The Bill Russell Scale: How LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry can leap legends

Welcome to the fourth annual edition of The Bill Russell Scale, “an unbiased ranking of unassailable players,” where we assess everyone’s legacies based on how close their careers come to perfection.

What is The Bill Russell Scale?

Criteria for The Bill Russell Scale came from the idea that the NBA’s 50th anniversary team included:

• Every MVP but Bob McAdoo

• Every nine-time All-Star but Dominique Wilkins

• Every six-time All-NBA selection but Wilkins

• Every three-time top-five MVP finisher but McAdoo and Wilkins

• Every face of a championship team (post-BAA/NBL merger) but Bob Davies and Dennis Johnson

• All but four Finals MVPs (Johnson, Jo Jo White, Cedric Maxwell, Joe Dumars)

• All but four top-40 all-time scorers (Wilkins, Alex English, Adrian Dantley, Walt Bellamy)

• Everyone with at least 100 win shares and 11 playoff win shares but Maurice Cheeks

• All but five players with a qualified Player Efficiency Rating greater than 20 and a playoff PER greater than 19 (George Yardley, Bob Lanier, Marques Johnson, Kevin Johnson and Dan Issel)

The additions of McAdoo and Wilkins to the 75th anniversary team further solidified this as criteria for all-timers. At the start of the 2021-22 campaign, 74 players met two or more of these barriers to entry.

How is The Bill Russell Scale determined?

So I concocted The Bill Russell Scale, using that criteria and this scoring system:

19.1: Russell’s average PER and playoff PER. The max score.
16.4: Russell’s regular-season win shares divided by 10. The max score.
14.5: Russell’s career scoring total divided by 1,000. The max score.
12: Russell’s number of All-Star appearances. The max score.
11: Russell’s number of All-NBA appearances. The max score.
11: Russell’s number of top-five MVP finishes. The max score.
11: Russell’s combined championships and Finals MVP awards. The max score.*
5: Russell’s number of regular-season MVP awards. The max score.
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100: The Bill Russell Scale

*The NBA did not name a Finals MVP, the honor later named for Russell, until the 1968-69 season, when Jerry West won the award in a losing effort (to a retiring Russell). Since no one is likely to match Russell’s 11 championships, combining rings and Finals MVPs gives the field a shot to hit the mark or approach it.

Why is Bill Russell the scale’s standard-bearer?

We tried setting the scale to several different players, though none captured legacies so well, probably because Russell profiles as a winner in whatever form it takes to chase perfection. His statistics do not fit neatly into a box. He was not an all-time great scorer, and PER fails to capture his defensive impact.

You may consider Michael Jordan, LeBron James or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar the greatest player in NBA history, but there is no career you should want more than Russell’s. He played 13 seasons, never finished lower than seventh in MVP voting and won 11 championships. His only career playoff losses came against Bob Pettit and Wilt Chamberlain — two of the 11 players ever to meet all nine of the above criteria.

When did the Bill Russell Scale begin?

I created the Bill Russell Scale in 2021, when the league announced its 75th anniversary team. The scale’s history: 2021 • 2022 • 2023. We will expand it by one player each season to match the NBA’s anniversary.

Who scores highest on The Bill Russell Scale?

The 78 greatest careers in NBA history, according to the 100-point scale (active players in bold):

1. Bill Russell (100)
2. Michael Jordan (99)
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (97)
4. LeBron James (96)
T5. Magic Johnson, Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant (92)
T8. Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O’Neal (89)
10. Larry Bird (87.2)
T11. Kevin Durant, Bob Pettit, Oscar Robertson, Karl Malone (84)
15. Hakeem Olajuwon (83.9)
16. Jerry West (82.9)
17. Moses Malone (80)
18. John Havlicek (79.2)
19. Dirk Nowitzki (79)
20. Stephen Curry (75.4)
T21. Kevin Garnett, David Robinson, Chris Paul (78)
24. Charles Barkley (77)
25. Bob Cousy (76.3)
26. Dolph Schayes (74.8)
27. James Harden (73.4)
28. George Mikan (72.2)
29. Elgin Baylor (72)
30. Dwyane Wade (71.7)
31. John Stockton (71)
32. Giannis Antetokounmpo (70.5)
33. Patrick Ewing (70.2)
34. Julius Erving (69.2)
35. Dwight Howard (68.8)
36. Russell Westbrook (67.7)
37. Scottie Pippen (67.5)
38. Elvin Hayes (67)
39. Steve Nash (66.6)
40. Nikola Jokić (66.4)
41. Gary Payton (66.3)
T42. Paul Arizin, Allen Iverson (65.5)
T44. George Gervin, Clyde Drexler (65.2)
T46. Rick Barry, Jason Kidd (64.9)
48. Dominique Wilkins (64.4)
49. Paul Pierce (64)
50. Robert Parish (63.1)
51. Isiah Thomas (62.6)
52. Kawhi Leonard (61.9)
T53. Anthony Davis, Sam Jones (61.8)
55. Carmelo Anthony (61.3)
56. Walt Frazier (61)
57. Damian Lillard (60.7)
58. Ray Allen (60.5)
59. Pau Gasol (60)
60. Tracy McGrady (59.3)
61. Tony Parker (59.1)
62. Hal Greer (59)
63. Bill Sharman (58.7)
64. Chris Bosh (58.2)
65. Paul George (58.1)
T66. Willis Reed, Reggie Miller (57.9)
68. LaMarcus Aldridge (57.2)
T69. Dave Cowens, Kevin McHale (56.9)
71. Chauncey Billups (56.6)
72. Jimmy Butler (56.1)
73. Grant Hill (56.2)
74. Bob McAdoo (55.5)
75. Jerry Lucas (55.4)
T76. Bob Lanier, Vince Carter (55.3)
78. Adrian Dantley (55)

Keep in mind: Some interesting delineations have developed along round numbers on the scale. 80+ points gets you in the pantheon, starting with Moses Malone. Stars closest to 70 (Patrick Ewing), 60 (Pau Gasol), 50 (Joe Dumars), etc., also give you an idea of the kind of career necessary to climb each rung.

