Tom Heinsohn vs. Gary Payton Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Gary Payton and Tom Heinsohn, 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.

Tom Heinsohn played 9 years in the NBA, 8 less than Gary Payton, who played 17. Tom Heinsohn had the first of his seasons in 1956-57, while Gary Payton had his rookie season in 1990-91. 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
Tom Heinsohn 9 9 1956-57 to 1964-65
Gary Payton 17 15 1990-91 to 2006-07

Comparison Season by Season

Rookie Season

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1956-571990-91
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement Rookie of the Year-
-Achievement All-Rookie Second Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSupersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn 72 29.9 16.2 - - 9.8 1.6 - - - 4.2 6.2 15.6 .397 - - - 3.8 4.8 .790
Gary Payton 82 27.4 7.2 1.3 1.6 3.0 6.4 2.0 0.2 2.2 3.0 3.2 7.0 .450 0.0 0.2 .077 0.8 1.2 .711
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 10 37.0 22.9 - - 11.7 2.0 - - - 4.0 9.0 23.1 .390 - - - 4.9 6.9 .710
Gary Payton 5 27.0 4.8 1.0 1.6 2.6 6.4 1.6 0.2 1.8 3.2 2.2 5.4 .407 0.0 0.2 .000 0.4 0.4 1.000

Season 2

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1957-581991-92
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Celtics Lost NBA FinalsSupersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn 69 32.0 17.8 - - 10.2 1.8 - - - 4.0 6.8 17.8 .382 - - - 4.3 5.7 .746
Gary Payton 81 31.5 9.4 1.5 2.1 3.6 6.2 1.8 0.3 2.1 3.1 4.1 9.1 .451 0.0 0.3 .130 1.2 1.8 .669
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 11 31.7 17.5 - - 10.8 1.6 - - - 4.7 6.2 17.6 .351 - - - 5.1 6.5 .778
Gary Payton 8 27.6 7.6 0.8 1.9 2.6 4.8 1.0 0.3 1.3 3.3 3.4 7.3 .466 0.0 0.3 .000 0.9 1.5 .583

Season 3

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1958-591992-93
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSupersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn 66 31.7 18.8 - - 9.7 2.5 - - - 4.1 7.0 18.1 .390 - - - 4.7 5.9 .798
Gary Payton 82 31.1 13.5 1.2 2.3 3.4 4.9 2.2 0.3 1.8 3.0 5.8 11.7 .494 0.1 0.4 .206 1.8 2.4 .770
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 11 31.6 19.9 - - 8.9 2.9 - - - 3.7 8.3 20.0 .414 - - - 3.4 5.1 .661
Gary Payton 19 31.8 12.3 1.2 2.2 3.3 3.7 1.8 0.2 1.8 3.4 5.5 12.4 .443 0.1 0.3 .167 1.3 1.9 .676

Season 4

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1959-601993-94
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSupersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn 75 32.3 21.7 - - 10.6 2.3 - - - 3.7 9.0 21.2 .423 - - - 3.8 5.1 .733
Gary Payton 82 35.1 16.5 1.3 2.0 3.3 6.0 2.3 0.2 2.1 2.8 7.1 14.1 .504 0.2 0.7 .278 2.0 3.4 .595
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 13 32.5 21.8 - - 9.7 2.1 - - - 4.1 8.6 20.5 .419 - - - 4.6 6.2 .750
Gary Payton 5 36.2 15.8 1.2 2.2 3.4 5.6 1.6 0.4 1.6 3.0 6.8 13.8 .493 0.6 1.8 .333 1.6 3.8 .421

Season 5

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1960-611994-95
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSupersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn 74 30.5 21.3 - - 9.9 1.9 - - - 3.5 8.5 21.2 .400 - - - 4.4 5.7 .767
Gary Payton 82 36.8 20.6 1.3 2.1 3.4 7.1 2.5 0.2 2.5 2.5 8.4 16.4 .509 0.9 2.8 .302 3.0 4.2 .716
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 10 29.1 19.7 - - 9.9 2.0 - - - 3.6 8.2 20.1 .408 - - - 3.3 4.3 .767
Gary Payton 4 43.0 17.8 1.5 1.0 2.5 5.3 1.3 0.0 2.0 3.3 8.0 16.8 .478 0.5 2.5 .200 1.3 3.0 .417

Season 6

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1961-621995-96
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement Defensive Player of the Year
-Achievement Steals Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSupersonics Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 79 30.2 22.1 - - 9.5 2.1 - - - 3.5 8.8 20.4 .429 - - - 4.5 5.5 .819
Gary Payton 81 39.0 19.3 1.3 2.9 4.2 7.5 2.9 0.2 3.2 2.7 7.6 15.8 .484 1.2 3.7 .328 2.8 3.8 .748
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 14 31.8 20.7 - - 8.2 2.4 - - - 4.1 8.3 20.8 .399 - - - 4.1 5.4 .763
Gary Payton 21 43.4 20.7 0.9 4.2 5.1 6.8 1.8 0.3 3.0 3.3 7.7 15.9 .485 2.0 4.8 .410 3.3 5.2 .633

