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Player profile · BOS / CLE / DET / IND / LAL
Earl Tatum
Earl Tatum stats, teams and career impact
#1344 all-timeCareer averages · 9.6 PPG · 2.6 RPG · 1.9 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
- Position
- Shooting guard
- Final NBA team
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Height / weight
- 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) · 185 lb (84 kg)
- Born
- July 26, 1953 (73 yrs old)
- College
- Marquette
- NBA seasons
- 4 seasons · 1976–77 to 1979–80
Career summaryEarl Tatum was a shooting guard who played 4 NBA seasons, from 1976–77 through 1979–80.
- Career PPG
- 9.6
- Career RPG
- 2.6
- Career APG
- 1.9
- #48 in 1976–77
- #1344 all-time
Best-Season Impact Rank
Career Impact Rank
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
Career overview
Why Earl Tatum ranks #1344 all time
Earl Tatum ranks #1344 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #96.3. His full-career value ranks #1155, so longevity is a major reason he lands this high.
450+ minutes required per season
262 games · Career Value Rank #1155
Head to head
Compare Earl Tatum with…
Suggested matchups from basketball rivalries, comparable roles, and similar careers. Compare career impact, peak seasons, and the numbers behind the result.
- Earl Tatum vs. Chuma Okeke Similar career path
- Earl Tatum vs. Bob Portman Similar career path
- Earl Tatum vs. Ron Sobie Similar career path
- Earl Tatum vs. Landry Fields Similar career path
- Earl Tatum vs. Billy Ray Bates Similar career path
- Earl Tatum vs. Yogi Ferrell Similar career path
- Earl Tatum vs. Mike Green Same-era comparison
- Earl Tatum vs. Terry Furlow Same-era comparison
- Earl Tatum vs. Dave Meyers Same-era comparison
- Earl Tatum vs. Al Skinner Same-era comparison
Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources
Full team history
- Teams
- Los Angeles Lakers, Indiana Pacers, Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, and Cleveland Cavaliers
Career shooting
NBA regular season- Field goal
- 45.9%FG%
- Three-point
- 33.3%3P%
- Free throw
- 74.6%FT%
262 career games · 5,229 minutes
Sources and updateConventional stats and measurements: Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 13, 2026. hussEyquation ranking data through 2025–26. Life dates: Wikidata; conflicting dates checked against Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 17, 2026.
Traditional box score
Earl Tatum stats by season
Start with scoring and impact, then switch views for shooting or the full advanced picture. Career percentages use total makes and attempts.
Box impact is an estimate in points per 100 possessions, not the 0–100 Impact Rate score. Zero is league average; higher is better. Rate rank is a league place: No. 1 is best.
Swipe for PPG · RPG · APG · Box impact · Team · G · GS · MPG →
| pts/100 · higher is better | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979–80 | 2.6 | 0.8 | 0.6 | -4.92 | CLE | 33 | 0 | 6.8 | 38.3% | 33.3% | 57.9% | — | -14.5 |
| 1978–79 | 7.7 | 1.6 | 0.9 | -1.78 | BOS/DET | 79 | 0 | 15.6 | 44.7% | — | 73.2% | #168 | 6.1 |
| 1977–78 | 14.3 | 3.6 | 3.6 | +0.38 | IND/LAL | 82 | 40 | 30.8 | 46.9% | — | 78.1% | #73 | 134.8 |
| 1976–77 | 9.4 | 3.5 | 1.7 | +1.29 | LAL | 68 | 0 | 18.4 | 46.6% | — | 72.0% | #48 | 89.7 |
| Career | 9.6 | 2.6 | 1.9 | — | BOS/CLE/DET/IND/LAL | 262 | — | 20.0 | 45.9% | 33.3% | 74.6% | — | — |
Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.
What these measures mean
- Box impact
- Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average, from the historical box-score model. Zero is league average; higher is better. Historical defense estimates are included where labeled. This is not the live model's lineup-adjusted estimate.
- Impact Rate
- A 0–100 score comparing performance within one season. Higher is better. This is a score, not points per possession.
- Impact estimate
- The season model's final estimated points per 100 possessions above league average, before conversion to the 0–100 Impact Rate score. It includes lineup evidence where available. Zero is league average; higher is better.
