Hakeem Olajuwon vs. John Thomas Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of John Thomas and Hakeem Olajuwon, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Games against each other

Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.

Hakeem Olajuwon played 18 years in the NBA, 13 more than John Thomas, who played 5. Hakeem Olajuwon had the first of his seasons in 1984-85, while John Thomas had his rookie season in 1997-98. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achivements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
Hakeem Olajuwon 18 15 1984-85 to 2001-02
John Thomas 5 2 1997-98 to 2005-06

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18

Rookie Season

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1984-851997-98
Team Houston RocketsBoston Celtics, Toronto Raptors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Rookie First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 82 35.5 20.6 5.4 6.5 11.9 1.4 1.2 2.7 2.9 4.2 8.3 15.3 .538 0.0 0.0 - 4.1 6.7 .613
John Thomas 54 9.9 2.8 0.9 1.1 2.0 0.3 0.4 0.2 0.9 1.8 1.0 2.1 .487 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.0 .759
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 5 37.4 21.2 6.6 6.4 13.0 1.4 1.4 2.6 2.2 4.4 8.4 17.6 .477 0.0 0.0 - 4.4 9.2 .478
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 2

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1985-861998-99
Team Houston RocketsToronto Raptors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost NBA FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 68 36.3 23.5 4.9 6.6 11.5 2.0 2.0 3.4 2.9 4.0 9.2 17.5 .526 0.0 0.0 - 5.1 7.9 .645
John Thomas 39 15.2 4.3 1.7 1.8 3.4 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.5 2.1 1.8 3.2 .577 0.0 0.0 .000 0.7 1.2 .563
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 20 38.3 26.9 5.1 6.8 11.8 2.0 2.0 3.5 2.2 4.4 10.3 19.4 .530 0.0 0.1 .000 6.4 10.0 .638
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 3

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1986-871999-00
Team Houston RocketsToronto Raptors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf SemisRaptors Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 75 36.8 23.4 4.2 7.2 11.4 2.9 1.9 3.4 3.0 3.9 9.0 17.8 .508 0.0 0.1 .200 5.3 7.6 .702
John Thomas 55 8.7 2.1 0.7 0.7 1.4 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3 1.9 0.9 1.9 .458 0.0 0.0 .000 0.3 0.7 .390
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 10 38.9 29.2 3.9 7.4 11.3 2.5 1.3 4.3 3.6 4.4 11.0 17.9 .615 0.0 0.1 .000 7.2 9.7 .742
John Thomas 1 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 -

Note: John Thomas didn't play in 2000-01, 2001-02, 2002-03 and 2003-04.

Season 4

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1987-882004-05
Team Houston RocketsMinnesota Timberwolves
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 79 35.8 22.8 3.8 8.3 12.1 2.1 2.1 2.7 3.1 4.1 9.0 17.5 .514 0.0 0.1 .000 4.8 6.9 .695
John Thomas 44 11.8 2.5 0.9 1.3 2.2 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4 1.9 1.0 2.0 .488 0.0 0.0 - 0.6 1.0 .587
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 4 40.5 37.5 5.0 11.8 16.8 1.8 2.3 2.8 2.3 3.5 14.0 24.5 .571 0.0 0.3 .000 9.5 10.8 .884
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 5

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1988-892005-06
Team Houston RocketsMemphis Grizzlies, Atlanta Hawks, New Jersey Nets
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdNets Lost East Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 82 36.9 24.8 4.1 9.4 13.5 1.8 2.6 3.4 3.4 4.0 9.6 19.0 .508 0.0 0.1 .000 5.5 8.0 .696
John Thomas 16 7.9 0.9 0.6 0.6 1.3 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.5 1.1 0.4 0.9 .400 0.0 0.0 - 0.2 0.3 .750
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 4 40.5 25.3 3.5 9.5 13.0 3.0 2.5 2.8 2.5 4.3 10.5 20.3 .519 0.0 0.0 - 4.3 6.3 .680
John Thomas 8 7.0 0.9 0.5 0.8 1.3 0.3 0.4 0.1 0.6 1.9 0.4 0.8 .500 0.0 0.0 - 0.1 0.3 .500

Season 6

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1989-90-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement Rebounds Leader-
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 82 38.1 24.3 3.6 10.4 14.0 2.9 2.1 4.6 3.9 3.8 9.8 19.6 .501 0.0 0.1 .167 4.7 6.5 .713
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 4 40.3 18.5 3.8 7.8 11.5 2.0 2.5 5.8 2.8 4.8 7.8 17.5 .443 0.0 0.0 - 3.0 4.3 .706
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 7