Season 7

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1962-631996-97
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionSupersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn 76 26.4 18.9 - - 7.5 1.3 - - - 3.6 7.2 17.1 .423 - - - 4.5 5.4 .835
Gary Payton 82 39.2 21.8 1.3 3.3 4.6 7.1 2.4 0.2 2.6 2.5 8.6 18.1 .476 1.5 4.6 .313 3.1 4.3 .715
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 13 31.8 24.7 - - 8.9 1.2 - - - 4.2 9.5 20.8 .456 - - - 5.8 7.5 .765
Gary Payton 12 45.6 23.8 1.7 3.8 5.4 8.7 2.2 0.3 2.9 2.2 8.8 21.3 .412 2.1 6.3 .333 4.2 5.1 .820

Season 8

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1963-641997-98
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
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 NBA Champion NBA ChampionSupersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn 76 26.8 16.5 - - 6.1 2.4 - - - 3.5 6.4 16.1 .398 - - - 3.7 4.5 .827
Gary Payton 82 38.4 19.2 0.9 3.6 4.6 8.3 2.3 0.2 2.8 2.4 7.1 15.6 .453 1.6 4.8 .338 3.4 4.6 .744
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 10 30.8 17.4 - - 8.0 2.6 - - - 3.6 7.0 18.0 .389 - - - 3.4 4.2 .810
Gary Payton 10 42.7 24.0 0.9 2.5 3.4 7.0 1.8 0.1 2.6 3.1 8.7 18.3 .475 1.9 5.0 .380 4.7 5.0 .940

Season 9

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season 1964-651998-99
Team Boston CelticsSeattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs NBA Champion NBA ChampionDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 67 25.5 13.6 - - 6.0 2.3 - - - 3.8 5.4 14.2 .383 - - - 2.7 3.4 .795
Gary Payton 50 40.2 21.7 1.2 3.6 4.9 8.7 2.2 0.2 3.1 2.3 8.0 18.5 .434 1.7 5.6 .295 4.0 5.5 .721
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn 12 23.0 12.7 - - 7.0 1.9 - - - 3.8 5.5 15.1 .365 - - - 1.7 2.7 .625
Gary Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 10

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -1999-00
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs -Supersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 82 41.8 24.2 1.2 5.2 6.5 8.9 1.9 0.2 2.7 2.2 9.1 20.3 .448 2.2 6.3 .340 3.8 5.2 .735
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 5 44.2 25.8 1.6 6.0 7.6 7.4 1.8 0.2 3.6 3.2 10.0 22.6 .442 1.8 4.6 .391 4.0 5.2 .769

Season 11

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -2000-01
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Third Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-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 %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 79 41.1 23.1 0.9 3.6 4.6 8.1 1.6 0.3 2.6 2.3 9.2 20.1 .456 1.3 3.4 .375 3.4 4.5 .766
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton ------- --- ----------

Season 12

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -2001-02
Team -Seattle Supersonics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs -Supersonics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 82 40.3 22.1 1.0 3.9 4.8 9.0 1.6 0.3 2.5 2.2 9.0 19.2 .467 0.9 2.9 .314 3.3 4.1 .797
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 5 41.2 22.2 2.0 6.6 8.6 5.8 0.6 0.4 2.6 2.4 9.0 21.2 .425 0.8 3.0 .267 3.4 5.8 .586

Season 13

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -2002-03
Team -Seattle Supersonics, Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs -Bucks 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 %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 80 40.1 20.4 1.0 3.2 4.2 8.3 1.7 0.3 2.3 2.3 8.3 18.3 .454 0.7 2.3 .297 3.1 4.4 .710
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 6 41.8 18.5 0.7 2.3 3.0 8.7 1.3 0.2 2.2 3.0 8.0 18.7 .429 0.2 2.5 .067 2.3 3.3 .700

Season 14

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -2003-04
Team -Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Lakers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 82 34.5 14.6 0.9 3.3 4.2 5.5 1.2 0.2 1.8 2.1 5.9 12.5 .471 0.7 2.0 .333 2.2 3.1 .714
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 22 35.0 7.8 0.9 2.4 3.3 5.3 1.0 0.2 1.3 2.7 3.1 8.5 .366 0.6 2.5 .250 1.0 1.3 .750

Season 15

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -2004-05
Team -Boston Celtics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Celtics 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 %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 77 33.0 11.3 0.6 2.4 3.1 6.1 1.1 0.2 1.9 1.6 4.4 9.4 .468 0.5 1.7 .326 2.0 2.6 .761
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 7 34.1 10.3 1.1 3.0 4.1 4.6 0.9 0.1 1.6 1.4 4.7 10.6 .446 0.1 2.0 .071 0.7 0.9 .833

Season 16

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -2005-06
Team -Miami Heat
Honors & Awards
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 %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 81 28.5 7.7 0.4 2.5 2.9 3.2 0.9 0.1 1.3 2.1 2.8 6.8 .420 0.8 2.8 .287 1.2 1.6 .794
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 23 24.3 5.8 0.3 1.5 1.7 1.6 1.0 0.1 0.8 2.4 2.1 5.0 .422 0.7 2.5 .293 0.8 1.1 .720

Season 17

Tom Heinsohn Gary Payton
Season -2006-07
Team -Miami Heat
Honors & Awards
Playoffs -Heat 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 %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 68 22.1 5.3 0.3 1.7 1.9 3.0 0.6 0.0 1.0 1.7 2.1 5.4 .393 0.5 1.8 .260 0.6 0.8 .667
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Tom Heinsohn ------- --- ----------
Gary Payton 2 16.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 2.0 1.5 0.0 0.0 2.0 1.5 0.0 1.5 .000 0.0 0.5 .000 0.0 0.0 -