- Impact Rate rank
- The player's place among qualified players in that season's Impact Rate ranking. No. 1 is best. This is a rank, not an impact score.
- Value contribution / Season Value
- Completed seasons use a fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. The live season instead uses Season Value, combining that season's impact with workload.
- Career Impact Rank
- An all-time rank weighted toward the player's best three, five, and ten seasons.
133.2 composite · lower is better
153.0 average league finish
216 total value
- Impact Rate
- 0–100 score within one season. Higher is better.
- Box impact
- Estimated points per 100 possessions above league average, from the historical model. Zero is average; higher is better.
Career standing
How Earl Tatum ranks all time
These are league placements, not raw scores. Each season is judged against that season's qualified player pool.
Best in the league
Elite finishes
Upper-tier finishes
Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons
Career Composite Score133.2
Best 3, Best 5, and Best 10 average league finishes receive 50%, 30%, and 20% window weights. Missing seasons receive a replacement finish just below the player's typical qualified field. Lower is better.
- Best 3 effective weight
- 74%
- Missing-season finish
- 238.0
- Qualified seasons
- 3
- All-time rank
- #1344
Strongest seasons
Every season
Earl Tatum advanced stats by season
Era-centered box impact supports comparisons through time. Impact Rate and its rank compare players only within that season.
More advanced statsAge, minutes, impact, rank, value and data coverage
Scroll for more columns
| pts/100 · higher is better | 0–100 · higher is better | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979–80Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 26 | 33 | 225 | -4.92 | — | — | -14.5 | — | Limited |
| 1978–79Historical Defense Estimate | BOS/DET | 25 | 79 | 1,233 | -1.78 | 26.4 | #168 | 6.1 | 26th | Broad |
| 1977–78Historical Defense Estimate | IND/LAL | 24 | 82 | 2,522 | +0.38 | 69.5 | #73 | 134.8 | 75th | Broad |
| 1976–77Historical Defense Estimate | LAL | 23 | 68 | 1,249 | +1.29 | 80.7 | #48 | 89.7 | 60th | Broad |
Career movement
Earl Tatum's box impact by season
Peak box impact +1.29 points per 100 possessions in 1976–77 · 4 seasons · 5,229 minutes
Box impact estimates points per 100 possessions above each season's league average. Zero is average; higher is better. Rank labels show Impact Rate league places, not ranks on this chart's box-impact scale.
Box impact · points per 100 possessionsMinutes
Player-specific impact scaleWorkload
Early-career comparison
Compare the first 4 seasons
Both players are limited to their first 4 seasons. Later seasons never affect the selection or score, and the result is not a career prediction.
Earl TatumChuma Okeke
| NBA season | Earl Tatum | Chuma Okeke |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.3 | 0.6 |
| 2 | 0.4 | 1.2 |
| 3 | -1.8 | -1.3 |
| 4 | -4.9 | -4.2 |
NBA season number · first 4 seasons only
Similar starts
Players with starts similar to Earl Tatum
The start-similarity percentile compares era-relative impact, season-relative workload, trajectory, debut age, and role across exactly 4 seasons and 1,880 eligible starts. Higher means closer; it is not a probability or forecast.
PF · All-Time Career #1930
Chuma Okeke
98.6start similarity percentile
Impact: very closeWorkload: closeTrend: closeAge: very closeRole: close
High evidence · first 4 seasonsClosest early-season pairing · 1976–77 ↔ 2020–21SG · All-Time Career #846Bob Portman
98.5start similarity percentile
Impact: very closeWorkload: closeTrend: closeAge: very closeRole: very close
Medium evidence · first 4 seasonsClosest early-season pairing · 1976–77 ↔ 1970–71PG · All-Time Career #345Ron Sobie
98.4start similarity percentile
Impact: very closeWorkload: closeTrend: closeAge: very closeRole: very close
Medium evidence · first 4 seasonsClosest early-season pairing · 1976–77 ↔ 1956–57Impact Rate shows how strong a player was compared with everyone else that season. Season Value adds how much he played; completed player-profile rows instead show each season's fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. Career Impact Rank rewards a high peak, a long prime, and repeated seasons near the top. Older seasons use clearly labeled estimates where the NBA did not record today's full set of statistics. Read how every ranking works →