Alex English vs. Bill Russell Season by Season Comparison

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

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Stats Rankings

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.

Alex English played 15 years in the NBA, 2 more than Bill Russell, who played 13. Alex English had the first of his seasons in 1976-77, while Bill Russell had his rookie season in 1956-57. 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 achievements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
Alex English 15 10 1976-77 to 1990-91
Bill Russell 13 13 1956-57 to 1968-69

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13

Rookie Season

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1976-771956-57
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 60 10.8 5.2 1.1 1.7 2.8 0.4 0.3 0.3 - 1.3 2.2 4.6 .477 - - - 0.8 1.0 .767
difference:+12+24.5+9.5+16.8+1.4-1.7+3.6+8.9+.050+2.4+5.4+.275
Bill Russell 48 35.3 14.7 - - 19.6 1.8 - - - 3.0 5.8 13.5 .427 - - - 3.2 6.4 .492
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English DNP------ --- ----------
Bill Russell 10 40.9 13.9 - - 24.4 3.2 - - - 4.1 5.4 14.8 .365 - - - 3.1 6.1 .508

Season 2

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1977-781957-58
Team Milwaukee BucksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Bucks Lost West Conf SemisCeltics Lost NBA Finals
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 82 18.9 9.6 1.8 3.1 4.8 1.6 0.5 0.7 1.7 2.2 4.2 7.7 .542 - - - 1.3 1.7 .727
difference:+13+19.4+7.0+17.9+1.3-0.4+2.4+7.3+.100+2.0+4.7+.208
Bill Russell 69 38.3 16.6 - - 22.7 2.9 - - - 2.6 6.6 15.0 .442 - - - 3.3 6.4 .519
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 9 23.1 13.4 1.8 2.9 4.7 1.4 0.7 0.8 1.3 2.2 5.3 8.7 .615 - - - 2.8 3.6 .781
difference:+16.3+1.7+19.9+1.3-0.5+6.1+.254+1.6+3.7+.175
Bill Russell 9 39.4 15.1 - - 24.6 2.7 - - - 2.7 5.3 14.8 .361 - - - 4.4 7.3 .606

Season 3

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1978-791958-59
Team Indiana PacersBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 81 33.3 16.0 3.1 5.0 8.1 3.3 0.9 1.0 2.4 2.6 7.0 13.6 .511 - - - 2.1 2.8 .752
difference:+11+9.3+0.7+14.9+0.1-0.3+0.5+0.6+.054+1.6+3.3+.154
Bill Russell 70 42.6 16.7 - - 23.0 3.2 - - - 2.3 6.5 14.2 .457 - - - 3.7 6.1 .598
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English DNP------ --- ----------
Bill Russell 11 45.1 15.5 - - 27.7 3.6 - - - 2.5 5.9 14.5 .409 - - - 3.7 6.1 .612

Season 4

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1979-801959-60
Team Indiana Pacers, Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 78 30.8 16.9 3.4 4.3 7.8 2.9 0.9 0.8 2.7 2.6 7.1 14.3 .497 0.0 0.1 .333 2.7 3.4 .789
difference:+4+11.7+1.3+16.2+0.8-0.2+0.4+1.8+.030+0.5+1.9+.177
Bill Russell 74 42.5 18.2 - - 24.0 3.7 - - - 2.8 7.5 16.1 .467 - - - 3.2 5.3 .612
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English DNP------ --- ----------
Bill Russell 13 44.0 18.5 - - 25.8 2.9 - - - 2.9 7.2 15.8 .456 - - - 4.1 5.8 .707

Season 5

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1980-811960-61
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 81 38.2 23.8 3.4 4.6 8.0 3.6 1.3 1.2 3.0 3.1 9.5 19.2 .494 0.0 0.1 .600 4.8 5.7 .850
difference:+3+6.1+6.9+15.9+0.2-1.1+2.7+3.2+.068+1.5+0.3+.300
Bill Russell 78 44.3 16.9 - - 23.9 3.4 - - - 2.0 6.8 16.0 .426 - - - 3.3 6.0 .550
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English DNP------ --- ----------
Bill Russell 10 46.2 19.1 - - 29.9 4.8 - - - 2.4 7.3 17.1 .427 - - - 4.5 8.6 .523

Season 6

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1981-821961-62
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 82 36.8 25.4 2.6 4.2 6.8 5.3 1.1 1.5 3.2 3.2 10.4 18.9 .551 0.0 0.1 .000 4.5 5.4 .840
difference:+6+8.4+6.5+16.8+0.8-0.5+2.8+2.3+.094+0.7+0.9+.245
Bill Russell 76 45.2 18.9 - - 23.6 4.5 - - - 2.7 7.6 16.6 .457 - - - 3.8 6.3 .595
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 3 39.3 19.3 2.7 5.0 7.7 5.7 1.0 1.0 1.3 2.0 8.7 18.3 .473 0.0 0.0 - 2.0 2.3 .857
difference:+11+8.7+3.1+18.7+0.7-1.5+0.4+0.2+.015+3.9+5.8+.131
Bill Russell 14 48.0 22.4 - - 26.4 5.0 - - - 3.5 8.3 18.1 .458 - - - 5.9 8.1 .726

Season 7

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1982-831962-63
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-NBA Second Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 82 36.4 28.4 3.2 4.1 7.3 4.8 1.4 1.5 3.2 2.9 11.7 22.6 .516 0.0 0.1 .167 5.0 6.0 .829
difference:+4+8.5+11.6+16.3+0.3-0.5+5.1+7.4+.084+1.3+0.6+.274
Bill Russell 78 44.9 16.8 - - 23.6 4.5 - - - 2.4 6.6 15.2 .432 - - - 3.7 6.6 .555
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 7 38.6 25.9 2.9 3.4 6.3 6.0 0.6 1.0 3.0 3.0 9.6 21.4 .447 0.0 0.3 .000 6.7 7.6 .887
difference:+6+8.9+5.6+18.8+0.9-0.2+2.2+5.1+.006+1.2+0.8+.226
Bill Russell 13 47.5 20.3 - - 25.1 5.1 - - - 2.8 7.4 16.3 .453 - - - 5.5 8.4 .661

Season 8

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1983-841963-64
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 82 35.0 26.4 2.6 3.0 5.7 5.0 1.0 1.2 2.7 3.1 11.1 20.9 .529 0.0 0.1 .143 4.3 5.2 .824
difference:+4+9.6+11.4+19.0+0.3-0.7+5.1+7.1+.096+1.3+0.3+.274
Bill Russell 78 44.6 15.0 - - 24.7 4.7 - - - 2.4 6.0 13.8 .433 - - - 3.0 5.5 .550
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 5 40.6 29.0 3.2 4.8 8.0 5.6 0.6 0.4 1.4 3.4 12.0 20.4 .588 0.0 0.2 .000 5.0 5.6 .893
difference:+5+4.5+15.9+19.2+1.2-0.1+7.3+7.2+.232+1.3+1.1+.341
Bill Russell 10 45.1 13.1 - - 27.2 4.4 - - - 3.3 4.7 13.2 .356 - - - 3.7 6.7 .552

Season 9

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1984-851964-65
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 81 36.1 27.9 2.5 3.1 5.7 4.2 1.2 0.6 3.1 3.2 11.6 22.4 .518 0.0 0.1 .200 4.7 5.7 .829
difference:+3+8.3+13.8+18.4+1.1-0.6+6.1+9.8+.080+1.6+0.2+.256
Bill Russell 78 44.4 14.1 - - 24.1 5.3 - - - 2.6 5.5 12.6 .438 - - - 3.1 5.5 .573
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 14 38.3 30.2 2.6 4.0 6.6 4.5 1.2 0.4 2.1 2.9 11.6 21.7 .536 0.0 0.1 .000 6.9 7.8 .890
difference:+2+8.5+13.7+18.6+1.8-0.7+5.0+9.2+.009+3.6+1.5+.364
Bill Russell 12 46.8 16.5 - - 25.2 6.3 - - - 3.6 6.6 12.5 .527 - - - 3.3 6.3 .526

Season 10

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1985-861965-66
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Second TeamAchievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 81 37.3 29.8 2.4 2.6 5.0 4.0 0.9 0.4 3.1 2.9 11.7 23.3 .504 0.0 0.1 .200 6.3 7.3 .862
difference:+3+6.1+16.9+17.8+0.8-0.1+6.7+11.2+.089+3.4+2.1+.311
Bill Russell 78 43.4 12.9 - - 22.8 4.8 - - - 2.8 5.0 12.1 .415 - - - 2.9 5.2 .551
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 10 39.4 27.3 1.8 1.7 3.5 5.2 0.4 0.4 2.8 2.9 10.6 22.9 .463 0.0 0.1 .000 6.1 7.1 .859
difference:+7+8.5+8.2+21.7+0.2-0.6+3.3+7.5+.012+1.6+0.1+.241
Bill Russell 17 47.9 19.1 - - 25.2 5.0 - - - 3.5 7.3 15.4 .475 - - - 4.5 7.2 .618

Season 11

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1986-871966-67
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdCeltics Lost East Div Finals
more >>
11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 82 37.6 28.6 1.8 2.4 4.2 5.1 0.9 0.3 2.6 2.6 11.8 23.4 .503 0.0 0.2 .267 5.0 5.9 .844
difference:+1+3.1+15.3+16.8+0.7-0.6+6.9+12.7+.049+1.5+0.1+.234
Bill Russell 81 40.7 13.3 - - 21.0 5.8 - - - 3.2 4.9 10.7 .454 - - - 3.5 5.8 .610
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 3 25.3 18.7 3.3 1.3 4.7 3.3 0.0 0.0 2.7 3.0 8.3 16.3 .510 0.0 0.0 - 2.0 2.3 .857
difference:+6+18.0+8.1+17.3+2.3-0.6+4.9+6.7+.150+1.7+3.5+.222
Bill Russell 9 43.3 10.6 - - 22.0 5.6 - - - 3.6 3.4 9.6 .360 - - - 3.7 5.8 .635

Season 12

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1987-881967-68
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 80 35.2 25.0 2.1 2.6 4.7 4.7 0.9 0.3 2.3 2.4 10.5 21.3 .495 0.0 0.1 .000 3.9 4.7 .828
difference:+2+2.7+12.5+13.9+0.1-0.7+5.8+10.3+.070+0.7+1.2+.291
Bill Russell 78 37.9 12.5 - - 18.6 4.6 - - - 3.1 4.7 11.0 .425 - - - 3.2 5.9 .537
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 11 39.8 24.3 2.8 2.5 5.4 4.4 0.6 0.3 1.5 3.1 10.5 23.2 .455 0.0 0.3 .000 3.2 3.9 .814
difference:+8+5.9+9.9+17.4+0.8-0.7+5.3+10.5+.046+0.8+2.9+.229
Bill Russell 19 45.7 14.4 - - 22.8 5.2 - - - 3.8 5.2 12.7 .409 - - - 4.0 6.8 .585

Season 13

Alex English Bill Russell
Season 1988-891968-69
Team Denver NuggetsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Nuggets Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
13th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 82 36.5 26.5 1.8 2.2 4.0 4.7 0.8 0.1 2.4 2.1 11.3 22.9 .491 0.0 0.1 .250 4.0 4.6 .858
difference:+5+6.2+16.6+15.3+0.2-0.9+7.7+14.5+.058+1.4+0.4+.332
Bill Russell 77 42.7 9.9 - - 19.3 4.9 - - - 3.0 3.6 8.4 .433 - - - 2.6 5.0 .526
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Alex English 3 36.0 26.0 2.7 1.7 4.3 3.7 0.3 0.0 4.7 2.0 10.7 20.7 .516 0.0 0.0 - 4.7 5.3 .875
difference:+15+10.1+15.2+16.2+1.7-1.6+6.4+10.6+.093+2.4+0.8+.369
Bill Russell 18 46.1 10.8 - - 20.5 5.4 - - - 3.6 4.3 10.1 .423 - - - 2.3 4.5 .506

Additional Years

* Alex English played 2 seasons more than Bill Russell in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 14 to 15, from 1990 to 1991—Alex English played in one postseason.