Sam Bowie vs. Nate Thurmond Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Nate Thurmond and Sam Bowie, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

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.

Sam Bowie played 10 years in the NBA, 4 less than Nate Thurmond, who played 14. Sam Bowie had the first of his seasons in 1984-85, while Nate Thurmond had his rookie season in 1963-64. 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.

Comparison Season by Season
Jump to season: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14
Rookie Season
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1984-85	1963-64
Team	Portland Trail Blazers	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	All-Rookie First Team	All-Rookie First Team
Playoffs	Trail Blazers Lost West Conf Semis	Warriors Lost NBA Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	76	29.2	10.0	2.7	5.9	8.6	2.8	0.7	2.7	2.3	3.7	3.9	7.3	.537	0.0	0.0	-	2.1	3.0	.711
Nate Thurmond	76	25.9	7.0	-	-	10.4	1.1	-	-	-	2.4	2.9	7.3	.395	-	-	-	1.3	2.3	.549
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	9	28.8	7.3	1.8	6.7	8.4	2.3	0.4	2.3	1.3	4.0	2.9	6.6	.441	0.0	0.0	-	1.6	2.8	.560
Nate Thurmond	12	34.2	10.0	-	-	12.3	0.8	-	-	-	3.8	3.5	8.0	.438	-	-	-	3.0	4.4	.679

Season 2
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1985-86	1964-65
Team	Portland Trail Blazers	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	38	29.8	11.8	2.4	6.2	8.6	2.6	0.6	2.5	2.3	3.7	4.4	9.1	.484	0.0	0.0	-	3.0	4.2	.708
Nate Thurmond	77	41.2	16.5	-	-	18.1	2.0	-	-	-	3.0	6.7	16.1	.419	-	-	-	3.1	4.6	.658
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Nate Thurmond	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 3
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1986-87	1965-66
Team	Portland Trail Blazers	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	5	32.6	16.0	2.8	3.8	6.6	1.8	0.2	2.0	3.0	3.8	6.0	13.2	.455	0.0	0.0	-	4.0	6.0	.667
Nate Thurmond	73	39.6	16.3	-	-	18.0	1.5	-	-	-	3.1	6.2	15.3	.406	-	-	-	3.8	5.9	.654
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Nate Thurmond	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Note: Sam Bowie didn't play in 1987-88.

Season 4
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1988-89	1966-67
Team	Portland Trail Blazers	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Trail Blazers Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Warriors Lost NBA Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	20	20.6	8.6	1.8	3.5	5.3	1.8	0.4	1.7	1.7	2.2	3.5	7.7	.451	0.3	0.4	.714	1.4	2.5	.571
Nate Thurmond	65	42.5	18.7	-	-	21.3	2.6	-	-	-	2.8	7.2	16.4	.437	-	-	-	4.3	6.8	.629
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	3	22.3	10.3	3.3	3.3	6.7	1.0	0.0	2.3	1.0	2.7	4.0	9.3	.429	0.3	0.7	.500	2.0	2.7	.750
Nate Thurmond	15	46.0	15.9	-	-	23.1	3.1	-	-	-	3.5	6.2	14.3	.433	-	-	-	3.5	6.1	.571

Season 5
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1989-90	1967-68
Team	New Jersey Nets	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	68	32.5	14.7	3.0	7.1	10.1	1.3	0.6	1.8	1.8	3.1	5.1	12.3	.416	0.1	0.5	.323	4.3	5.6	.776
Nate Thurmond	51	43.6	20.5	-	-	22.0	4.2	-	-	-	2.7	7.5	18.2	.411	-	-	-	5.5	8.6	.644
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Nate Thurmond	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 6
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1990-91	1968-69
Team	New Jersey Nets	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Defensive First Team
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Warriors Lost West Div Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	62	30.9	12.9	2.8	4.9	7.7	2.4	0.7	1.5	2.3	2.8	5.1	11.7	.434	0.1	0.4	.182	2.7	3.7	.732
Nate Thurmond	71	45.2	21.5	-	-	19.7	3.6	-	-	-	2.4	8.0	19.6	.410	-	-	-	5.4	8.7	.615
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Nate Thurmond	6	43.8	16.7	-	-	19.5	4.7	-	-	-	3.0	6.7	17.0	.392	-	-	-	3.3	5.7	.588

