Bill Russell vs Kobe Bryant

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9of 9 lines

Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant compared on their NBA careers: Bill Russell played 13 seasons, 1956-57 to 1968-69, Kobe Bryant 20 seasons, 1996-97 to 2015-16. Bill Russell averaged 15.1 points a game to Kobe Bryant's 25. Bill Russell won 11 titles, Kobe Bryant won 5 titles.

Who has the better career numbers?

Kobe Bryant leads in 9 of the 9 lines, Bill Russell in 0. Bold marks the better figure; playing time — games, minutes, at-bats, innings — is not scored.

Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant career per game

963	GP	1,346
42.3	MIN	36.1
15.1	PTS	25, better
0	REB	5.2, better
4.3	AST	4.7, better
0	STL	1.4, better
0	BLK	0.5, better
44	FG%	44.7, better
0	3P%	32.9, better
56.1	FT%	83.7, better
47.1	TS%	55, better

Career totals

Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant career totals

14,522	PTS	33,643, better
0	REB	7,047, better
4,100	AST	6,306, better
0	STL	1,944, better
0	BLK	640, better
44	FG%	44.7, better
0	3P%	32.9, better
56.1	FT%	83.7, better
47.1	TS%	55, better

How do they compare in the playoffs?

Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant postseason

165	GP	220
45.4	MIN	39.3
16.2	PTS	25.6, better
0	REB	5.1, better
4.7	AST	4.7
0	STL	1.4, better
0	BLK	0.7, better
43	FG%	44.8, better
0	3P%	33.1, better
60.3	FT%	81.6, better
47.4	TS%	54.1, better

Where each stands all time

Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant all-time places

173rd (14,522)	Points	4th (33,643), better
119th (4,100)	Assists	34th (6,306), better
—	Rebounds	94th (7,047), better
—	3-pointers made	32nd (1,827), better
—	Steals	18th (1,944), better
—	Blocks	190th (640), better

Among the NBA players with a career line on file, regular season, counting stats only — the same lists the records pages run on.

Titles and awards

Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant titles and awards

11, better	Championships	5
8, better	All-NBA Second Team	2
5, better	MVP	1
3	All-NBA First Team	11, better
1	All-Star MVP	4, better
1	All-Defensive First Team	8, better
—	All-Rookie Second Team	1, better
—	All-NBA Third Team	2, better
—	All-Defensive Second Team	3, better
—	Finals MVP	2, better

Awards come from the league’s published winner lists; a championship counts a season played for the club that won it.

Season by season

Lined up by career year, not by calendar: each row is the players’ nth season.

Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant season by season

1st	1956-57	14.7, better	0	1.8, better	1996-97	7.6	1.9, better	1.3
2nd	1957-58	16.6, better	0	2.9, better	1997-98	15.4	3.1, better	2.5
3rd	1958-59	16.7	0	3.2	1998-99	19.9, better	5.3, better	3.8, better
4th	1959-60	18.2	0	3.7	1999-00	22.5, better	6.3, better	4.9, better
5th	1960-61	16.9	0	3.4	2000-01	28.5, better	5.9, better	5.0, better
6th	1961-62	18.9	0	4.5	2001-02	25.2, better	5.5, better	5.5, better
7th	1962-63	16.8	0	4.5	2002-03	30.0, better	6.9, better	5.9, better
8th	1963-64	15.0	0	4.7	2003-04	24.0, better	5.5, better	5.1, better
9th	1964-65	14.1	0	5.3	2004-05	27.6, better	5.9, better	6.0, better
10th	1965-66	12.9	0	4.8, better	2005-06	35.4, better	5.3, better	4.5
11th	1966-67	13.3	0	5.8, better	2006-07	31.6, better	5.7, better	5.4
12th	1967-68	12.5	0	4.6	2007-08	28.3, better	6.3, better	5.4, better
13th	1968-69	9.9	0	4.9	2008-09	26.8, better	5.2, better	4.9
14th	—	—	—	—	2009-10	27.0	5.4	5.0
15th	—	—	—	—	2010-11	25.3	5.1	4.7
16th	—	—	—	—	2011-12	27.9	5.4	4.6
17th	—	—	—	—	2012-13	27.3	5.6	6.0
18th	—	—	—	—	2013-14	13.8	4.3	6.3
19th	—	—	—	—	2014-15	22.3	5.7	5.6
20th	—	—	—	—	2015-16	17.6	3.7	2.8

What the columns mean: PTS · REB · AST