Yao Ming vs. Russell Westbrook Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Russell Westbrook and Yao Ming, 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.

Yao Ming played 8 years in the NBA, 9 less than Russell Westbrook, who played 17. Yao Ming had the first of his seasons in 2002-03, while Russell Westbrook had his rookie season in 2008-09. 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
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2002-03	2008-09
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	All-Rookie First Team	All-Rookie First Team
	All-Star Game	-
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		%
Yao Ming	82	29.0	13.5	2.4	5.8	8.2	1.7	0.4	1.8	2.1	2.8	4.9	9.8	.498	0.0	0.0	-	3.7	4.5	.811
difference:		+3.5	+1.8	+0.2	+3.1	+3.3	+3.6	+0.9	+1.6	-1.2	-0.5	+0.4	+3.6	+.100	+0.4	+1.6		+0.6	+0.7	+.004
Russell Westbrook	82	32.5	15.3	2.2	2.7	4.9	5.3	1.3	0.2	3.3	2.3	5.3	13.4	.398	0.4	1.6	.271	4.3	5.2	.815
Playoffs Stats
* Neiher Yao Ming nor Russell Westbrook played in the postseason in their season 1

Season 2
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2003-04	2009-10
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Third Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Thunder Lost West Conf 1st Rd

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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		%
Yao Ming	82	32.8	17.5	2.4	6.6	9.0	1.5	0.3	1.9	2.5	3.3	6.5	12.5	.522	0.0	0.0	-	4.4	5.4	.809
difference:		+1.5	+1.4	+0.7	+3.5	+4.1	+6.5	+1.0	+1.5	-0.8	-0.8	+0.6	+1.6	+.104	+0.3	+1.3		+0.4	+0.3	+.029
Russell Westbrook	82	34.3	16.1	1.7	3.1	4.9	8.0	1.3	0.4	3.3	2.5	5.9	14.1	.418	0.3	1.3	.221	4.0	5.1	.780
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Yao Ming	5	37.6	15.0	2.2	5.2	7.4	1.8	0.4	1.4	2.6	4.0	6.2	13.6	.456	0.0	0.0	-	2.6	3.4	.765
difference:	+1	+2.3	+5.5	+0.5	+0.9	+1.4	+4.2	+1.3	+1.2	-0.3	-1.8	+1.0	+1.6	+.017	+0.8	+2.0		+2.7	+2.9	+.077
Russell Westbrook	6	35.3	20.5	1.7	4.3	6.0	6.0	1.7	0.2	2.3	2.2	7.2	15.2	.473	0.8	2.0	.417	5.3	6.3	.842

Season 3
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2004-05	2010-11
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Thunder Lost West Conf 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		%
Yao Ming	80	30.6	18.3	2.6	5.8	8.4	0.8	0.4	2.0	2.5	3.7	6.7	12.2	.552	0.0	0.0	-	4.9	6.2	.783
difference:	+2	+4.1	+3.6	+1.1	+2.7	+3.8	+7.4	+1.5	+1.6	-1.4	-1.2	+0.8	+4.8	+.110	+0.4	+1.3		+1.6	+1.5	+.059
Russell Westbrook	82	34.7	21.9	1.5	3.1	4.6	8.2	1.9	0.4	3.9	2.5	7.5	17.0	.442	0.4	1.3	.330	6.5	7.7	.842
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Yao Ming	7	31.9	21.4	3.3	4.4	7.7	0.7	0.3	2.7	2.7	4.4	7.9	12.0	.655	0.0	0.0	-	5.7	7.9	.727
difference:	+10	+5.6	+2.4	+1.2	+1.2	+2.3	+5.7	+1.1	+2.3	-1.9	-1.1		+8.2	+.261	+0.8	+2.8		+1.4	+0.5	+.125
Russell Westbrook	17	37.5	23.8	2.1	3.2	5.4	6.4	1.4	0.4	4.6	3.3	7.9	20.2	.394	0.8	2.8	.292	7.1	8.4	.852

Season 4
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2005-06	2011-12
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA Second Team
	All-NBA Third Team	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Thunder Lost NBA Finals

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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		%
Yao Ming	57	34.2	22.3	2.6	7.6	10.2	1.5	0.5	1.6	2.6	3.4	8.2	15.8	.519	0.0	0.0	-	5.9	6.9	.853
difference:	+9	+1.1	+1.3	+1.1	+4.5	+5.6	+4.0	+1.2	+1.3	-1.0	-1.2	+0.6	+3.4	+.062	+0.9	+3.0		+0.7	+0.6	+.030
Russell Westbrook	66	35.3	23.6	1.5	3.1	4.6	5.5	1.7	0.3	3.6	2.2	8.8	19.2	.457	0.9	3.0	.316	5.2	6.3	.823
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Russell Westbrook	20	38.4	23.1	1.1	4.4	5.5	5.9	1.6	0.4	2.3	2.5	8.9	20.4	.435	0.9	3.3	.277	4.5	5.6	.802

