Russell, Then Wilt Chapter 2 Part 1 from The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons. Warning: Lots and lots of text.

The kast part got cut off. Here is the rest.

So here is the final tally: Over a ten-year span, Russell’s teams clearly had more talent than Wilt’s teams for four seasons (’61, ’62, ’63 and ’64) and a slight edge in Wilt’s first season (1960). In ’65, