Allen Iverson vs. Bill Russell: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Allen Iverson and Bill Russell all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?
This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Allen Iverson, with a career spanning 14 seasons from 1997 to 2010, and Bill Russell, with 13 seasons played from 1957 to 1969, stand among the league's historical elite.
Dive into a meticulous breakdown of their positions in every major statistical category—from scoring, rebounding and assists to steals, blocks, triple-doubles, and rankings by points thresholds—across both regular season and their entire playoff careers. Our comprehensive tables offer side-by-side rankings, value comparisons, and key differences, ensuring you have all the definitive data to assess their historical impact.
First, review a concise summary of how they rank in NBA history in the main categories (points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks) for both total and per-game stats, and below, you can then explore in detail all their stats and their historical rankings.
Allen Iverson vs. Bill Russell | ||||
Career Totals |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | |
| Points | 30th | 175th | 60th | 41st |
| Rebounds | +300th | 2nd | +300th | 1st |
| Assists | 54th | 122nd | 82nd | 30th |
| Steals | 15th | n/a | 58th | n/a |
| Blocks | +300th | n/a | +300th | n/a |
| Years | 14 | 13 | 8 | 13 |
Allen Iverson vs. Bill Russell | ||||
Career Per Game |
Season | Playoffs | ||
| Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | |
| Points | 9th | 280th | 3rd | 196th |
| Rebounds | +300th | 2nd | +300th | 1st |
| Assists | 56th | 200th | 64th | 129th |
| Steals | 7th | n/a | 12th | n/a |
| Blocks | +300th | n/a | +300th | n/a |
Steals, blocks, offensive and defensive rebounds started to be recorded in the 1973-74 season. The 3-point shot was implemented in the 1979-80 season.
n/a = The player doesn't have data for the stat.
Comparisons on this page: |
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Their rankings for: |
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 30th | 175th | 145 | 24,368 vs. 14,522 | 9,846 |
| Rebounds | +300th | 2nd | +298 | 3,394 vs. 21,620 | 18,226 |
| Assists | 54th | 122nd | 68 | 5,624 vs. 4,100 | 1,524 |
| Steals | 15th | n/a | 1,983 vs. 0 | ||
| Blocks | +300th | n/a | 164 vs. 0 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds | +300th | n/a | 745 vs. 0 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds | +300th | n/a | 2,649 vs. 0 | ||
| Field Goals Made | 33rd | 162nd | 129 | 8,467 vs. 5,687 | 2,780 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 20th | 130th | 110 | 19,906 vs. 12,930 | 6,976 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 149th | n/a | 1,059 vs. 0 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 97th | n/a | 3,383 vs. 0 | ||
| Free Throws Made | 16th | 155th | 139 | 6,375 vs. 3,148 | 3,227 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 20th | 62nd | 42 | 8,168 vs. 5,614 | 2,554 |
Games and Years: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | 253rd | 196th | 57 | 914 vs. 963 | 49 |
| Seasons | 194th | 300th | 106 | 14 vs. 13 | 1 |
Triple-Doubles: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | 276th | 38th | 238 | 1 vs. 17 | 16 |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 6th | - | 79 vs. 0 | 79 | |
| 50+ point games | 10th | - | 11 vs. 0 | 11 | |
| 60+ point games | 11th | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
| 70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Totals, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points | 60th | 41st | 19 | 2,111 vs. 2,673 | 562 |
| Rebounds | +300th | 1st | +299 | 273 vs. 4,104 | 3,831 |
| Assists | 82nd | 30th | 52 | 425 vs. 770 | 345 |
| Steals | 58th | n/a | 147 vs. 0 | ||
| Blocks | +300th | n/a | 14 vs. 0 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds | +300th | n/a | 59 vs. 0 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds | 300th | n/a | 214 vs. 0 | ||
| Field Goals Made | 66th | 37th | 29 | 755 vs. 1,003 | 248 |
| Field Goals Attempted | 52nd | 30th | 22 | 1,882 vs. 2,335 | 453 |
| 3-Pointers Made | 85th | n/a | 123 vs. 0 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted | 73rd | n/a | 376 vs. 0 | ||
| Free Throws Made | 60th | 37th | 23 | 478 vs. 667 | 189 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 56th | 15th | 41 | 626 vs. 1,106 | 480 |
Games and Years: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Games Played | +300th | 35th | +265 | 71 vs. 165 | 94 |
| Playoffs | +300th | 45th | +255 | 8 vs. 13 | 5 |
Triple-Doubles: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Triple-Doubles | +300th | 20th | 0 vs. 3 | 3 | |
Rankings by Points Scored: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| 40+ point games | 11th | - | 10 vs. 0 | 10 | |
| 50+ point games | 3rd | - | 3 vs. 0 | 3 | |
| 60+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 9th | 280th | 271 | 26.66 vs. 15.08 | 11.58 |
| Rebounds per game | +300th | 2nd | +298 | 3.71 vs. 22.45 | 18.74 |
| Assists per game | 56th | 200th | 144 | 6.15 vs. 4.26 | 1.90 |
| Steals per game | 7th | n/a | 2.17 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Blocks per game | +300th | n/a | 0.18 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | n/a | 0.82 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds per game | +300th | n/a | 2.90 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Field Goals Made per game | 15th | 254th | 239 | 9.26 vs. 5.91 | 3.36 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 4th | 211st | 207 | 21.78 vs. 13.43 | 8.35 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | +300th | n/a | 1.16 vs. 0.00 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | 174th | n/a | 3.70 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Free Throws Made per game | 9th | 222nd | 213 | 6.97 vs. 3.27 | 3.71 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 6th | 84th | 78 | 8.94 vs. 5.83 | 3.11 |
Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
Stats Rankings: | Allen Iverson | Bill Russell | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. |
| Points per game | 3rd | 196th | 193 | 29.73 vs. 16.20 | 13.53 |
| Rebounds per game | +300th | 1st | +299 | 3.85 vs. 24.87 | 21.03 |
| Assists per game | 64th | 129th | 65 | 5.99 vs. 4.67 | 1.32 |
| Steals per game | 12th | n/a | 2.07 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Blocks per game | +300th | n/a | 0.20 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds per game | +300th | n/a | 0.83 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds per game | +300th | n/a | 3.01 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Field Goals Made per game | 4th | 206th | 202 | 10.63 vs. 6.08 | 4.56 |
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 1st | 179th | 178 | 26.51 vs. 14.15 | 12.36 |
| 3-Pointers Made per game | 103rd | n/a | 1.73 vs. 0.00 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | 78th | n/a | 5.30 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Free Throws Made per game | 15th | 162nd | 147 | 6.73 vs. 4.04 | 2.69 |
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 15th | 69th | 54 | 8.82 vs. 6.70 | 2.11 |
Note: the per game rankings on this page respect the minimums usually applied by the NBA for all-time leaders, this is 400 games for regular season stats unless the player reached these thresholds before: 10,000 points; 4,000 rebounds; 2,000 assists; 625 steals; 500 blocks; 250 3-pointers made. Also a minimum of 3 games is applied here for the Playoffs.