LeBron James vs. Tom Sanders Comparison

Head-to-head comparison between the NBA stars Tom Sanders and LeBron James that includes championships won, honors and awards obtained, regular season and playoffs stats and other data put side by side.

Who scored more points in his career? Who averaged more points in playoffs? Who won more championships? Who led the season more times? Who won more MVP awards? These questions and many more, are answered here. It includes NBA Championships, seasons, playoffs, awards, statistical data for points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks and percentages.

Head-To-Head Career Comparison

LeBron James

vs.

Tom Sanders

NBA Timeline:	1946-47 2023-24
LeBron James: 2003-04 to 2023-24
Tom Sanders: 1960-61 to 1972-73

NBA Championships and Seasons

NBA Championships LeBron James 4 Tom Sanders 8

NBA Seasons LeBron James 21 Tom Sanders 13

Playoffs Played LeBron James 17 Tom Sanders 11

NBA Cups Won LeBron James 1 * Tom Sanders 0 *

All-Star Games LeBron James 20 Tom Sanders 0

Honors and Awards

Season MVP LeBron James 4 Tom Sanders 0

Finals MVP LeBron James 4 Tom Sanders 0 *

All-NBA First Team LeBron James 13 Tom Sanders 0

All-NBA Teams (Total Selections) LeBron James 19 Tom Sanders 0

All-Defensive 1st Team LeBron James 5 Tom Sanders 0 *

All-Defensive Teams (Total Selections) LeBron James 6 Tom Sanders 1

Scoring Leader LeBron James 1 Tom Sanders 0

Assists Leader LeBron James 1 Tom Sanders 0

Rookie of The Year LeBron James 1 Tom Sanders 0

In-Season Tournament MVP LeBron James 1 * Tom Sanders 0 *

In-Season Tournament 1st Team LeBron James 1 * Tom Sanders 0 *

* Notes: In-Season Tournament (NBA Cup) played since 2023-24. Finals MVP and Defensive Teams awarded since 1968-69.

NBA Regular Season Stats

Stats Per Game

Points Per Game LeBron James 27.1 Tom Sanders 9.6

Rebounds Per Game LeBron James 7.5 Tom Sanders 6.3

Assists Per Game LeBron James 7.4 Tom Sanders 1.1

Steals Per Game LeBron James 1.5 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Blocks Per Game LeBron James 0.7 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Totals Stats

Total Points LeBron James 40,474 Tom Sanders 8,766

Total Rebounds LeBron James 11,185 Tom Sanders 5,798

Total Assists LeBron James 11,009 Tom Sanders 1,026

Total Steals LeBron James 2,275 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Total Blocks LeBron James 1,111 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Total Games LeBron James 1,492 Tom Sanders 916

Percentages

Field Goal Percentage LeBron James .506 Tom Sanders .428

3-Point Percentage LeBron James .348 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Free Throw Percentage LeBron James .736 Tom Sanders .767

Best Season (no game minimum)

Points Per Game LeBron James 31.4 (2006) Tom Sanders 12.6 (1966)

Rebounds Per Game LeBron James 8.6 (2018) Tom Sanders 9.5 (1962)

Assists Per Game LeBron James 10.2 (2020) Tom Sanders 1.6 (1970)

Steals Per Game LeBron James 2.2 (2005) Tom Sanders - n/a **

Blocks Per Game LeBron James 1.1 (2009) Tom Sanders - n/a **

NBA Playoffs Stats

Stats Per Game

Points Per Game LeBron James 28.4 Tom Sanders 8.8

Rebounds Per Game LeBron James 9.0 Tom Sanders 5.8

Assists Per Game LeBron James 7.2 Tom Sanders 1.0

Steals Per Game LeBron James 1.7 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Blocks Per Game LeBron James 1.0 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Totals Stats

Total Points LeBron James 8,076 Tom Sanders 1,142

Total Rebounds LeBron James 2,563 Tom Sanders 760

Total Assists LeBron James 2,043 Tom Sanders 127

Total Steals LeBron James 474 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Total Blocks LeBron James 273 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Total Games LeBron James 284 Tom Sanders 130

Percentages

Field Goal Percentage LeBron James .496 Tom Sanders .436

3-Point Percentage LeBron James .333 Tom Sanders - n/a **

Free Throw Percentage LeBron James .741 Tom Sanders .716

Best Playoffs (no game minimum)

Points Per Game LeBron James 35.3 (2009) Tom Sanders 13.5 (1966)

Rebounds Per Game LeBron James 11.3 (2015) Tom Sanders 8.5 (1965)

Assists Per Game LeBron James 10.0 (2024) Tom Sanders 1.6 (1966)

Steals Per Game LeBron James 2.3 (2016) Tom Sanders - n/a **

Blocks Per Game LeBron James 1.8 (2010) Tom Sanders - n/a **

Notes: ** Blocks and steals started to be recorded in 1973-74, this player has no data for the stat. Three-point shots were implemented in 1979-80, this player has no data for the stat.