Larry Bird vs. John Havlicek Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of John Havlicek and Larry Bird, 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

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.

Larry Bird played 13 years in the NBA, 3 less than John Havlicek, who played 16. Larry Bird had the first of his seasons in 1979-80, while John Havlicek had his rookie season in 1962-63. 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
Larry Bird 13 12 1979-80 to 1991-92
John Havlicek 16 13 1962-63 to 1977-78

Comparison Season by Season

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

Rookie Season

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1979-801962-63
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
Achievement All-Rookie First TeamAchievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 82 36.0 21.3 2.6 7.8 10.4 4.5 1.7 0.6 3.2 3.4 8.5 17.8 .474 0.7 1.7 .406 3.7 4.4 .836
John Havlicek 80 27.5 14.3 - - 6.7 2.2 - - - 2.4 6.0 13.6 .445 - - - 2.2 3.0 .728
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 9 41.3 21.3 2.4 8.8 11.2 4.7 1.6 0.9 3.7 3.3 9.2 19.7 .469 0.4 1.7 .267 2.4 2.8 .880
John Havlicek 11 23.1 11.8 - - 4.8 1.5 - - - 2.5 5.1 11.4 .448 - - - 1.6 2.5 .667

Season 2

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1980-811963-64
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 82 39.5 21.2 2.3 8.6 10.9 5.5 2.0 0.8 3.5 2.9 8.8 18.3 .478 0.2 0.9 .270 3.5 4.0 .863
John Havlicek 80 32.3 19.9 - - 5.4 3.0 - - - 2.8 8.0 19.2 .417 - - - 3.9 5.3 .746
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 17 44.1 21.9 2.9 11.1 14.0 6.1 2.3 1.0 3.6 3.1 8.6 18.4 .470 0.2 0.5 .375 4.5 5.0 .894
John Havlicek 10 28.9 15.7 - - 4.3 3.2 - - - 2.6 6.1 15.9 .384 - - - 3.5 4.4 .795

Season 3

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1981-821964-65
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game NVP-
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 77 38.0 22.9 2.6 8.3 10.9 5.8 1.9 0.9 3.3 3.2 9.2 18.4 .503 0.1 0.7 .212 4.3 4.9 .863
John Havlicek 75 28.9 18.3 - - 4.9 2.7 - - - 2.7 7.6 18.9 .401 - - - 3.1 4.2 .744
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 12 40.8 17.8 2.8 9.8 12.5 5.6 1.9 1.4 3.2 3.6 7.3 17.2 .427 0.1 0.5 .167 3.1 3.8 .822
John Havlicek 12 33.8 18.5 - - 7.3 2.4 - - - 3.7 7.3 20.8 .352 - - - 3.8 4.6 .836

Season 4

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1982-831965-66
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 79 37.7 23.6 2.4 8.6 11.0 5.8 1.9 0.9 3.0 2.5 9.5 18.7 .504 0.3 1.0 .286 4.4 5.3 .840
John Havlicek 71 30.6 18.8 - - 6.0 3.0 - - - 2.2 7.5 18.7 .399 - - - 3.9 4.9 .785
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 6 40.0 20.5 3.3 9.2 12.5 6.8 2.2 0.5 3.2 2.5 8.2 19.3 .422 0.2 0.7 .250 4.0 4.8 .828
John Havlicek 17 42.3 23.6 - - 9.1 4.1 - - - 4.1 9.0 22.0 .409 - - - 5.6 6.6 .841

Season 5

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1983-841966-67
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionCeltics Lost East Div Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 79 38.3 24.2 2.3 7.8 10.1 6.6 1.8 0.9 3.0 2.5 9.6 19.5 .492 0.2 0.9 .247 4.7 5.3 .888
John Havlicek 81 32.1 21.4 - - 6.6 3.4 - - - 2.6 8.4 19.0 .444 - - - 4.5 5.4 .828
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 23 41.8 27.5 2.7 8.3 11.0 5.9 2.3 1.2 3.8 3.1 10.0 19.0 .524 0.3 0.7 .412 7.3 8.3 .879
John Havlicek 9 36.7 27.4 - - 8.1 3.1 - - - 3.3 10.6 23.6 .448 - - - 6.3 7.9 .803

Season 6

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1984-851967-68
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost NBA FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 80 39.5 28.7 2.1 8.5 10.5 6.6 1.6 1.2 3.1 2.6 11.5 22.0 .522 0.7 1.6 .427 5.0 5.7 .882
John Havlicek 82 35.6 20.7 - - 6.7 4.7 - - - 2.9 8.1 18.9 .429 - - - 4.5 5.5 .812
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 20 40.8 26.0 2.7 6.5 9.1 5.8 1.7 1.0 2.9 2.7 9.8 21.3 .461 0.4 1.3 .280 6.1 6.8 .890
John Havlicek 19 45.4 25.9 - - 8.6 7.5 - - - 3.5 9.7 21.4 .452 - - - 6.6 7.9 .828

Season 7

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1985-861968-69
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement Finals MVP-
Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 82 38.0 25.8 2.3 7.5 9.8 6.8 2.0 0.6 3.2 2.2 9.7 19.6 .496 1.0 2.4 .423 5.4 6.0 .896
John Havlicek 82 38.7 21.6 - - 7.0 5.4 - - - 3.0 8.4 20.8 .405 - - - 4.7 6.0 .780
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 18 42.8 25.9 1.9 7.4 9.3 8.2 2.1 0.6 2.6 3.1 9.5 18.4 .517 1.3 3.1 .411 5.6 6.1 .927
John Havlicek 18 47.2 25.4 - - 9.9 5.6 - - - 3.2 9.4 21.2 .445 - - - 6.6 7.7 .855

