Cross-era · careers 15 years apart

Larry Bird vs Tom Heinsohn

Larry Bird 1979-1991 · Forward Tom Heinsohn 1956-1964 · Forward

Larry Bird (1979-1991) and Tom Heinsohn (1956-1964) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 15 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Larry Bird was the higher-volume scorer (24.3 points per game to 18.6); adjusted for era they scored at 2.32× and 1.61× their league average respectively; Larry Bird was the more efficient scorer (56.5% true shooting to 45.9%). Larry Bird holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 3 championships, 2 Finals MVPs and the #10 all-time ranking to Tom Heinsohn's #47.

Career averages

Larry BirdStatTom Heinsohn
24.3 Points / game 18.6
10.0 Rebounds / game 8.8
6.3 Assists / game 2.0
1.7 Steals / game 0.0
0.8 Blocks / game 0.0
49.4% Field goal % 40.4%
34.6% 3-point % 0.0%
88.5% Free throw % 79.1%
56.5% True shooting % 45.9%
897 Games played 654

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Larry BirdStatTom Heinsohn
2.32× Points vs era avg 1.61×
2.38× Rebounds vs era avg 1.40×
2.56× Assists vs era avg 0.91×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Larry Bird's era.

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Tom Heinsohn's era.

Playoff averages

Larry BirdStatTom Heinsohn
23.7 Points / game 19.8
10.3 Rebounds / game 9.2
6.5 Assists / game 2.1
1.8 Steals / game 0.0
0.9 Blocks / game 0.0
47.1% Field goal % 39.9%
31.6% 3-point % 0.0%
88.5% Free throw % 73.6%
164 Playoff games 104

Accolades

Larry BirdStatTom Heinsohn
3 MVP awards 0
2 Finals MVP 0
3 Championships 8
10 All-Star selections 5
9 All-NBA 1st Team 0
#10 All-time GOAT rank #47

More comparisons

Want a different matchup? Use the interactive comparison tool.