John Havlicek vs. Nate Thurmond Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Nate Thurmond and John Havlicek, 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.

John Havlicek played 16 years in the NBA, 2 more than Nate Thurmond, who played 14. John Havlicek had the first of his seasons in 1962-63, while Nate Thurmond had his rookie season in 1963-64. 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
John Havlicek 16 13 1962-63 to 1977-78
Nate Thurmond 14 9 1963-64 to 1976-77

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16

Rookie Season

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1962-631963-64
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionWarriors Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 80 27.5 14.3 - - 6.7 2.2 - - - 2.4 6.0 13.6 .445 - - - 2.2 3.0 .728
Nate Thurmond 76 25.9 7.0 - - 10.4 1.1 - - - 2.4 2.9 7.3 .395 - - - 1.3 2.3 .549
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 11 23.1 11.8 - - 4.8 1.5 - - - 2.5 5.1 11.4 .448 - - - 1.6 2.5 .667
Nate Thurmond 12 34.2 10.0 - - 12.3 0.8 - - - 3.8 3.5 8.0 .438 - - - 3.0 4.4 .679

Season 2

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1963-641964-65
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 80 32.3 19.9 - - 5.4 3.0 - - - 2.8 8.0 19.2 .417 - - - 3.9 5.3 .746
Nate Thurmond 77 41.2 16.5 - - 18.1 2.0 - - - 3.0 6.7 16.1 .419 - - - 3.1 4.6 .658
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 10 28.9 15.7 - - 4.3 3.2 - - - 2.6 6.1 15.9 .384 - - - 3.5 4.4 .795
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------

Season 3

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1964-651965-66
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 75 28.9 18.3 - - 4.9 2.7 - - - 2.7 7.6 18.9 .401 - - - 3.1 4.2 .744
Nate Thurmond 73 39.6 16.3 - - 18.0 1.5 - - - 3.1 6.2 15.3 .406 - - - 3.8 5.9 .654
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 12 33.8 18.5 - - 7.3 2.4 - - - 3.7 7.3 20.8 .352 - - - 3.8 4.6 .836
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------

Season 4

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1965-661966-67
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionWarriors Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 71 30.6 18.8 - - 6.0 3.0 - - - 2.2 7.5 18.7 .399 - - - 3.9 4.9 .785
Nate Thurmond 65 42.5 18.7 - - 21.3 2.6 - - - 2.8 7.2 16.4 .437 - - - 4.3 6.8 .629
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 17 42.3 23.6 - - 9.1 4.1 - - - 4.1 9.0 22.0 .409 - - - 5.6 6.6 .841
Nate Thurmond 15 46.0 15.9 - - 23.1 3.1 - - - 3.5 6.2 14.3 .433 - - - 3.5 6.1 .571

Season 5

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1966-671967-68
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics 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 %
John Havlicek 81 32.1 21.4 - - 6.6 3.4 - - - 2.6 8.4 19.0 .444 - - - 4.5 5.4 .828
Nate Thurmond 51 43.6 20.5 - - 22.0 4.2 - - - 2.7 7.5 18.2 .411 - - - 5.5 8.6 .644
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 9 36.7 27.4 - - 8.1 3.1 - - - 3.3 10.6 23.6 .448 - - - 6.3 7.9 .803
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------

Season 6

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1967-681968-69
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionWarriors Lost West Div Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 82 35.6 20.7 - - 6.7 4.7 - - - 2.9 8.1 18.9 .429 - - - 4.5 5.5 .812
Nate Thurmond 71 45.2 21.5 - - 19.7 3.6 - - - 2.4 8.0 19.6 .410 - - - 5.4 8.7 .615
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 19 45.4 25.9 - - 8.6 7.5 - - - 3.5 9.7 21.4 .452 - - - 6.6 7.9 .828
Nate Thurmond 6 43.8 16.7 - - 19.5 4.7 - - - 3.0 6.7 17.0 .392 - - - 3.3 5.7 .588

Season 7

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1968-691969-70
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 82 38.7 21.6 - - 7.0 5.4 - - - 3.0 8.4 20.8 .405 - - - 4.7 6.0 .780
Nate Thurmond 43 44.6 21.9 - - 17.7 3.5 - - - 2.6 7.9 19.2 .414 - - - 6.1 8.0 .754
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 18 47.2 25.4 - - 9.9 5.6 - - - 3.2 9.4 21.2 .445 - - - 6.6 7.7 .855
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------

Season 8

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1969-701970-71
Team Boston CelticsSan Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayWarriors Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 81 41.6 24.2 - - 7.8 6.8 - - - 2.6 9.1 19.6 .464 - - - 6.0 7.1 .844
Nate Thurmond 82 40.9 20.0 - - 13.8 3.1 - - - 2.3 7.6 17.1 .445 - - - 4.8 6.6 .730
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------
Nate Thurmond 5 38.4 17.6 - - 10.2 3.0 - - - 4.0 7.2 19.4 .371 - - - 3.2 4.0 .800