Season 7
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1991-92	1969-70
Team	New Jersey Nets	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Nets Lost East Conf 1st Rd	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	71	30.7	15.0	2.9	5.3	8.1	2.6	0.6	1.7	2.1	3.0	5.9	13.3	.445	0.1	0.4	.320	3.0	3.9	.757
Nate Thurmond	43	44.6	21.9	-	-	17.7	3.5	-	-	-	2.6	7.9	19.2	.414	-	-	-	6.1	8.0	.754
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	4	28.0	9.3	2.0	2.8	4.8	2.3	0.8	0.8	1.3	4.8	3.5	8.3	.424	0.3	0.5	.500	2.0	3.0	.667
Nate Thurmond	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 8
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1992-93	1970-71
Team	New Jersey Nets	San Francisco Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Defensive First Team
Playoffs	Nets Lost East Conf 1st Rd	Warriors Lost West Conf Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	79	26.5	9.1	2.0	5.0	7.0	1.6	0.4	1.6	1.5	2.9	3.6	8.1	.450	0.0	0.1	.333	1.8	2.3	.779
Nate Thurmond	82	40.9	20.0	-	-	13.8	3.1	-	-	-	2.3	7.6	17.1	.445	-	-	-	4.8	6.6	.730
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	3	23.7	3.3	0.7	3.3	4.0	0.7	2.0	0.3	1.3	3.0	1.3	3.0	.444	0.0	0.0	-	0.7	0.7	1.000
Nate Thurmond	5	38.4	17.6	-	-	10.2	3.0	-	-	-	4.0	7.2	19.4	.371	-	-	-	3.2	4.0	.800

Season 9
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1993-94	1971-72
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Golden State Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Defensive Second Team
Playoffs	Did Not Play	Warriors Lost West Conf Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	25	22.2	8.9	1.1	4.2	5.2	1.9	0.2	1.1	1.7	2.6	3.0	6.9	.436	0.0	0.2	.250	2.9	3.3	.867
Nate Thurmond	78	43.1	21.4	-	-	16.1	2.9	-	-	-	2.7	8.1	18.6	.432	-	-	-	5.3	7.2	.743
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Nate Thurmond	5	46.0	25.4	-	-	17.8	5.2	-	-	-	2.4	10.6	24.4	.434	-	-	-	4.2	5.6	.750

Season 10
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	1994-95	1972-73
Team	Los Angeles Lakers	Golden State Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Defensive Second Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Lakers Lost West Conf Semis	Warriors Lost West Conf Finals

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	67	18.3	4.6	1.1	3.2	4.3	1.8	0.3	1.2	1.4	2.7	1.8	4.0	.442	0.0	0.2	.182	1.0	1.3	.764
Nate Thurmond	79	43.3	17.1	-	-	17.1	3.5	-	-	-	3.0	6.5	14.7	.446	-	-	-	4.0	5.6	.718
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	10	13.5	2.1	1.3	2.0	3.3	0.3	0.1	0.9	0.6	2.5	0.8	3.0	.267	0.0	0.0	-	0.5	0.5	1.000
Nate Thurmond	11	41.8	14.5	-	-	13.2	3.6	-	-	-	2.7	5.8	14.6	.398	-	-	-	2.9	3.6	.800

Season 11
	Sam Bowie	Nate Thurmond
Season	-	1973-74
Team	-	Golden State Warriors
Honors & Awards	-	All-Defensive Second Team
	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	-	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Nate Thurmond	62	39.7	13.0	4.0	10.1	14.2	2.7	0.7	2.9	-	2.9	5.0	11.2	.444	-	-	-	3.1	4.6	.666
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Sam Bowie	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Nate Thurmond	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-