Player profile · ATL / UTA

John Drew

John Drew stats, teams and career impact

#207 all-timeCareer averages · 20.7 PPG · 6.9 RPG · 1.7 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Position: Small forward
Final NBA team: Utah Jazz
Height / weight: 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) · 205 lb (93 kg)
Born: September 30, 1954
Died: April 10, 2022 (67 yrs old)
College: Gardner-Webb University
NBA seasons: 11 seasons · 1974–75 to 1984–85

Career or season view

Career summaryJohn Drew was a small forward who played 11 NBA seasons, from 1974–75 through 1984–85.

Career PPG: 20.7
Career RPG: 6.9
Career APG: 1.7; #2 in 1975–76; #207 all-time

Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Career overview

Why John Drew ranks #207 all time

John Drew ranks #207 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #13.3. His full-career value ranks #264, so this placement is driven more by dominance than longevity.

Peak#2 in 1975–76

Best league finish

Sustained excellence1 top-five finish

1 top-ten finishes

Career breadth11 seasons

739 games · Career Value Rank #264

NBA honors2× All-StarContext only; honors are not model inputs.

Head to head

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Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources

Full team history

Teams: Atlanta Hawks and Utah Jazz
Greatest Hawks →Greatest Jazz →

Career shooting

NBA regular season

Field goal: 47.0%FG%
Three-point: 17.5%3P%
Free throw: 74.8%FT%

739 career games · 21,828 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

John Drew 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	16.2	4.3	1.8	-1.72	UTA	19	16	24.4	41.2%	0.0%	77.0%	#170	2.9
1983–84	17.7	4.2	1.7	+0.23	UTA	81	4	22.2	47.9%	27.3%	77.8%	#84	87.4
1982–83	21.2	5.3	2.2	+0.47	UTA	44	33	27.4	47.4%	0.0%	75.5%	#79	66.7
1981–82	18.5	5.4	1.4	-0.02	ATL	70	51	29.1	48.6%	33.3%	74.1%	#95	80.1
1980–81	21.7	5.7	1.2	-0.82	ATL	67	0	31.0	45.6%	0.0%	78.7%	#138	50.6
1979–80	19.5	5.9	1.3	-0.82	ATL	80	0	28.8	45.3%	0.0%	75.7%	#133	56.1
1978–79	22.7	6.6	1.5	+1.75	ATL	79	79	30.5	47.3%	—	73.1%	#40	192.9
1977–78	23.2	7.3	2.0	+3.80	ATL	70	0	31.5	48.0%	—	76.0%	#13	275.0
1976–77	24.2	9.1	1.8	+1.30	ATL	74	0	36.3	48.7%	—	71.4%	#47	193.1
1975–76	21.6	8.6	1.9	+5.00	ATL	77	0	30.5	50.2%	—	74.4%	#2	355.2
1974–75	18.5	10.7	1.8	+1.63	ATL	78	0	29.3	42.8%	—	71.3%	#25	184.1
Career	20.7	6.9	1.7	—	ATL/UTA	739	—	29.5	47.0%	17.5%	74.8%	—	—

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.

Career Impact Rank#207

27.4 composite · lower is better

Best 5#215

25.4 average league finish

Career Value Rank#264

1,544 total value

Career standing

How John Drew ranks all time

These are league placements, not raw scores. Each season is judged against that season's qualified player pool.

Number-one seasons0

Best in the league

Top-five seasons1

Elite finishes

Top-ten seasons1

Upper-tier finishes

Top-10 Impact Margin2.4

Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons

Career Composite Score27.4

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: 245.0
Qualified seasons: 11
All-time rank: #207

Strongest seasons

Every season

John Drew 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


1984–85Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	30	19	463	-1.72	33.2	#170	2.9	29th	Standard
1983–84Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	29	81	1,797	+0.23	66.5	#84	87.4	60th	Broad
1982–83Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	28	44	1,206	+0.47	69.2	#79	66.7	59th	Broad
1981–82Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	27	70	2,040	-0.02	63.0	#95	80.1	62nd	Broad
1980–81Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	26	67	2,075	-0.82	44.8	#138	50.6	50th	Broad
1979–80Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	25	80	2,306	-0.82	42.9	#133	56.1	50th	Broad
1978–79Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	24	79	2,410	+1.75	82.8	#40	192.9	83rd	Broad
1977–78Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	23	70	2,203	+3.80	94.9	#13	275.0	93rd	Broad
1976–77Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	22	74	2,688	+1.30	81.1	#47	193.1	87th	Broad
1975–76Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	21	77	2,351	+5.00	99.5	#2	355.2	96th	Broad
1974–75Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	20	78	2,289	+1.63	87.2	#25	184.1	87th	Broad

Career movement

John Drew's career impact by season

Peak +5.00 in 1975–76 · 11 seasons · 21,828 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.

Compare with a similar careerOpen full comparison →

John DrewPaul Arizin

Era-centered box impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average · dashed marker means the player did not play

John Drew and Paul Arizin era-centered impact values by NBA season number
NBA season	John Drew	Paul Arizin
1	1.6	2.3
2	5.0	4.2
3	1.3	1.8
4	3.8	2.2
5	1.7	2.3
6	-0.8	1.3
7	-0.8	3.1
8	-0.0	1.4
9	0.5	0.8
10	0.2	-0.7
11	-1.7	Did not play

NBA season number

Similar career arcs

Players with careers similar to John Drew

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.

SF · All-Time Career #49

Paul Arizin

career similarity score

89/100 closest-season score · 1975–76 ↔ 1951–52 SG · All-Time Career #46

Tom Gola

career similarity score

89/100 closest-season score · 1975–76 ↔ 1955–56 PF · All-Time Career #69

Bailey Howell

career similarity score

84/100 closest-season score · 1975–76 ↔ 1962–63

How to read this page

Impact 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 →