Season 9

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1970-711971-72
Team Boston CelticsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second TeamAchievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not PlayWarriors Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 81 45.4 28.9 - - 9.0 7.5 - - - 2.5 11.0 24.5 .450 - - - 6.8 8.4 .818
Nate Thurmond 78 43.1 21.4 - - 16.1 2.9 - - - 2.7 8.1 18.6 .432 - - - 5.3 7.2 .743
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------
Nate Thurmond 5 46.0 25.4 - - 17.8 5.2 - - - 2.4 10.6 24.4 .434 - - - 4.2 5.6 .750

Season 10

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1971-721972-73
Team Boston CelticsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsWarriors Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 82 45.1 27.5 - - 8.2 7.5 - - - 2.2 10.9 23.9 .458 - - - 5.6 6.7 .834
Nate Thurmond 79 43.3 17.1 - - 17.1 3.5 - - - 3.0 6.5 14.7 .446 - - - 4.0 5.6 .718
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 11 47.0 27.4 - - 8.4 6.4 - - - 3.2 9.8 21.4 .460 - - - 7.7 9.0 .859
Nate Thurmond 11 41.8 14.5 - - 13.2 3.6 - - - 2.7 5.8 14.6 .398 - - - 2.9 3.6 .800

Season 11

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1972-731973-74
Team Boston CelticsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 80 42.1 23.8 - - 7.1 6.6 - - - 2.4 9.6 21.3 .450 - - - 4.6 5.4 .858
Nate Thurmond 62 39.7 13.0 4.0 10.1 14.2 2.7 0.7 2.9 - 2.9 5.0 11.2 .444 - - - 3.1 4.6 .666
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 12 39.9 23.8 - - 5.2 5.4 - - - 2.0 9.3 19.6 .477 - - - 5.1 6.2 .824
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------

Season 12

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1973-741974-75
Team Boston CelticsChicago Bulls
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionBulls Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 76 40.7 22.6 1.8 4.6 6.4 5.9 1.3 0.4 - 2.6 9.0 19.8 .456 - - - 4.6 5.5 .832
Nate Thurmond 80 34.5 7.9 3.2 8.1 11.3 4.1 0.6 2.4 - 3.4 3.1 8.6 .364 - - - 1.7 2.8 .589
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 18 45.1 27.1 1.6 4.9 6.4 6.0 1.3 0.3 - 2.4 11.1 22.8 .484 - - - 4.9 5.6 .881
Nate Thurmond 13 19.5 3.5 1.8 4.8 6.7 2.4 0.4 1.6 - 2.8 1.1 2.9 .368 - - - 1.4 2.8 .486

Season 13

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1974-751975-76
Team Boston CelticsChicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsCavaliers 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 %
John Havlicek 82 38.2 19.2 1.9 4.0 5.9 5.3 1.3 0.2 - 2.8 7.8 17.2 .455 - - - 3.5 4.0 .870
Nate Thurmond 78 17.9 4.4 1.5 3.8 5.3 1.2 0.3 1.3 - 2.1 1.8 4.3 .421 - - - 0.8 1.6 .504
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 11 42.2 21.1 1.6 3.5 5.2 4.6 1.5 0.1 - 3.5 7.5 17.5 .432 - - - 6.0 6.9 .868
Nate Thurmond 13 28.8 6.7 2.9 6.1 9.0 2.2 0.5 2.2 - 4.0 2.8 6.1 .468 - - - 1.0 2.5 .406

Season 14

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1975-761976-77
Team Boston CelticsCleveland Cavaliers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionCavaliers 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 %
John Havlicek 76 34.2 17.0 1.5 2.6 4.1 3.7 1.3 0.4 - 2.7 6.6 14.8 .450 - - - 3.7 4.4 .844
Nate Thurmond 49 20.3 5.5 2.5 5.2 7.6 1.7 0.3 1.7 - 2.6 2.0 5.0 .407 - - - 1.4 2.2 .642
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 15 33.7 13.2 1.2 2.5 3.7 3.4 0.8 0.3 - 2.1 5.3 12.0 .444 - - - 2.5 3.1 .809
Nate Thurmond 1 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 - 0.0 0.0 0.0 - - - - 0.0 0.0 -

Season 15

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1976-77-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 79 36.9 17.7 1.4 3.5 4.8 5.1 1.1 0.2 - 2.6 7.3 16.2 .452 - - - 3.0 3.6 .816
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek 9 41.7 18.3 1.7 3.8 5.4 6.9 0.9 0.4 - 3.7 6.9 18.6 .371 - - - 4.6 5.6 .820
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------

Season 16

John Havlicek Nate Thurmond
Season 1977-78-
Team Boston Celtics-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
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 %
John Havlicek 82 34.1 16.1 1.1 2.9 4.0 4.0 1.1 0.3 2.5 2.3 6.7 14.8 .449 - - - 2.8 3.3 .855
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------
Nate Thurmond ------- --- ----------