Cooper Flagg vs. Bill Russell Season by Season Comparison
Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Bill Russell and Cooper Flagg, 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.
Cooper Flagg played 1 year in the NBA, 12 less than Bill Russell, who played 13. Cooper Flagg had his first NBA Season in 2025-26, 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 |
| Cooper Flagg | 1 | 0 | 2025-26 |
| Bill Russell | 13 | 13 | 1956-57 to 1968-69 |
Comparison Season by Season |
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Jump to season: | ||
Rookie Season |
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| Cooper Flagg | Bill Russell | |
| Season | 2025-26 | 1956-57 |
| Team | Dallas Mavericks | Boston Celtics |
| Honors & Awards | ||
| Playoffs | Did Not Play |  NBA Champion |
Rookie Season Stats Comparison | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Regular Season Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| G | Min | Pts | ORb | DRb | Reb | Ast | Stl | Blk | TO | PF | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | ||||
| Cooper Flagg | 1 | 32.0 | 10.0 | 1.0 | 9.0 | 10.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 13.0 | .308 | 0.0 | 1.0 | .000 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.000 |
| difference: | +47 | +3.3 | +4.7 | +9.6 | +1.8 | +1.8 | +0.5 | +.119 | +1.2 | +4.4 | +.508 | |||||||||
| 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 | % | ||||
| Cooper Flagg | DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Bill Russell | 10 | 40.9 | 13.9 | - | - | 24.4 | 3.2 | - | - | - | 4.1 | 5.4 | 14.8 | .365 | - | - | - | 3.1 | 6.1 | .508 |
Additional Years |
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* Bill Russell played 12 seasons more than Cooper Flagg in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 2 to 13, from 1958 to 1969—Bill Russell played in 12 Playoffs and won 10 NBA Championships. In those 12 extra years over Cooper Flagg, Bill Russell got these achievements: | |
| Honors & Awards |  5 Season MVP 3 All-NBA First Team 8 All-NBA Second Team 1 All-Defensive First Team 4 Rebounds Leader 12 All-Star Game 1 All-Star Game MVP |