Following this year’s entries of Chauncey Billups, Vince Carter and Walter Davis into the Hall of Fame, only three eligible players have scored 50 points on The Bill Russell Scale and failed to gain induction: Amar’e Stoudemire, Shawn Marion and Shawn Kemp, each of whom can argue his way into Springfield.

Also:

• Stephen Curry climbed from 25th to 20th, eclipsing Chris Paul in four fewer seasons. By this metric, at least, Curry’s legacy is second among point guards, trailing only Magic Johnson. Another prime season — All-Star, All-NBA and a handful more win shares — will make him the 18th member of the pantheon.

• Kevin Durant moved from 16th into a four-way tie for 11th, maxing out four of his seven scores. He can only move into the top 10 with a seventh top-five MVP finish or a third ring (or third Finals MVP).

• LeBron James can catch Kareem with another regular-season MVP, a Finals MVP or a title.

• Nikola Jokić has scored 15.9 points over the past two seasons, an average that, if he were to repeat it, would vault him into the mid-20s on this list at the age of 29. He will be next in line for the pantheon.

• Giannis Antetokounmpo was tied for the final spot on the top 75 when we launched the scale in 2021. He has risen to No. 32 in three years, reflecting how quickly great players can ascend in their primes.

• Welcome aboard, Jimmy Butler. Your inclusion here almost certainly guarantees a Hall of Fame nod.

• In line to crack next year’s list: Kyrie Irving (54.2) and Joel Embiid (53.6). (Tough luck, Adrian Dantley.)

I always appreciate feedback. Your input forced me to rethink the inclusion of Defensive Player of the Year awards. If the honor were around in his day, Russell may have claimed it in each of his 13 seasons. In the end, equating DPOY with MVP did not meaningfully alter anyone’s legacy ranking, and expanding that logic to account for top-five DPOY finishes and All-Defensive selections overcompensated for defense.

Maybe the best thing about using Russell for this scale is that defense is built into his advanced metrics. Nobody logged more defensive win shares than Russell’s 133.64. In fact, the gap between No. 1 and No. 2 (Tim Duncan) in defensive win shares is equal to the chasm between No. 2 and No. 12 (Dwight Howard).

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming …

Where do active stars rank on The Bill Russell Scale?

Here is where every active player who has made at least one All-Star appearance ranks on The Bill Russell Scale (remembering that the model better represents a player’s legacy with a fuller picture of his career):

1. LeBron James (96)
2. Kevin Durant (84)
3. Stephen Curry (78.1)
4. Chris Paul (78)
5. James Harden (74)
6. Giannis Antetokounmpo (70.5)
7. Russell Westbrook (67.7)
8. Nikola Jokić (66.4)
9. Kawhi Leonard (61.9)
10. Anthony Davis (61.8)
11. Damian Lillard (60.7)
12. Paul George (58.1)
13. Jimmy Butler (56.1)
14. Kyrie Irving (54.2)
15. Joel Embiid (53.6)
16. DeMar DeRozan (51.3)
17. Kevin Love (50.9)
T18. Al Horford, Kyle Lowry (49.8)
20. Luka Dončić (48.6)
21. Jayson Tatum (47.6)
22. Rudy Gobert (46.2)
23. Klay Thompson (45.9)
24. Karl-Anthony Towns (45.7)
25. Devin Booker (45.1)
26. Brook Lopez (43.2)
27. Mike Conley (42.8)
28. Nikola Vučević (42.5)
29. Jrue Holiday (42)
T30. DeAndre Jordan, Bradley Beal (41.7)
32. Derrick Rose (41.2)
33. Donovan Mitchell (41.1)
34. Andre Drummond (40.6)
T35. Draymond Green, Domantas Sabonis (38.5)
37. Khris Middleton (38.4)
38. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (38.3)
T39. Trae Young, Pascal Siakam (37.2)
41. Isaiah Thomas (36.9)
42. Jaylen Brown (36.1)
43. Julius Randle (35.6)
44. Kristaps Porziņģis (34.4)
45. Bam Adebayo (34.3)
46. De’Aaron Fox (33.7)
47. Jalen Brunson (32.9)
48. Zach LaVine (32.6)
49. Andrew Wiggins (32.5)
50. Jarrett Allen (31.7)
51. Anthony Edwards (30.7)
52. Ben Simmons (30.4)
53. Ja Morant (29.9)
54. Brandon Ingram (29.3)
55. Tyrese Haliburton (29.2)
56. Lauri Markkanen (28.9)
57. Fred VanVleet (28)
58. Dejounte Murray (27.9)
59. Zion Williamson (27.8)
60. D’Angelo Russell (27.2)
61. Jaren Jackson Jr. (25.6)
62. Tyrese Maxey (25.4)
63. LaMelo Ball (24.7)
64. Scottie Barnes (23)
65. Paolo Banchero (22.6)
66. Darius Garland (22.5)

P.S.: I can accommodate requests for calculations of where your favorite player ranks. Until next year.