Season 5
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2006-07	2012-13
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	All-NBA Second Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Thunder Lost West Conf Semis

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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		%
Yao Ming	48	33.8	25.0	2.1	7.3	9.4	2.0	0.4	2.0	3.5	3.3	8.8	17.1	.516	0.0	0.0	-	7.4	8.6	.862
difference:	+34	+1.1	+1.8	+0.7	+3.4	+4.2	+5.4	+1.4	+1.7	-0.2	-1.0	+0.6	+1.6	+.078	+1.2	+3.7		+1.8	+1.6	+.062
Russell Westbrook	82	34.9	23.2	1.4	3.9	5.2	7.4	1.8	0.3	3.3	2.3	8.2	18.7	.438	1.2	3.7	.323	5.6	7.0	.800
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Yao Ming	7	37.1	25.1	3.3	7.0	10.3	0.9	0.1	0.7	4.7	3.9	7.9	17.9	.440	0.0	0.0	-	9.4	10.7	.880
difference:	+5	+3.1	+1.1	+2.8	+1.0	+3.8	+6.1	+2.9	+0.7	-0.7	-1.4	+0.6	+2.6	+.025	+1.0	+4.5		+3.4	+3.7	+.023
Russell Westbrook	2	34.0	24.0	0.5	6.0	6.5	7.0	3.0	0.0	4.0	2.5	8.5	20.5	.415	1.0	4.5	.222	6.0	7.0	.857

Season 6
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2007-08	2013-14
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Third Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Thunder Lost West Conf 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		%
Yao Ming	55	37.2	22.0	3.1	7.7	10.8	2.3	0.5	2.0	3.3	3.1	7.9	15.5	.507	0.0	0.0	-	6.3	7.4	.850
difference:	+9	+6.5	+0.2	+1.9	+3.2	+5.1	+4.6	+1.4	+1.8	-0.5	-0.8	+0.4	+1.7	+.070	+1.5	+4.7		+1.0	+1.0	+.024
Russell Westbrook	46	30.7	21.8	1.2	4.5	5.7	6.9	1.9	0.2	3.8	2.3	7.5	17.2	.437	1.5	4.7	.318	5.3	6.4	.826
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Russell Westbrook	19	38.7	26.7	2.4	4.9	7.3	8.1	2.2	0.3	4.4	3.3	8.8	20.9	.420	1.5	5.3	.280	7.6	8.6	.884

Season 7
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2008-09	2014-15
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	All-NBA Second Team
	-	Scoring Leader
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
	-	All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs	Rockets Lost West Conf Semis	Did Not Play

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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		%
Yao Ming	77	33.6	19.7	2.6	7.2	9.9	1.8	0.4	1.9	3.0	3.3	7.4	13.4	.548	0.0	0.0	-	4.9	5.7	.866
difference:	+10	+0.8	+8.4	+0.7	+1.8	+2.6	+6.8	+1.7	+1.7	-1.4	-0.6	+2.0	+8.6	+.122	+1.3	+4.3		+3.2	+4.1	+.031
Russell Westbrook	67	34.4	28.1	1.9	5.4	7.3	8.6	2.1	0.2	4.4	2.7	9.4	22.0	.426	1.3	4.3	.299	8.1	9.8	.835
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Yao Ming	9	35.9	17.1	2.1	8.8	10.9	1.0	0.4	1.2	1.9	3.0	6.0	11.0	.545	0.0	0.0	-	5.1	5.7	.902
Russell Westbrook	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Note: Yao Ming didn't play in 2009-10.

Season 8
	Yao Ming	Russell Westbrook
Season	2010-11	2015-16
Team	Houston Rockets	Oklahoma City Thunder
Honors & Awards	-	All-NBA First Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
	-	All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Thunder Lost West Conf 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		%
Yao Ming	5	18.2	10.2	1.4	4.0	5.4	0.8	0.0	1.6	1.4	2.6	3.6	7.4	.486	0.0	0.0	-	3.0	3.2	.938
difference:	+75	+16.2	+13.3	+0.4	+2.0	+2.4	+9.6	+2.0	+1.3	-2.9	-0.1	+4.6	+10.7	+.032	+1.3	+4.3		+2.8	+4.0	+.126
Russell Westbrook	80	34.4	23.5	1.8	6.0	7.8	10.4	2.0	0.3	4.3	2.5	8.2	18.1	.454	1.3	4.3	.296	5.8	7.2	.812
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Yao Ming	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Russell Westbrook	18	37.4	26.0	2.3	4.6	6.9	11.0	2.6	0.1	4.3	2.4	8.8	21.8	.405	1.9	5.8	.324	6.4	7.8	.829

Additional Years
* Russell Westbrook played 9 seasons more than Yao Ming in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 9 to 17, from 2017 to 2025—Russell Westbrook played in 8 Playoffs. In those 9 extra years over Yao Ming, Russell Westbrook got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	1 Season MVP 1 All-NBA First Team 1 All-NBA Second Team 2 All-NBA Third Team 1 Scoring Leader 3 Assists Leader 4 All-Star Game