John Havlicek vs Isiah Thomas
John Havlicek (1962-1977) and Isiah Thomas (1981-1993) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 4 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, John Havlicek was the higher-volume scorer (20.8 points per game to 19.2); adjusted for era they scored at 1.89× and 1.85× their league average respectively; Isiah Thomas was the more efficient scorer (51.6% true shooting to 49.2%). John Havlicek holds the edge on accolades — 8 championships, 1 Finals MVP and the #11 all-time ranking to Isiah Thomas's #36.
Career averages
| John Havlicek | Stat | Isiah Thomas |
|---|---|---|
| 20.8 | Points / game | 19.2 |
| 6.3 | Rebounds / game | 3.6 |
| 4.8 | Assists / game | 9.3 |
| 0.4 | Steals / game | 1.9 |
| 0.1 | Blocks / game | 0.3 |
| 43.9% | Field goal % | 45.2% |
| 0.0% | 3-point % | 29.0% |
| 81.3% | Free throw % | 75.9% |
| 49.2% | True shooting % | 51.6% |
| 1,270 | Games played | 979 |
Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)
| John Havlicek | Stat | Isiah Thomas |
|---|---|---|
| 1.89× | Points vs era avg | 1.85× |
| 1.17× | Rebounds vs era avg | 0.86× |
| 2.14× | Assists vs era avg | 3.80× |
Advanced metrics
Advanced stats weren't tracked in John Havlicek's era.
Advanced stats weren't tracked in Isiah Thomas's era.
Playoff averages
| John Havlicek | Stat | Isiah Thomas |
|---|---|---|
| 22.0 | Points / game | 20.4 |
| 6.9 | Rebounds / game | 4.7 |
| 4.8 | Assists / game | 8.9 |
| 0.3 | Steals / game | 2.1 |
| 0.1 | Blocks / game | 0.3 |
| 43.5% | Field goal % | 43.8% |
| 0.0% | 3-point % | 32.3% |
| 82.7% | Free throw % | 77.0% |
| 172 | Playoff games | 111 |
Accolades
| John Havlicek | Stat | Isiah Thomas |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | MVP awards | 0 |
| 1 | Finals MVP | 1 |
| 8 | Championships | 2 |
| 13 | All-Star selections | 11 |
| 4 | All-NBA 1st Team | 3 |
| #11 | All-time GOAT rank | #36 |
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