Tom Heinsohn vs Magic Johnson
Tom Heinsohn (1956-1964) and Magic Johnson (1979-1995) 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, Magic Johnson was the higher-volume scorer (19.6 points per game to 18.6); adjusted for era they scored at 1.61× and 1.86× their league average respectively; Magic Johnson was the more efficient scorer (61.0% true shooting to 45.9%). Magic Johnson holds the edge on accolades — 3 MVPs, 5 championships, 3 Finals MVPs and the #7 all-time ranking to Tom Heinsohn's #47.
Career averages
| Tom Heinsohn | Stat | Magic Johnson |
|---|---|---|
| 18.6 | Points / game | 19.6 |
| 8.8 | Rebounds / game | 7.2 |
| 2.0 | Assists / game | 11.2 |
| 0.0 | Steals / game | 1.9 |
| 0.0 | Blocks / game | 0.4 |
| 40.4% | Field goal % | 52.0% |
| 0.0% | 3-point % | 22.9% |
| 79.1% | Free throw % | 84.3% |
| 45.9% | True shooting % | 61.0% |
| 654 | Games played | 906 |
Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)
| Tom Heinsohn | Stat | Magic Johnson |
|---|---|---|
| 1.61× | Points vs era avg | 1.86× |
| 1.40× | Rebounds vs era avg | 1.72× |
| 0.91× | Assists vs era avg | 4.52× |
Advanced metrics
Advanced stats weren't tracked in Tom Heinsohn's era.
Advanced stats weren't tracked in Magic Johnson's era.
Playoff averages
| Tom Heinsohn | Stat | Magic Johnson |
|---|---|---|
| 19.8 | Points / game | 19.5 |
| 9.2 | Rebounds / game | 7.7 |
| 2.1 | Assists / game | 12.3 |
| 0.0 | Steals / game | 1.9 |
| 0.0 | Blocks / game | 0.3 |
| 39.9% | Field goal % | 50.6% |
| 0.0% | 3-point % | 18.5% |
| 73.6% | Free throw % | 83.6% |
| 104 | Playoff games | 190 |
Accolades
| Tom Heinsohn | Stat | Magic Johnson |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | MVP awards | 3 |
| 0 | Finals MVP | 3 |
| 8 | Championships | 5 |
| 5 | All-Star selections | 11 |
| 0 | All-NBA 1st Team | 9 |
| #47 | All-time GOAT rank | #7 |
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