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1990-91-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 56 36.8 21.2 3.9 9.8 13.8 2.3 2.2 3.9 3.1 3.9 8.7 17.1 .508 0.0 0.1 .000 3.8 4.9 .769
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 3 43.0 22.0 4.0 10.7 14.7 2.0 1.3 2.7 2.7 3.7 8.7 15.0 .578 0.0 0.3 .000 4.7 5.7 .824
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 8

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1991-92-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 70 37.7 21.6 3.5 8.6 12.1 2.2 1.8 4.3 2.7 3.8 8.4 16.8 .502 0.0 0.0 .000 4.7 6.1 .766
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon ------- --- ----------
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 9

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1992-93-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement Defensive Player of the Year-
Achievement Blocks Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 82 39.5 26.1 3.5 9.6 13.0 3.5 1.8 4.2 3.2 3.7 10.3 19.5 .529 0.0 0.1 .000 5.4 7.0 .779
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 12 43.2 25.7 4.3 9.7 14.0 4.8 1.8 4.9 3.8 3.1 10.3 19.8 .517 0.0 0.1 .000 5.2 6.3 .827
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 10

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1993-94-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
Achievement Defensive Player of the Year-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA Champion-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 80 41.0 27.3 2.9 9.1 11.9 3.6 1.6 3.7 3.4 3.6 11.2 21.2 .528 0.1 0.2 .421 4.9 6.8 .716
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 23 43.0 28.9 2.4 8.7 11.0 4.3 1.7 4.0 3.6 3.6 11.6 22.3 .519 0.1 0.2 .500 5.6 7.0 .795
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 11

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1994-95-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA Champion-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 72 39.6 27.8 2.4 8.4 10.8 3.5 1.8 3.4 3.3 3.5 11.1 21.5 .517 0.0 0.2 .188 5.6 7.5 .756
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 22 42.2 33.0 2.0 8.3 10.3 4.5 1.2 2.8 3.1 4.3 13.9 26.2 .531 0.1 0.2 .500 5.0 7.4 .681
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 12

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1995-96-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 72 38.8 26.9 2.4 8.4 10.9 3.6 1.6 2.9 3.4 3.4 10.7 20.8 .514 0.0 0.2 .214 5.5 7.6 .724
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 8 41.1 22.4 2.1 7.0 9.1 3.9 1.9 2.1 3.6 3.5 9.4 18.4 .510 0.0 0.1 .000 3.6 5.0 .725
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 13

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1996-97-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf Finals-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 78 36.6 23.2 2.2 7.0 9.2 3.0 1.5 2.2 3.6 3.2 9.3 18.3 .510 0.1 0.2 .313 4.5 5.7 .787
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 16 39.4 23.1 2.9 8.0 10.9 3.4 2.1 2.6 2.9 3.8 9.2 15.6 .590 0.0 0.2 .000 4.8 6.5 .731
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 14

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1997-98-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 47 34.7 16.4 2.5 7.3 9.8 3.0 1.8 2.0 2.7 3.2 6.5 13.5 .483 0.0 0.1 .000 3.4 4.5 .755
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 5 38.0 20.4 1.8 9.0 10.8 2.4 1.0 3.2 2.6 3.6 7.8 19.8 .394 0.0 0.2 .000 4.8 6.6 .727
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 15

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1998-99-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st Rd-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 50 35.7 18.9 2.1 7.4 9.6 1.8 1.6 2.5 2.8 3.2 7.5 14.5 .514 0.1 0.3 .308 3.9 5.4 .717
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 4 31.0 13.3 1.3 6.0 7.3 0.5 1.3 0.8 1.3 4.5 5.8 13.5 .426 0.0 0.0 - 1.8 2.0 .875
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 16

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 1999-00-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 44 23.8 10.3 1.5 4.8 6.2 1.4 0.9 1.6 1.7 2.0 4.4 9.6 .458 0.0 0.0 .000 1.6 2.5 .616
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon ------- --- ----------
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 17

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 2000-01-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 58 26.6 11.9 2.1 5.3 7.4 1.2 1.2 1.5 1.4 2.4 4.9 9.8 .498 0.0 0.0 .000 2.1 3.4 .621
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon ------- --- ----------
John Thomas ------- --- ----------

Season 18

Hakeem Olajuwon John Thomas
Season 2001-02-
Team Toronto Raptors-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Raptors Lost East Conf 1st Rd-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 61 22.6 7.1 1.6 4.4 6.0 1.1 1.2 1.5 1.6 2.4 3.2 6.9 .464 0.0 0.0 .000 0.8 1.4 .560
John Thomas ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Hakeem Olajuwon 5 17.2 5.6 1.8 2.0 3.8 0.4 1.4 0.8 1.2 1.8 2.4 4.4 .545 0.0 0.0 - 0.8 1.2 .667
John Thomas ------- --- ----------