Bill Russell vs Shaquille O'Neal

2of 9 lines

7of 9 lines

Bill Russell and Shaquille O'Neal compared on their NBA careers: Bill Russell played 13 seasons, 1956-57 to 1968-69, Shaquille O'Neal 19 seasons, 1992-93 to 2010-11. Bill Russell averaged 15.1 points a game to Shaquille O'Neal's 23.7. Bill Russell won 11 titles, Shaquille O'Neal won 4 titles.

Who has the better career numbers?

Shaquille O'Neal leads in 7 of the 9 lines, Bill Russell in 2. Bold marks the better figure; playing time — games, minutes, at-bats, innings — is not scored.

Bill Russell and Shaquille O'Neal career per game

963	GP	1,207
42.3	MIN	34.7
15.1	PTS	23.7, better
0	REB	10.9, better
4.3, better	AST	2.5
0	STL	0.6, better
0	BLK	2.3, better
44	FG%	58.2, better
0	3P%	4.5, better
56.1, better	FT%	52.7
47.1	TS%	58.6, better

Career totals

Bill Russell and Shaquille O'Neal career totals

14,522	PTS	28,596, better
0	REB	13,099, better
4,100, better	AST	3,026
0	STL	739, better
0	BLK	2,732, better
44	FG%	58.2, better
0	3P%	4.5, better
56.1, better	FT%	52.7
47.1	TS%	58.6, better

How do they compare in the playoffs?

Bill Russell and Shaquille O'Neal postseason

165	GP	216
45.4	MIN	37.5
16.2	PTS	24.3, better
0	REB	11.6, better
4.7, better	AST	2.7
0	STL	0.5, better
0	BLK	2.1, better
43	FG%	56.3, better
0	3P%	0
60.3, better	FT%	50.4
47.4	TS%	56.5, better

Where each stands all time

Bill Russell and Shaquille O'Neal all-time places

173rd (14,522)	Points	11th (28,596), better
119th (4,100), better	Assists	216th (3,026)
—	Rebounds	9th (13,099), better
—	Blocks	8th (2,732), 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 Shaquille O'Neal titles and awards

11, better	Championships	4
8, better	All-NBA Second Team	2
5, better	MVP	1
3	All-NBA First Team	8, better
1	All-Star MVP	3, better
1, better	All-Defensive First Team	—
—	All-Rookie First Team	1, better
—	Rookie of the Year	1, better
—	All-NBA Third Team	4, better
—	Finals MVP	3, better
—	All-Defensive Second Team	3, 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 Shaquille O'Neal season by season

1st	1956-57	14.7	0	1.8	1992-93	23.4, better	13.9, better	1.9, better
2nd	1957-58	16.6	0	2.9, better	1993-94	29.3, better	13.2, better	2.4
3rd	1958-59	16.7	0	3.2, better	1994-95	29.3, better	11.4, better	2.7
4th	1959-60	18.2	0	3.7, better	1995-96	26.6, better	11.0, better	2.9
5th	1960-61	16.9	0	3.4, better	1996-97	26.2, better	12.5, better	3.1
6th	1961-62	18.9	0	4.5, better	1997-98	28.3, better	11.4, better	2.4
7th	1962-63	16.8	0	4.5, better	1998-99	26.3, better	10.7, better	2.3
8th	1963-64	15.0	0	4.7, better	1999-00	29.7, better	13.6, better	3.8
9th	1964-65	14.1	0	5.3, better	2000-01	28.7, better	12.7, better	3.7
10th	1965-66	12.9	0	4.8, better	2001-02	27.2, better	10.7, better	3.0
11th	1966-67	13.3	0	5.8, better	2002-03	27.5, better	11.1, better	3.1
12th	1967-68	12.5	0	4.6, better	2003-04	21.5, better	11.5, better	2.9
13th	1968-69	9.9	0	4.9, better	2004-05	22.9, better	10.4, better	2.7
14th	—	—	—	—	2005-06	20.0	9.2	1.9
15th	—	—	—	—	2006-07	17.3	7.4	2.0
16th	—	—	—	—	2007-08	13.6	9.1	1.5
17th	—	—	—	—	2008-09	17.8	8.4	1.7
18th	—	—	—	—	2009-10	12.0	6.7	1.5
19th	—	—	—	—	2010-11	9.2	4.8	0.7

What the columns mean: PTS · REB · AST