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Player profile · LAC / MIL / NJN / PHI
Harvey Catchings
Harvey Catchings stats, teams and career impact
#936 all-timeCareer averages · 3.2 PPG · 5.0 RPG · 0.8 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
- Position
- Center
- Final NBA team
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Height / weight
- 6 ft 9 in (206 cm) · 218 lb (99 kg)
- Born
- September 2, 1951 (75 yrs old)
- College
- Hardin-Simmons University
- NBA seasons
- 11 seasons · 1974–75 to 1984–85
Career summaryHarvey Catchings was a center who played 11 NBA seasons, from 1974–75 through 1984–85.
- Career PPG
- 3.2
- Career RPG
- 5.0
- Career APG
- 0.8
- #81 in 1979–80
- #936 all-time
Best-Season Impact Rank
Career Impact Rank
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
Career overview
Why Harvey Catchings ranks #936 all time
Harvey Catchings ranks #936 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #78.3. His full-career value ranks #959, so this placement is driven more by dominance than longevity.
450+ minutes required per season
725 games · Career Value Rank #959
Head to head
Compare Harvey Catchings with…
Ten suggested matchups, selected from familiar debates, similar careers, and players from the same era. Compare career impact, peak seasons, and the numbers behind the result.
- Mel Counts Similar career path
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- Frank Brickowski Similar career path
- Truck Robinson Same-era comparison
- Ricky Sobers Same-era comparison
- Johnny Davis Same-era comparison
- Lionel Hollins Same-era comparison
Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources
Full team history
- Teams
- Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Los Angeles Clippers
Career shooting
NBA regular season- Field goal
- 43.5%FG%
- Three-point
- 0.0%3P%
- Free throw
- 64.7%FT%
725 career games · 13,182 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
Harvey Catchings 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.
Swipe for PPG · RPG · APG · Impact · Team · G · GS · MPG →
| 1984–85 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 0.2 | -3.64 | LAC | 70 | 14 | 15.0 | 48.3% | 0.0% | 66.3% | #229 | -36.1 |
| 1983–84 | 2.1 | 3.9 | 0.6 | -2.11 | MIL | 69 | 3 | 16.8 | 39.9% | 0.0% | 52.4% | #186 | -2.5 |
| 1982–83 | 3.3 | 5.5 | 1.0 | -0.03 | MIL | 74 | 33 | 21.0 | 45.7% | — | 67.4% | #108 | 63.6 |
| 1981–82 | 2.9 | 4.5 | 1.2 | -0.67 | MIL | 80 | 9 | 20.0 | 42.0% | — | 59.4% | #139 | 44.5 |
| 1980–81 | 4.2 | 6.1 | 1.3 | -0.11 | MIL | 77 | 0 | 21.2 | 44.7% | — | 64.1% | #104 | 66.6 |
| 1979–80 | 3.2 | 5.7 | 1.1 | +0.34 | MIL | 72 | 0 | 19.0 | 39.8% | 0.0% | 62.9% | #81 | 68.1 |
| 1978–79 | 4.6 | 5.3 | 0.8 | -1.08 | NJN/PHI | 57 | 4 | 16.6 | 42.0% | — | 76.9% | #143 | 19.6 |
| 1977–78 | 2.9 | 4.1 | 0.6 | -1.50 | PHI | 61 | 2 | 12.3 | 39.3% | — | 61.8% | #161 | 8.4 |
| 1976–77 | 3.0 | 4.4 | 0.6 | -0.07 | PHI | 53 | 25 | 16.3 | 50.4% | — | 70.2% | #104 | 37.7 |
| 1975–76 | 3.5 | 6.9 | 0.8 | -1.01 | PHI | 75 | 68 | 23.1 | 42.6% | — | 60.4% | #104 | 38.5 |
| 1974–75 | 2.6 | 4.1 | 0.6 | +0.91 | PHI | 37 | 0 | 14.3 | 55.4% | — | 64.0% | #50 | 33.1 |
| Career | 3.2 | 5.0 | 0.8 | — | LAC/MIL/NJN/PHI | 725 | — | 18.2 | 43.5% | 0.0% | 64.7% | — | — |
Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.
