Nikola Jokic vs. Bill Russell: NBA Rankings Comparison

The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Nikola Jokic and Bill Russell all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?

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

This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Nikola Jokic, with a career spanning 10 seasons from 2016 to 2025, 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.

Nikola Jokic vs. Bill Russell
Total Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Totals
Season Playoffs
Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Nikola Jokic Bill Russell
Points
124th
175th
44th
41st
Rebounds
75th
2nd
38th
1st
Assists
59th
121st
35th
30th
Steals
212nd
n/a
94th
n/a
Blocks
263rd
n/a
107th
n/a
Years1013713

Nikola Jokic vs. Bill Russell
Per Game Stats, Rankings Summary

Career Per Game
Season Playoffs
Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Nikola Jokic Bill Russell
Points
45th
277th
10th
196th
Rebounds
31st
2nd
16th
1st
Assists
30th
200th
21st
129th
Steals
161st
n/a
159th
n/a
Blocks
277th
n/a
206th
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:

Their rankings for:
Season Totals - Playoffs Totals /
Season Per Game - Playoffs Per Game

Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played

Career Totals,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
124th
175th
51 16,210 vs. 14,5221,688
Rebounds
75th
2nd
73 8,141 vs. 21,62013,479
Assists
59th
121st
62 5,383 vs. 4,1001,283
Steals
212nd
n/a
949 vs. 0
Blocks
263rd
n/a
536 vs. 0
Offensive Rebounds
114th
n/a
1,983 vs. 0
Defensive Rebounds
47th
n/a
6,158 vs. 0
Field Goals Made
114th
162nd
48 6,236 vs. 5,687549
Field Goals Attempted
212nd
130th
82 11,142 vs. 12,9301,788
3-Pointers Made
251st
n/a
814 vs. 0
3-Pointers Attempted
242nd
n/a
2,264 vs. 0
Free Throws Made
187th
155th
32 2,924 vs. 3,148224
Free Throws Attempted
217th
62nd
155 3,550 vs. 5,6142,064

Games and Years:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
+300th
195th
+105 745 vs. 963218
Seasons
+300th
292nd
+8 10 vs. 133

Triple-Doubles:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
3rd
38th
35 164 vs. 17147

Rankings by Points Scored:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
42nd
-
30 vs. 030
50+ point games
40th
-
3 vs. 03
60+ point games
11th
-
1 vs. 01
70+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Totals,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points
44th
41st
3 2,580 vs. 2,67393
Rebounds
38th
1st
37 1,159 vs. 4,1042,945
Assists
35th
30th
5 712 vs. 77058
Steals
94th
n/a
116 vs. 0
Blocks
107th
n/a
82 vs. 0
Offensive Rebounds
38th
n/a
286 vs. 0
Defensive Rebounds
27th
n/a
873 vs. 0
Field Goals Made
39th
37th
2 978 vs. 1,00325
Field Goals Attempted
54th
30th
24 1,864 vs. 2,335471
3-Pointers Made
54th
n/a
165 vs. 0
3-Pointers Attempted
59th
n/a
425 vs. 0
Free Throws Made
67th
37th
30 459 vs. 667208
Free Throws Attempted
69th
15th
54 556 vs. 1,106550

Games and Years:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Games Played
198th
35th
163 94 vs. 16571
Playoffs
+300th
45th
+255 7 vs. 136

Triple-Doubles:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Triple-Doubles
3rd
20th
17 21 vs. 318

Rankings by Points Scored:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
40+ point games
20th
-
7 vs. 07
50+ point games
9th
-
1 vs. 01
60+ point games
-
-
0 vs. 00

Career Per Game Averages,
Regular Season Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
45th
277th
232 21.76 vs. 15.086.68
Rebounds per game
31st
2nd
29 10.93 vs. 22.4511.52
Assists per game
30th
200th
170 7.23 vs. 4.262.97
Steals per game
161st
n/a
1.27 vs. 0.00
Blocks per game
277th
n/a
0.72 vs. 0.00
Offensive Rebounds per game
67th
n/a
2.66 vs. 0.00
Defensive Rebounds per game
7th
n/a
8.27 vs. 0.00
Field Goals Made per game
39th
251st
212 8.37 vs. 5.912.46
Field Goals Attempted per game
121st
208th
87 14.96 vs. 13.431.53
3-Pointers Made per game
+300th
n/a
1.09 vs. 0.00
3-Pointers Attempted per game
260th
n/a
3.04 vs. 0.00
Free Throws Made per game
138th
218th
80 3.92 vs. 3.270.66
Free Throws Attempted per game
156th
84th
72 4.77 vs. 5.831.06

Career Per Game Averages,
Playoffs Rankings

Stats Rankings:

Nikola Jokic Bill Russell Rk Diff. Values Diff.
Points per game
10th
196th
186 27.45 vs. 16.2011.25
Rebounds per game
16th
1st
15 12.33 vs. 24.8712.54
Assists per game
21st
129th
108 7.57 vs. 4.672.91
Steals per game
159th
n/a
1.23 vs. 0.00
Blocks per game
206th
n/a
0.87 vs. 0.00
Offensive Rebounds per game
44th
n/a
3.04 vs. 0.00
Defensive Rebounds per game
4th
n/a
9.29 vs. 0.00
Field Goals Made per game
7th
206th
199 10.40 vs. 6.084.33
Field Goals Attempted per game
29th
179th
150 19.83 vs. 14.155.68
3-Pointers Made per game
93rd
n/a
1.76 vs. 0.00
3-Pointers Attempted per game
123rd
n/a
4.52 vs. 0.00
Free Throws Made per game
86th
162nd
76 4.88 vs. 4.040.84
Free Throws Attempted per game
108th
69th
39 5.91 vs. 6.700.79

Note: the per game rankings on this page respect the minimums usually applied by the NBA for all-time leaders, 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 3 minimum games for the Playoffs are applied.