Cross-era · careers 23 years apart

Dennis Johnson vs Damian Lillard

Dennis Johnson 1976-1989 · Guard Damian Lillard 2012-2025 · Guard · active

Dennis Johnson (1976-1989) and Damian Lillard (2012-2025) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 23 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Damian Lillard was the higher-volume scorer (25.1 points per game to 14.1); adjusted for era they scored at 1.34× and 2.48× their league average respectively; Damian Lillard was the more efficient scorer (59.0% true shooting to 51.1%). Dennis Johnson holds the edge on accolades — 3 championships, 1 Finals MVP and the #59 all-time ranking to Damian Lillard's #69.

Career averages

Dennis JohnsonStatDamian Lillard
14.1 Points / game 25.1
3.9 Rebounds / game 4.3
5.0 Assists / game 6.8
1.3 Steals / game 1.0
0.6 Blocks / game 0.3
44.6% Field goal % 43.8%
13.3% 3-point % 37.1%
80.0% Free throw % 89.5%
51.1% True shooting % 59.0%
1,100 Games played 900

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Dennis JohnsonStatDamian Lillard
1.34× Points vs era avg 2.48×
0.89× Rebounds vs era avg 1.03×
2.00× Assists vs era avg 2.99×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Dennis Johnson's era.

Dennis JohnsonStatDamian Lillard
— Offensive rating 114.2
— Defensive rating 110.3
— Net rating 4.0
— Usage % 0.3%
— Assist % 0.3%
— Rebound % 0.1%

Playoff averages

Dennis JohnsonStatDamian Lillard
17.3 Points / game 25.2
4.3 Rebounds / game 4.4
5.6 Assists / game 6.1
1.4 Steals / game 1.2
0.6 Blocks / game 0.3
43.6% Field goal % 40.5%
18.5% 3-point % 35.5%
80.1% Free throw % 88.9%
180 Playoff games 68

Accolades

Dennis JohnsonStatDamian Lillard
0 MVP awards 0
1 Finals MVP 0
3 Championships 0
5 All-Star selections 8
1 All-NBA 1st Team 1
#59 All-time GOAT rank #69

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