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Player profile · CHI / CLE / GSW / SFW
Nate Thurmond
Nate Thurmond stats, teams and career impact
#53 all-timeCareer averages · 15.0 PPG · 15.0 RPG · 2.7 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
- Position
- Center
- Final NBA team
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Height / weight
- 6 ft 11 in (211 cm) · 225 lb (102 kg)
- Born
- July 25, 1941
- Died
- July 16, 2016 (74 yrs old)
- College
- Bowling Green
- NBA seasons
- 14 seasons · 1963–64 to 1976–77
Career summaryNate Thurmond was a center who played 14 NBA seasons, from 1963–64 through 1976–77.
- Career PPG
- 15.0
- Career RPG
- 15.0
- Career APG
- 2.7
- #4 in 1967–68
- #53 all-time
Best-Season Impact Rank
Career Impact Rank
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
Career overview
Why Nate Thurmond ranks #53 all time
Nate Thurmond ranks #53 all time. 4 top-ten finishes give him a sustained run near the top of the league. His full-career value ranks #61, making peak performance the stronger part of his case.
4 top-ten finishes
964 games · Career Value Rank #61
NBA honors7× All-Star · 5× All-DefenseContext only; honors are not model inputs.
Head to head
Compare Nate Thurmond with…
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- Nate Thurmond vs. Chris Bosh Similar career path
- Nate Thurmond vs. Sam Lacey Similar career path
- Nate Thurmond vs. Lamar Odom Similar career path
- Nate Thurmond vs. Andre Drummond Similar career path
- Nate Thurmond vs. David West Similar career path
- Nate Thurmond vs. Al Jefferson Similar career path
Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources
Full team history
- Teams
- San Francisco Warriors, Golden State Warriors, Chicago Bulls, and Cleveland Cavaliers
Career shooting
NBA regular season- Field goal
- 42.1%FG%
- Three-point
- —3P%
- Free throw
- 66.7%FT%
964 career games · 35,881 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
Nate Thurmond 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 →
| 1976–77 | 5.5 | 7.6 | 1.7 | +1.31 | CLE | 49 | 9 | 20.3 | 40.7% | — | 64.2% | #46 | 69.9 |
| 1975–76 | 4.4 | 5.3 | 1.2 | +0.16 | CHI/CLE | 78 | 0 | 17.9 | 42.1% | — | 50.4% | #60 | 63.6 |
| 1974–75 | 7.9 | 11.3 | 4.1 | +1.52 | CHI | 80 | 0 | 34.5 | 36.4% | — | 58.9% | #29 | 201.3 |
| 1973–74 | 13.0 | 14.2 | 2.7 | +1.47 | GSW | 62 | 0 | 39.7 | 44.4% | — | 66.6% | #28 | 193.8 |
| 1972–73 | 17.1 | 17.1 | 3.5 | +2.71 | GSW | 79 | 0 | 43.3 | 44.6% | — | 71.8% | #17 | 376.7 |
| 1971–72 | 21.4 | 16.1 | 2.9 | +2.53 | GSW | 78 | 0 | 43.1 | 43.2% | — | 74.3% | #17 | 358.6 |
| 1970–71 | 20.0 | 13.8 | 3.1 | +2.12 | SFW | 82 | 0 | 40.9 | 44.5% | — | 73.0% | #18 | 326.6 |
| 1969–70 | 21.9 | 17.7 | 3.5 | +2.61 | SFW | 43 | 0 | 44.6 | 41.4% | — | 75.4% | #11 | 214.6 |
| 1968–69 | 21.5 | 19.7 | 3.6 | +2.70 | SFW | 71 | 0 | 45.2 | 41.0% | — | 61.5% | #10 | 368.0 |
| 1967–68 | 20.5 | 22.0 | 4.2 | +3.12 | SFW | 51 | 0 | 43.6 | 41.1% | — | 64.4% | #4 | 292.7 |
| 1966–67 | 18.7 | 21.3 | 2.6 | +2.34 | SFW | 65 | 0 | 42.5 | 43.7% | — | 62.9% | #6 | 318.4 |
| 1965–66 | 16.3 | 18.0 | 1.5 | +1.00 | SFW | 73 | 0 | 39.6 | 40.6% | — | 65.4% | #16 | 225.4 |
| 1964–65 | 16.5 | 18.1 | 2.0 | +2.32 | SFW | 77 | 0 | 41.2 | 41.9% | — | 65.8% | #8 | 342.1 |
| 1963–64 | 7.0 | 10.4 | 1.1 | +0.64 | SFW | 76 | 0 | 25.9 | 39.5% | — | 54.9% | #18 | 124.6 |
| Career | 15.0 | 15.0 | 2.7 | — | CHI/CLE/GSW/SFW | 964 | — | 37.2 | 42.1% | — | 66.7% | — | — |
Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.
