Bill Russell vs. John Salmons Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of John Salmons and Bill Russell, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.

Bill Russell and John Salmons both played 13 years in the NBA. Bill Russell had the first of his seasons in 1956-57, while John Salmons had his rookie season in 2002-03. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achivements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Comparison Season by Season
Jump to season: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13
Rookie Season
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1956-57	2002-03
Team	Boston Celtics	Philadelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs	NBA Champion	76ers Lost East Conf Semis

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	48	35.3	14.7	-	-	19.6	1.8	-	-	-	3.0	5.8	13.5	.427	-	-	-	3.2	6.4	.492
John Salmons	64	7.9	2.1	0.3	0.7	0.9	0.7	0.3	0.1	0.5	0.8	0.8	1.8	.414	0.2	0.5	.323	0.4	0.5	.743
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	10	40.9	13.9	-	-	24.4	3.2	-	-	-	4.1	5.4	14.8	.365	-	-	-	3.1	6.1	.508
John Salmons	6	2.5	0.0	0.0	0.5	0.5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.0	0.2	.000	0.0	0.2	.000	0.0	0.3	.000

Season 2
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1957-58	2003-04
Team	Boston Celtics	Philadelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA Second Team	-
	Rebounds Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Celtics Lost NBA Finals	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	69	38.3	16.6	-	-	22.7	2.9	-	-	-	2.6	6.6	15.0	.442	-	-	-	3.3	6.4	.519
John Salmons	77	20.8	5.8	0.5	2.1	2.5	1.7	0.8	0.2	1.0	1.6	2.1	5.4	.387	0.6	1.9	.340	0.9	1.2	.772
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	9	39.4	15.1	-	-	24.6	2.7	-	-	-	2.7	5.3	14.8	.361	-	-	-	4.4	7.3	.606
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 3
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1958-59	2004-05
Team	Boston Celtics	Philadelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	Rebounds Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	76ers Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	70	42.6	16.7	-	-	23.0	3.2	-	-	-	2.3	6.5	14.2	.457	-	-	-	3.7	6.1	.598
John Salmons	58	17.1	4.1	0.2	1.9	2.1	2.0	0.7	0.2	0.9	1.6	1.5	3.6	.405	0.5	1.6	.341	0.6	0.8	.729
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	11	45.1	15.5	-	-	27.7	3.6	-	-	-	2.5	5.9	14.5	.409	-	-	-	3.7	6.1	.612
John Salmons	2	2.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0	0.5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	-	0.0	0.0	-	0.0	0.0	-

Season 4
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1959-60	2005-06
Team	Boston Celtics	Philadelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	74	42.5	18.2	-	-	24.0	3.7	-	-	-	2.8	7.5	16.1	.467	-	-	-	3.2	5.3	.612
John Salmons	82	25.1	7.5	0.6	2.1	2.7	2.7	0.9	0.2	1.5	2.2	2.7	6.4	.420	0.3	1.1	.299	1.9	2.4	.775
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	13	44.0	18.5	-	-	25.8	2.9	-	-	-	2.9	7.2	15.8	.456	-	-	-	4.1	5.8	.707
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 5
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1960-61	2006-07
Team	Boston Celtics	Sacramento Kings
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	78	44.3	16.9	-	-	23.9	3.4	-	-	-	2.0	6.8	16.0	.426	-	-	-	3.3	6.0	.550
John Salmons	79	27.0	8.5	0.6	2.7	3.3	3.2	0.9	0.3	1.5	2.2	3.0	6.5	.456	0.5	1.4	.357	2.0	2.6	.779
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	10	46.2	19.1	-	-	29.9	4.8	-	-	-	2.4	7.3	17.1	.427	-	-	-	4.5	8.6	.523
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 6
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1961-62	2007-08
Team	Boston Celtics	Sacramento Kings
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	76	45.2	18.9	-	-	23.6	4.5	-	-	-	2.7	7.6	16.6	.457	-	-	-	3.8	6.3	.595
John Salmons	81	31.1	12.5	0.9	3.4	4.3	2.6	1.1	0.4	2.1	2.1	4.7	9.9	.477	0.5	1.5	.325	2.6	3.2	.823
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	14	48.0	22.4	-	-	26.4	5.0	-	-	-	3.5	8.3	18.1	.458	-	-	-	5.9	8.1	.726
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 7
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1962-63	2008-09
Team	Boston Celtics	Sacramento Kings, Chicago Bulls
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game NVP	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Bulls Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	78	44.9	16.8	-	-	23.6	4.5	-	-	-	2.4	6.6	15.2	.432	-	-	-	3.7	6.6	.555
John Salmons	79	37.5	18.3	0.7	3.5	4.2	3.2	1.1	0.3	2.1	2.3	6.5	13.8	.472	1.6	3.8	.417	3.6	4.4	.830
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	13	47.5	20.3	-	-	25.1	5.1	-	-	-	2.8	7.4	16.3	.453	-	-	-	5.5	8.4	.661
John Salmons	7	44.7	18.1	0.9	3.6	4.4	2.3	1.3	1.0	1.7	2.9	6.1	15.3	.402	1.7	5.4	.316	4.1	4.9	.853

