Bill Russell vs Tim Duncan

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8of 9 lines

Bill Russell and Tim Duncan compared on their NBA careers: Bill Russell played 13 seasons, 1956-57 to 1968-69, Tim Duncan 19 seasons, 1997-98 to 2015-16. Bill Russell averaged 15.1 points a game to Tim Duncan's 19. Bill Russell won 11 titles, Tim Duncan won 5 titles.

Who has the better career numbers?

Tim Duncan leads in 8 of the 9 lines, Bill Russell in 1. Bold marks the better figure; playing time — games, minutes, at-bats, innings — is not scored.

Bill Russell and Tim Duncan career per game

963	GP	1,392
42.3	MIN	34
15.1	PTS	19, better
0	REB	10.8, better
4.3, better	AST	3
0	STL	0.7, better
0	BLK	2.2, better
44	FG%	50.6, better
0	3P%	17.9, better
56.1	FT%	69.6, better
47.1	TS%	55.1, better

Career totals

Bill Russell and Tim Duncan career totals

14,522	PTS	26,496, better
0	REB	15,091, better
4,100	AST	4,225, better
0	STL	1,025, better
0	BLK	3,020, better
44	FG%	50.6, better
0	3P%	17.9, better
56.1	FT%	69.6, better
47.1	TS%	55.1, better

How do they compare in the playoffs?

Bill Russell and Tim Duncan postseason

165	GP	251
45.4	MIN	37.3
16.2	PTS	20.6, better
0	REB	11.4, better
4.7, better	AST	3
0	STL	0.7, better
0	BLK	2.3, better
43	FG%	50.1, better
0	3P%	14.3, better
60.3	FT%	68.9, better
47.4	TS%	54.8, better

Where each stands all time

Bill Russell and Tim Duncan all-time places

173rd (14,522)	Points	22nd (26,496), better
119th (4,100)	Assists	109th (4,225), better
—	Rebounds	2nd (15,091), better
—	Steals	157th (1,025), better
—	Blocks	5th (3,020), 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 Tim Duncan titles and awards

11, better	Championships	5
8, better	All-NBA Second Team	3
5, better	MVP	2
3	All-NBA First Team	10, better
1	All-Star MVP	1
1	All-Defensive First Team	8, better
—	All-Defensive Second Team	7, better
—	Rookie of the Year	1, better
—	All-Rookie First Team	1, better
—	Finals MVP	3, better
—	All-NBA Third Team	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 Tim Duncan season by season

1st	1956-57	14.7	0	1.8	1997-98	21.1, better	11.9, better	2.7, better
2nd	1957-58	16.6	0	2.9, better	1998-99	21.7, better	11.4, better	2.4
3rd	1958-59	16.7	0	3.2	1999-00	23.2, better	12.4, better	3.2
4th	1959-60	18.2	0	3.7, better	2000-01	22.2, better	12.2, better	3.0
5th	1960-61	16.9	0	3.4	2001-02	25.5, better	12.7, better	3.7, better
6th	1961-62	18.9	0	4.5, better	2002-03	23.3, better	12.9, better	3.9
7th	1962-63	16.8	0	4.5, better	2003-04	22.3, better	12.4, better	3.1
8th	1963-64	15.0	0	4.7, better	2004-05	20.3, better	11.1, better	2.7
9th	1964-65	14.1	0	5.3, better	2005-06	18.6, better	11.0, better	3.2
10th	1965-66	12.9	0	4.8, better	2006-07	20.0, better	10.6, better	3.4
11th	1966-67	13.3	0	5.8, better	2007-08	19.3, better	11.3, better	2.8
12th	1967-68	12.5	0	4.6, better	2008-09	19.3, better	10.7, better	3.5
13th	1968-69	9.9	0	4.9, better	2009-10	17.9, better	10.1, better	3.2
14th	—	—	—	—	2010-11	13.4	8.9	2.7
15th	—	—	—	—	2011-12	15.4	9.0	2.3
16th	—	—	—	—	2012-13	17.8	9.9	2.7
17th	—	—	—	—	2013-14	15.1	9.7	3.0
18th	—	—	—	—	2014-15	13.9	9.1	3.0
19th	—	—	—	—	2015-16	8.6	7.3	2.7

What the columns mean: PTS · REB · AST