Film evidence
Nate Thurmond 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 Nate Thurmond
The NBA's tribute supplies scarce visual evidence for Thurmond's strength, rebounding and interior defense in a low-footage era.
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.
7.8 composite · lower is better
7.8 average league finish
3,476 total value
Career standing
How Nate Thurmond 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 Score7.8
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
- 154.5
- Qualified seasons
- 14
- All-time rank
- #53
Strongest seasons
Every season
Nate Thurmond 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
| 1976–77Historical Defense Estimate | CLE | 35 | 49 | 997 | +1.31 | 81.5 | #46 | 69.9 | 57th | Standard |
| 1975–76Historical Defense Estimate | CHI/CLE | 34 | 78 | 1,393 | +0.16 | 68.6 | #60 | 63.6 | 57th | Broad |
| 1974–75Historical Defense Estimate | CHI | 33 | 80 | 2,756 | +1.52 | 85.0 | #29 | 201.3 | 89th | Broad |
| 1973–74Historical Defense Estimate | GSW | 32 | 62 | 2,463 | +1.47 | 84.7 | #28 | 193.8 | 84th | Broad |
| 1972–73Historical Defense Estimate | GSW | 31 | 79 | 3,419 | +2.71 | 90.7 | #17 | 376.7 | 95th | Modeled |
| 1971–72Historical Defense Estimate | GSW | 30 | 78 | 3,362 | +2.53 | 90.2 | #17 | 358.6 | 95th | Modeled |
| 1970–71Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 29 | 82 | 3,351 | +2.12 | 89.8 | #18 | 326.6 | 93rd | Modeled |
| 1969–70Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 28 | 43 | 1,919 | +2.61 | 92.9 | #11 | 214.6 | 85th | Modeled |
| 1968–69Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 27 | 71 | 3,208 | +2.70 | 93.2 | #10 | 368.0 | 94th | Modeled |
| 1967–68Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 26 | 51 | 2,222 | +3.12 | 97.5 | #4 | 292.7 | 92nd | Modeled |
| 1966–67Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 25 | 65 | 2,761 | +2.34 | 95.0 | #6 | 318.4 | 94th | Modeled |
| 1965–66Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 24 | 73 | 2,891 | +1.00 | 83.9 | #16 | 225.4 | 86th | Modeled |
| 1964–65Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 23 | 77 | 3,173 | +2.32 | 92.1 | #8 | 342.1 | 94th | Modeled |
| 1963–64Historical Defense Estimate | SFW | 22 | 76 | 1,966 | +0.64 | 81.5 | #18 | 124.6 | 75th | Modeled |
Career movement
Nate Thurmond's career impact by season
Peak +3.12 in 1967–68 · 14 seasons · 35,881 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.
Nate ThurmondChris Bosh
| NBA season | Nate Thurmond | Chris Bosh |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| 2 | 2.3 | -0.0 |
| 3 | 1.0 | 2.1 |
| 4 | 2.3 | 2.8 |
| 5 | 3.1 | 3.8 |
| 6 | 2.7 | 2.9 |
| 7 | 2.6 | 2.6 |
| 8 | 2.1 | 0.4 |
| 9 | 2.5 | 0.6 |
| 10 | 2.7 | 0.6 |
| 11 | 1.5 | 0.2 |
| 12 | 1.5 | 1.7 |
| 13 | 0.2 | 3.2 |
| 14 | 1.3 | Did not play |
NBA season number
Similar career arcs
Players with careers similar to Nate Thurmond
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 #244
Chris Bosh
92career similarity score
94/100 closest-season score · 1967–68 ↔ 2009–10C · All-Time Career #114Sam Lacey
92career similarity score
92/100 closest-season score · 1967–68 ↔ 1976–77PF · All-Time Career #221Lamar Odom
92career similarity score
89/100 closest-season score · 1967–68 ↔ 2006–07Impact 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 →