Charles Oakley vs. Bill Russell Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Bill Russell and Charles Oakley, 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

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.

Charles Oakley played 19 years in the NBA, 6 more than Bill Russell, who played 13. Charles Oakley had the first of his seasons in 1985-86, 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 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.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
Charles Oakley 19 15 1985-86 to 2003-04
Bill Russell 13 13 1956-57 to 1968-69

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19

Rookie Season

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1985-861956-57
Team Chicago BullsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Rookie First Team-
Playoffs Bulls Lost East Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 77 23.0 9.6 3.3 5.3 8.6 1.7 0.9 0.4 2.3 3.2 3.6 7.0 .519 0.0 0.0 .000 2.3 3.5 .662
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 3 29.3 10.0 3.3 6.7 10.0 1.0 2.0 0.7 1.7 4.3 3.7 7.0 .524 0.0 0.0 - 2.7 4.3 .615
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1986-871957-58
Team Chicago BullsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Bulls Lost East Conf 1st RdCeltics Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 82 36.3 14.5 3.6 9.5 13.1 3.6 1.0 0.4 3.6 3.8 5.7 12.8 .445 0.1 0.4 .367 3.0 4.4 .686
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 3 43.0 20.0 5.7 9.7 15.3 2.0 1.3 0.3 2.7 4.3 6.3 16.7 .380 0.7 1.3 .500 6.7 8.0 .833
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1987-881958-59
Team Chicago BullsBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Bulls Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 82 34.3 12.4 4.0 9.0 13.0 3.0 0.8 0.3 2.9 3.3 4.6 9.5 .483 0.0 0.1 .250 3.2 4.4 .727
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 10 37.3 10.1 3.9 8.9 12.8 3.2 0.6 0.4 1.8 3.3 4.0 9.1 .440 0.0 0.2 .000 2.1 2.4 .875
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1988-891959-60
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 82 31.8 12.9 4.2 6.3 10.5 2.3 1.3 0.2 3.0 3.3 5.2 10.2 .510 0.1 0.6 .250 2.4 3.1 .773
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 9 33.2 9.7 4.8 6.4 11.2 1.2 1.3 0.1 2.4 3.4 3.9 8.1 .479 0.1 0.2 .500 1.8 2.7 .667
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1989-901960-61
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 61 36.0 14.6 4.2 7.7 11.9 2.4 1.0 0.3 2.7 3.6 5.5 10.5 .524 0.0 0.0 .000 3.6 4.7 .761
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 10 33.6 12.1 3.9 7.1 11.0 2.7 1.1 0.2 2.2 3.3 4.3 8.4 .512 0.1 0.1 1.000 3.4 5.2 .654
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1990-911961-62
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 76 36.0 11.2 4.0 8.1 12.1 2.7 0.8 0.2 2.8 3.8 4.0 7.8 .516 0.0 0.0 .000 3.1 4.0 .784
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 3 33.3 7.7 5.0 5.3 10.3 1.0 0.7 0.3 2.3 4.3 3.3 7.0 .476 0.0 0.0 - 1.0 2.0 .500
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1991-921962-63
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game NVP
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 82 28.2 6.2 3.1 5.4 8.5 1.6 0.8 0.2 1.5 3.1 2.6 4.9 .522 0.0 0.0 .000 1.0 1.4 .735
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 12 29.5 5.3 3.7 5.3 9.0 0.7 0.7 0.4 1.3 3.0 1.8 4.8 .379 0.0 0.0 - 1.7 2.3 .741
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1992-931963-64
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 82 27.2 6.9 3.5 5.1 8.6 1.5 1.0 0.2 1.5 3.5 2.7 5.3 .508 0.0 0.0 .000 1.5 2.1 .722
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 15 33.8 11.1 4.7 6.3 11.0 1.1 1.1 0.1 2.4 3.4 4.2 8.7 .481 0.0 0.0 - 2.7 3.7 .727
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1993-941964-65
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
-Achievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Defensive First Team-
-Achievement Rebounds Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost NBA FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 82 35.8 11.8 4.3 7.5 11.8 2.7 1.3 0.2 2.4 3.6 4.4 9.3 .478 0.0 0.0 .000 3.0 3.8 .776
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 25 39.7 13.2 4.6 7.0 11.7 2.4 1.4 0.2 2.6 3.5 5.0 10.5 .477 0.0 0.0 - 3.2 4.1 .775
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1994-951965-66
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 50 31.3 10.1 3.1 5.8 8.9 2.5 1.2 0.1 2.1 3.6 3.8 7.9 .489 0.1 0.2 .250 2.4 3.0 .793
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 11 38.3 13.1 2.8 5.6 8.5 3.7 1.7 0.5 2.2 3.8 4.5 9.9 .450 0.4 0.9 .400 3.8 4.6 .824
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1995-961966-67
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisCeltics Lost East Div Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 53 33.5 11.4 3.1 5.6 8.7 2.6 1.1 0.3 2.0 3.7 4.0 8.5 .471 0.1 0.5 .269 3.3 4.0 .833
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 8 38.5 13.1 3.5 5.1 8.6 1.8 1.0 0.0 3.5 4.1 4.9 9.8 .500 0.3 0.8 .333 3.1 4.5 .694
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1996-971967-68
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 80 35.9 10.8 3.1 6.7 9.8 2.8 1.4 0.3 2.1 3.8 4.2 8.7 .488 0.1 0.2 .263 2.3 2.8 .808
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 10 35.8 9.8 2.3 6.5 8.8 1.6 2.2 0.3 1.8 3.7 3.8 8.6 .442 0.0 0.1 .000 2.2 2.9 .759
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

