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Player profile · CLE / POR / SEA / STL

Illustrated portrait of NBA player Lenny Wilkens

Lenny Wilkens

Lenny Wilkens stats, teams and career impact

#81 all-timeCareer averages · 16.5 PPG · 4.7 RPG · 6.7 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Position
Point guard
Final NBA team
Portland Trail Blazers
Height / weight
6 ft 1 in (185 cm) · 180 lb (82 kg)
Born
October 28, 1937
Died
November 9, 2025 (88 yrs old)
College
Providence
NBA seasons
15 seasons · 1960–61 to 1974–75

Career summaryLenny Wilkens was a point guard who played 15 NBA seasons, from 1960–61 through 1974–75.

Career PPG
16.5
Career RPG
4.7
Career APG
6.7
Best-Season Impact Rank
#10 in 1972–73
Career Impact Rank
#81 all-time
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Career overview

Why Lenny Wilkens ranks #81 all time

Lenny Wilkens ranks #81 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #10.0. His #76 full-career value adds a meaningful longevity advantage.

Peak#8 in 1967–68

Best league finish

Sustained excellence2 top-ten finishes

450+ minutes required per season

Career breadth15 seasons

1,077 games · Career Value Rank #76

NBA honors9× All-StarContext only; honors are not model inputs.

Head to head

Compare Lenny Wilkens with…

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Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources

Full team history

Teams
St. Louis Hawks, Seattle SuperSonics, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Portland Trail Blazers

Career shooting

NBA regular season
Field goal
43.2%FG%
Three-point
—3P%
Free throw
77.4%FT%

1,077 career games · 38,064 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

Lenny Wilkens 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 →

1974–756.51.83.6+1.47POR65017.943.9%—76.8%#3187.9
1973–7416.43.77.1+2.62CLE74033.646.5%—80.1%#13248.8
1972–7320.54.68.4+3.22CLE75039.644.9%—82.8%#10350.0
1971–7218.04.29.6+2.20SEA80037.446.6%—77.4%#21289.2
1970–7119.84.59.2+1.42SEA71037.241.9%—80.3%#29218.9
1969–7017.85.09.1+1.56SEA75037.442.0%—78.8%#21241.9
1968–6922.46.28.2+2.39SEA82042.244.0%—77.0%#12371.9
1967–6820.05.38.3+2.40STL82038.643.8%—76.8%#8330.5
1966–6717.45.35.7+0.94STL78038.143.2%—78.7%#21214.3
1965–6618.04.76.2+0.81STL69039.043.1%—79.3%#21184.0
1964–6516.54.75.5+0.79STL78036.641.4%—74.6%#20190.8
1963–6412.04.34.6+0.36STL78032.441.3%—74.0%#21142.5
1962–6311.85.45.1+0.77STL75034.339.9%—69.6%#21171.6
1961–6218.26.55.8-0.88STL20043.538.5%—76.4%#4325.4
1960–6111.74.52.8+0.97STL75025.342.5%—71.3%#20151.7
Career16.54.76.7—CLE/POR/SEA/STL1077—35.343.2%—77.4%——

Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.

Film evidence

Lenny Wilkens highlights

Watch the selected footage or film analysis, then use the season record and impact data to put what happened on the floor in context.

Career retrospective

Remembering Lenny Wilkens

The NBA's remembrance provides rare footage of Wilkens's controlled playmaking and leadership across his Hall of Fame playing career.

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.
Best 5#99

12.6 average league finish

Career Value Rank#76

3,220 total value

Career standing

How Lenny Wilkens 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 seasons0

Elite finishes

Top-ten seasons2

Upper-tier finishes

Top-10 Impact Margin3.0

Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons

Career Composite Score12.1

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
122.0
Qualified seasons
15
All-time rank
#81
Strongest seasons

Every season

Lenny Wilkens 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
1974–75Historical Defense EstimatePOR37651,161+1.4784.0#3187.963rdBroad
1973–74Historical Defense EstimateCLE36742,483+2.6293.2#13248.891stBroad
1972–73Historical Defense EstimateCLE35752,973+3.2294.8#10350.093rdModeled
1971–72Historical Defense EstimateSEA34802,989+2.2087.8#21289.290thModeled
1970–71Historical Defense EstimateSEA33712,641+1.4283.2#29218.984thModeled
1969–70Historical Defense EstimateSEA32752,802+1.5685.8#21241.987thModeled
1968–69Historical Defense EstimateSEA31823,463+2.3991.7#12371.995thModeled
1967–68Historical Defense EstimateSTL30823,169+2.4094.2#8330.595thModeled
1966–67Historical Defense EstimateSTL29782,974+0.9480.0#21214.381stModeled
1965–66Historical Defense EstimateSTL28692,692+0.8178.5#21184.083rdModeled
1964–65Historical Defense EstimateSTL27782,854+0.7978.7#20190.883rdModeled
1963–64Historical Defense EstimateSTL26782,526+0.3678.3#21142.578thModeled
1962–63Historical Defense EstimateSTL25752,569+0.7778.0#21171.681stModeled
1961–62Historical Defense EstimateSTL2420870-0.8851.2#4325.443rdModeled
1960–61Historical Defense EstimateSTL23751,898+0.9775.9#20151.772ndModeled

Career movement

Lenny Wilkens's career impact by season

Peak +3.22 in 1972–73 · 15 seasons · 38,064 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 impactMinutesModeled estimate
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.

Open full comparison →
Lenny WilkensMark Jackson
Era-centered box impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average · dashed marker means the player did not play
Lenny Wilkens and Mark Jackson era-centered impact values by NBA season number
NBA seasonLenny WilkensMark Jackson
11.02.2
2-0.92.6
30.80.3
40.42.6
50.83.1
60.82.4
70.90.6
82.40.1
92.41.0
101.60.8
111.41.6
122.21.5
133.22.2
142.61.0
151.51.1
16Did not play-1.8
17Did not play-4.1

NBA season number

Similar career arcs

Players with careers similar to Lenny Wilkens

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.

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 →