Season 8

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1986-871969-70
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics 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 %
Larry Bird 74 40.6 28.1 1.7 7.5 9.2 7.6 1.8 0.9 3.2 2.5 10.6 20.2 .525 1.2 3.0 .400 5.6 6.1 .910
John Havlicek 81 41.6 24.2 - - 7.8 6.8 - - - 2.6 9.1 19.6 .464 - - - 6.0 7.1 .844
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 23 44.1 27.0 1.8 8.3 10.0 7.2 1.2 0.8 3.1 2.4 9.4 19.7 .476 0.6 1.8 .341 7.7 8.4 .912
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------

Season 9

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1987-881970-71
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 76 39.0 29.9 1.4 7.8 9.3 6.1 1.6 0.8 2.8 2.1 11.6 22.0 .527 1.3 3.1 .414 5.5 6.0 .916
John Havlicek 81 45.4 28.9 - - 9.0 7.5 - - - 2.5 11.0 24.5 .450 - - - 6.8 8.4 .818
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 17 44.9 24.5 1.7 7.1 8.8 6.8 2.1 0.8 2.9 2.6 8.9 19.9 .450 0.7 1.9 .375 5.9 6.6 .894
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------

Season 10

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1988-891971-72
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayCeltics Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 6 31.5 19.3 0.2 6.0 6.2 4.8 1.0 0.8 1.8 3.0 8.2 17.3 .471 0.0 0.0 - 3.0 3.2 .947
John Havlicek 82 45.1 27.5 - - 8.2 7.5 - - - 2.2 10.9 23.9 .458 - - - 5.6 6.7 .834
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
John Havlicek 11 47.0 27.4 - - 8.4 6.4 - - - 3.2 9.8 21.4 .460 - - - 7.7 9.0 .859

Season 11

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1989-901972-73
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf 1st RdCeltics Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 75 39.3 24.3 1.2 8.3 9.5 7.5 1.4 0.8 3.2 2.3 9.6 20.2 .473 0.9 2.6 .333 4.3 4.6 .930
John Havlicek 80 42.1 23.8 - - 7.1 6.6 - - - 2.4 9.6 21.3 .450 - - - 4.6 5.4 .858
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 5 41.4 24.4 1.4 7.8 9.2 8.8 1.0 1.0 3.6 2.0 8.8 19.8 .444 1.0 3.8 .263 5.8 6.4 .906
John Havlicek 12 39.9 23.8 - - 5.2 5.4 - - - 2.0 9.3 19.6 .477 - - - 5.1 6.2 .824

Season 12

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1990-911973-74
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Finals MVP
-Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 60 38.0 19.4 0.9 7.6 8.5 7.2 1.8 1.0 3.1 2.0 7.7 17.0 .454 1.3 3.3 .389 2.7 3.1 .891
John Havlicek 76 40.7 22.6 1.8 4.6 6.4 5.9 1.3 0.4 - 2.6 9.0 19.8 .456 - - - 4.6 5.5 .832
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 10 39.6 17.1 0.8 6.4 7.2 6.5 1.3 0.3 1.9 2.8 6.2 15.2 .408 0.3 2.1 .143 4.4 5.1 .863
John Havlicek 18 45.1 27.1 1.6 4.9 6.4 6.0 1.3 0.3 - 2.4 11.1 22.8 .484 - - - 4.9 5.6 .881

Season 13

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season 1991-921974-75
Team Boston CelticsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Celtics Lost East Conf SemisCeltics Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 45 36.9 20.2 1.0 8.6 9.6 6.8 0.9 0.7 2.8 1.8 7.8 16.8 .466 1.2 2.8 .406 3.3 3.6 .926
John Havlicek 82 38.2 19.2 1.9 4.0 5.9 5.3 1.3 0.2 - 2.8 7.8 17.2 .455 - - - 3.5 4.0 .870
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird 4 26.8 11.3 0.5 4.0 4.5 5.3 0.3 0.5 1.5 1.8 5.3 10.5 .500 0.0 1.3 .000 0.8 1.0 .750
John Havlicek 11 42.2 21.1 1.6 3.5 5.2 4.6 1.5 0.1 - 3.5 7.5 17.5 .432 - - - 6.0 6.9 .868

Season 14

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season -1975-76
Team -Boston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First 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 %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
John Havlicek 76 34.2 17.0 1.5 2.6 4.1 3.7 1.3 0.4 - 2.7 6.6 14.8 .450 - - - 3.7 4.4 .844
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
John Havlicek 15 33.7 13.2 1.2 2.5 3.7 3.4 0.8 0.3 - 2.1 5.3 12.0 .444 - - - 2.5 3.1 .809

Season 15

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season -1976-77
Team -Boston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs -Celtics 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 %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
John Havlicek 79 36.9 17.7 1.4 3.5 4.8 5.1 1.1 0.2 - 2.6 7.3 16.2 .452 - - - 3.0 3.6 .816
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
John Havlicek 9 41.7 18.3 1.7 3.8 5.4 6.9 0.9 0.4 - 3.7 6.9 18.6 .371 - - - 4.6 5.6 .820

Season 16

Larry Bird John Havlicek
Season -1977-78
Team -Boston Celtics
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 %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
John Havlicek 82 34.1 16.1 1.1 2.9 4.0 4.0 1.1 0.3 2.5 2.3 6.7 14.8 .449 - - - 2.8 3.3 .855
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Larry Bird ------- --- ----------
John Havlicek ------- --- ----------