1	14.0	4.0	0.0	2.0	2.0	1.0	0.0	0.0	-	1.0	2.0	9.0	.222	-	-	-	0.0	0.0	-

Additional Years
* Steve Nash played 4 seasons more than Jerry West in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 15 to 18, from 2011 to 2014—Steve Nash played in one postseason. In those 4 extra years over Jerry West, Steve Nash got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	1 Assists Leader 1 All-Star Game