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Player profile · LAL / NJN / POR
Sam Bowie
Sam Bowie stats, teams and career impact
#900 all-timeCareer averages · 10.9 PPG · 7.5 RPG · 2.1 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
- Position
- Center
- Final NBA team
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Height / weight
- 7 ft 1 in (216 cm) · 235 lb (107 kg)
- Born
- March 17, 1961 (65 yrs old)
- College
- Kentucky
- NBA seasons
- 10 seasons · 1984–85 to 1994–95
Career summarySam Bowie was a center who played 10 NBA seasons, from 1984–85 through 1994–95.
- Career PPG
- 10.9
- Career RPG
- 7.5
- Career APG
- 2.1
- #33 in 1984–85
- #900 all-time
Best-Season Impact Rank
Career Impact Rank
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded
Career overview
Why Sam Bowie ranks #900 all time
Sam Bowie ranks #900 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #66.3. His full-career value ranks #665, so longevity is a major reason he lands this high.
450+ minutes required per season
511 games · Career Value Rank #665
Head to head
Compare Sam Bowie 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.
- Kent Benson Similar career path
- Ivica Zubac Similar career path
- Steve Hawes Similar career path
- Jim Fox Similar career path
- Marvin Webster Similar career path
- Chuck Hayes Similar career path
- Manute Bol Same-era comparison
- Danny Young Same-era comparison
- Steve Colter Same-era comparison
- Jay Humphries Same-era comparison
Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources
Full team history
- Teams
- Portland Trail Blazers, New Jersey Nets, and Los Angeles Lakers
Career shooting
NBA regular season- Field goal
- 45.2%FG%
- Three-point
- 30.2%3P%
- Free throw
- 74.8%FT%
511 career games · 14,098 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
Sam Bowie 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 →
| 1994–95 | 4.6 | 4.3 | 1.8 | -1.73 | LAL | 67 | 10 | 18.3 | 44.2% | 18.2% | 76.4% | #197 | 6.6 |
| 1993–94 | 8.9 | 5.2 | 1.9 | -1.01 | LAL | 25 | 7 | 22.2 | 43.6% | 25.0% | 86.7% | #160 | 11.0 |
| 1992–93 | 9.1 | 7.0 | 1.6 | -0.60 | NJN | 79 | 65 | 26.5 | 45.0% | 33.3% | 77.9% | #148 | 58.4 |
| 1991–92 | 15.0 | 8.1 | 2.6 | +0.79 | NJN | 71 | 61 | 30.7 | 44.5% | 32.0% | 75.7% | #84 | 123.9 |
| 1990–91 | 12.9 | 7.7 | 2.4 | -0.06 | NJN | 62 | 51 | 30.9 | 43.4% | 18.2% | 73.2% | #115 | 77.0 |
| 1989–90 | 14.7 | 10.1 | 1.3 | +0.59 | NJN | 68 | 54 | 32.5 | 41.6% | 32.3% | 77.6% | #85 | 118.2 |
| 1988–89 | 8.6 | 5.3 | 1.8 | -0.62 | POR | 20 | 0 | 20.6 | 45.1% | 71.4% | 57.1% | — | 12.3 |
| 1986–87 | 16.0 | 6.6 | 1.8 | -6.61 | POR | 5 | 5 | 32.6 | 45.5% | — | 66.7% | — | -16.4 |
| 1985–86 | 11.8 | 8.6 | 2.6 | +0.45 | POR | 38 | 34 | 29.8 | 48.4% | — | 70.8% | #82 | 60.5 |
| 1984–85 | 10.0 | 8.6 | 2.8 | +2.05 | POR | 76 | 62 | 29.2 | 53.7% | — | 71.1% | #33 | 193.8 |
| Career | 10.9 | 7.5 | 2.1 | — | LAL/NJN/POR | 511 | — | 27.6 | 45.2% | 30.2% | 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.
86.9 composite · lower is better
79.8 average league finish
645 total value
Career standing
How Sam Bowie 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 Score86.9
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
- 8
- All-time rank
- #900
Strongest seasons
Every season
Sam Bowie 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
| 1994–95Historical Defense Estimate | LAL | 33 | 67 | 1,225 | -1.73 | 36.6 | #197 | 6.6 | 37th | Broad |
| 1993–94Historical Defense Estimate | LAL | 32 | 25 | 556 | -1.01 | 45.4 | #160 | 11.0 | 36th | Standard |
| 1992–93Historical Defense Estimate | NJN | 31 | 79 | 2,092 | -0.60 | 50.2 | #148 | 58.4 | 55th | Broad |
| 1991–92Historical Defense Estimate | NJN | 30 | 71 | 2,179 | +0.79 | 71.3 | #84 | 123.9 | 74th | Broad |
| 1990–91Historical Defense Estimate | NJN | 29 | 62 | 1,916 | -0.06 | 60.8 | #115 | 77.0 | 64th | Broad |
| 1989–90Historical Defense Estimate | NJN | 28 | 68 | 2,207 | +0.59 | 70.7 | #85 | 118.2 | 74th | Broad |
| 1988–89Historical Defense Estimate | POR | 27 | 20 | 412 | -0.62 | — | — | 12.3 | — | Limited |
| 1986–87Historical Defense Estimate | POR | 25 | 5 | 163 | -6.61 | — | — | -16.4 | — | Limited |
| 1985–86Historical Defense Estimate | POR | 24 | 38 | 1,132 | +0.45 | 68.1 | #82 | 60.5 | 54th | Broad |
| 1984–85Historical Defense Estimate | POR | 23 | 76 | 2,216 | +2.05 | 87.4 | #33 | 193.8 | 86th | Broad |
Career movement
Sam Bowie's career impact by season
Peak +2.05 in 1984–85 · 10 seasons · 14,098 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
—’88
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.
Sam BowieKent Benson
| NBA season | Sam Bowie | Kent Benson |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2.1 | -0.7 |
| 2 | 0.5 | 2.0 |
| 3 | -6.6 | -0.1 |
| 4 | -0.6 | 0.7 |
| 5 | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| 6 | -0.1 | -0.3 |
| 7 | 0.8 | 1.4 |
| 8 | -0.6 | 0.0 |
| 9 | -1.0 | 0.3 |
| 10 | -1.7 | -1.2 |
| 11 | Did not play | -12.0 |
NBA season number
Similar career arcs
Players with careers similar to Sam Bowie
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 #602
Kent Benson
92career similarity score
97/100 closest-season score · 1984–85 ↔ 1978–79C · All-Time Career #1162Ivica Zubac
92career similarity score
90/100 closest-season score · 1984–85 ↔ 2021–22PF · All-Time Career #421Steve Hawes
91career similarity score
87/100 closest-season score · 1984–85 ↔ 1977–78Impact 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 →