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1997-981968-69
Team New York KnicksBoston Celtics
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Defensive First Team
Achievement All-Defensive Second Team-
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Knicks Lost East Conf SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 79 34.6 9.0 2.8 6.4 9.2 2.5 1.6 0.3 1.6 3.5 3.9 8.8 .440 0.0 0.1 .000 1.2 1.4 .851
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 TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 10 34.0 8.1 2.1 6.4 8.5 1.4 1.1 0.2 1.3 3.8 2.9 7.1 .408 0.0 0.0 - 2.3 2.5 .920
Bill Russell 18 46.1 10.8 - - 20.5 5.4 - - - 3.6 4.3 10.1 .423 - - - 2.3 4.5 .506

Season 14

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1998-99-
Team Toronto Raptors-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 50 32.7 7.0 1.9 5.6 7.5 3.4 0.9 0.4 1.9 3.6 2.8 6.5 .428 0.0 0.1 .200 1.3 1.7 .807
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley ------- --- ----------
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------

Season 15

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 1999-00-
Team Toronto Raptors-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Raptors Lost East Conf 1st Rd-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 80 30.4 6.9 1.5 5.3 6.8 3.2 1.3 0.6 1.9 3.7 2.9 7.0 .418 0.2 0.5 .341 0.8 1.1 .776
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 3 37.0 10.0 0.7 7.0 7.7 3.7 2.0 0.3 1.7 4.7 4.7 9.7 .483 0.7 2.3 .286 0.0 0.3 .000
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------

Season 16

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 2000-01-
Team Toronto Raptors-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Raptors Lost East Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 78 35.5 9.6 1.8 7.7 9.5 3.4 1.0 0.6 1.8 3.3 3.9 10.1 .388 0.1 0.6 .224 1.6 1.9 .836
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 12 32.6 9.3 1.7 4.7 6.3 1.8 1.0 0.6 1.8 2.4 3.9 9.0 .435 0.3 0.7 .375 1.2 1.4 .824
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------

Season 17

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 2001-02-
Team Chicago Bulls-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 57 24.3 3.8 1.3 4.8 6.0 2.0 0.9 0.2 1.5 3.1 1.7 4.6 .369 0.0 0.1 .167 0.4 0.5 .750
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley ------- --- ----------
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------

Season 18

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 2002-03-
Team Washington Wizards-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 42 12.2 1.8 0.9 1.7 2.5 1.0 0.3 0.1 0.5 2.1 0.5 1.3 .418 0.0 0.0 - 0.7 0.8 .824
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley ------- --- ----------
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------

Season 19

Charles Oakley Bill Russell
Season 2003-04-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley 7 3.6 1.3 0.0 0.7 0.7 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.1 1.1 0.3 0.9 .333 0.0 0.0 - 0.7 0.9 .833
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Charles Oakley ------- --- ----------
Bill Russell ------- --- ----------