Season 8
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1963-64	2009-10
Team	Boston Celtics	Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	Rebounds Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Bucks Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	78	44.6	15.0	-	-	24.7	4.7	-	-	-	2.4	6.0	13.8	.433	-	-	-	3.0	5.5	.550
John Salmons	81	34.9	15.4	0.4	2.9	3.3	2.8	1.2	0.3	1.5	2.0	5.4	12.2	.441	1.5	3.8	.382	3.1	3.8	.830
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	10	45.1	13.1	-	-	27.2	4.4	-	-	-	3.3	4.7	13.2	.356	-	-	-	3.7	6.7	.552
John Salmons	7	40.7	17.0	1.0	2.7	3.7	4.0	1.4	0.6	1.7	2.7	6.3	15.6	.404	0.6	3.3	.174	3.9	4.0	.964

Season 9
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1964-65	2010-11
Team	Boston Celtics	Milwaukee Bucks
Honors & Awards	Season MVP	-
	All-NBA First Team	-
	Rebounds Leader	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	78	44.4	14.1	-	-	24.1	5.3	-	-	-	2.6	5.5	12.6	.438	-	-	-	3.1	5.5	.573
John Salmons	73	35.0	14.0	0.4	3.3	3.6	3.5	1.0	0.4	1.9	2.2	5.1	12.3	.415	1.1	3.0	.379	2.7	3.3	.813
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	12	46.8	16.5	-	-	25.2	6.3	-	-	-	3.6	6.6	12.5	.527	-	-	-	3.3	6.3	.526
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 10
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1965-66	2011-12
Team	Boston Celtics	Sacramento Kings
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	78	43.4	12.9	-	-	22.8	4.8	-	-	-	2.8	5.0	12.1	.415	-	-	-	2.9	5.2	.551
John Salmons	46	27.2	7.5	0.4	2.5	2.9	2.0	0.8	0.2	1.0	1.7	3.1	7.5	.409	0.7	2.4	.295	0.6	1.0	.644
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	17	47.9	19.1	-	-	25.2	5.0	-	-	-	3.5	7.3	15.4	.475	-	-	-	4.5	7.2	.618
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 11
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1966-67	2012-13
Team	Boston Celtics	Sacramento Kings
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Celtics Lost East Div Finals	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	81	40.7	13.3	-	-	21.0	5.8	-	-	-	3.2	4.9	10.7	.454	-	-	-	3.5	5.8	.610
John Salmons	76	30.0	8.8	0.4	2.3	2.7	3.0	0.7	0.3	1.1	1.9	3.2	8.1	.399	1.3	3.5	.371	1.1	1.4	.773
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	9	43.3	10.6	-	-	22.0	5.6	-	-	-	3.6	3.4	9.6	.360	-	-	-	3.7	5.8	.635
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 12
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1967-68	2013-14
Team	Boston Celtics	Sacramento Kings, Toronto Raptors
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Raptors Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	78	37.9	12.5	-	-	18.6	4.6	-	-	-	3.1	4.7	11.0	.425	-	-	-	3.2	5.9	.537
John Salmons	78	22.1	5.2	0.3	1.8	2.1	1.9	0.6	0.2	0.7	1.6	1.9	5.3	.363	0.8	2.1	.387	0.5	0.7	.769
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	19	45.7	14.4	-	-	22.8	5.2	-	-	-	3.8	5.2	12.7	.409	-	-	-	4.0	6.8	.585
John Salmons	6	12.8	2.2	0.0	1.0	1.0	0.8	0.3	0.0	0.2	1.5	0.8	2.8	.294	0.3	2.0	.167	0.2	0.2	1.000

Season 13
	Bill Russell	John Salmons
Season	1968-69	2014-15
Team	Boston Celtics	New Orleans Pelicans
Honors & Awards	All-Defensive First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	NBA Champion	Did Not Play

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Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	77	42.7	9.9	-	-	19.3	4.9	-	-	-	3.0	3.6	8.4	.433	-	-	-	2.6	5.0	.526
John Salmons	21	12.9	2.0	0.2	0.8	1.0	0.6	0.4	0.2	0.2	1.2	0.8	2.3	.333	0.4	1.2	.308	0.1	0.2	.500
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Bill Russell	18	46.1	10.8	-	-	20.5	5.4	-	-	-	3.6	4.3	10.1	.423	-	-	-	2.3	4.5	.506
John Salmons	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-