What these measures mean
- Era-centered box impact
- Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average.
- Impact Rate Rank
- The player's place among qualified players in one season.
- 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.
89.3 composite · lower is better
88.6 average league finish
342 total value
Career standing
How Harvey Catchings 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 Score89.3
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
- —
- Qualified seasons
- 11
- All-time rank
- #936
Strongest seasons
Every season
Harvey Catchings 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
| 1984–85Historical Defense Estimate | LAC | 33 | 70 | 1,049 | -3.64 | 9.9 | #229 | -36.1 | 9th | Broad |
| 1983–84Historical Defense Estimate | MIL | 32 | 69 | 1,156 | -2.11 | 25.4 | #186 | -2.5 | 25th | Broad |
| 1982–83Historical Defense Estimate | MIL | 31 | 74 | 1,554 | -0.03 | 57.7 | #108 | 63.6 | 56th | Broad |
| 1981–82Historical Defense Estimate | MIL | 30 | 80 | 1,603 | -0.67 | 45.7 | #139 | 44.5 | 48th | Broad |
| 1980–81Historical Defense Estimate | MIL | 29 | 77 | 1,635 | -0.11 | 58.5 | #104 | 66.6 | 54th | Broad |
| 1979–80Historical Defense Estimate | MIL | 28 | 72 | 1,366 | +0.34 | 65.4 | #81 | 68.1 | 53rd | Broad |
| 1978–79Historical Defense Estimate | NJN/PHI | 27 | 57 | 948 | -1.08 | 37.4 | #143 | 19.6 | 33rd | Standard |
| 1977–78Historical Defense Estimate | PHI | 26 | 61 | 748 | -1.50 | 32.2 | #161 | 8.4 | 29th | Standard |
| 1976–77Historical Defense Estimate | PHI | 25 | 53 | 864 | -0.07 | 57.6 | #104 | 37.7 | 48th | Standard |
| 1975–76Historical Defense Estimate | PHI | 24 | 75 | 1,731 | -1.01 | 45.2 | #104 | 38.5 | 47th | Broad |
| 1974–75Historical Defense Estimate | PHI | 23 | 37 | 528 | +0.91 | 73.8 | #50 | 33.1 | 41st | Standard |
Career movement
Harvey Catchings's career impact by season
Peak +0.91 in 1974–75 · 11 seasons · 13,182 minutes
The same historical box-score model is used for every season, making the career shape comparable through time. The vertical scale adapts to this player's range and always includes zero.
Era-centered box impactMinutes
Player-specific impact scaleWorkload
Career comparison
Compare the shape, not the calendar
Align by NBA experience to compare season one with season one, or by age to compare players at the same stage of life.
Harvey CatchingsMel Counts
| NBA season | Harvey Catchings | Mel Counts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0.9 | -2.5 |
| 2 | -1.0 | -1.1 |
| 3 | -0.1 | -2.5 |
| 4 | -1.5 | 0.1 |
| 5 | -1.1 | 0.0 |
| 6 | 0.3 | -0.8 |
| 7 | -0.1 | 0.3 |
| 8 | -0.7 | -1.0 |
| 9 | -0.0 | -0.6 |
| 10 | -2.1 | -1.6 |
| 11 | -3.6 | 0.8 |
| 12 | Did not play | -2.2 |
NBA season number
Similar career arcs
Players with careers similar to Harvey Catchings
The career-similarity score compares era-centered box impact, peak, prime, workload, career length, position, and experience-aligned trajectory. It describes career shape, not playing style, equal ability, or probability.
C · All-Time Career #469
Mel Counts
93career similarity score
87/100 closest-season score · 1974–75 ↔ 1965–66C · All-Time Career #930Dennis Awtrey
92career similarity score
88/100 closest-season score · 1974–75 ↔ 1973–74C · All-Time Career #1500Greg Ostertag
92career similarity score
86/100 closest-season score · 1974–75 ↔ 1998–99Impact 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 →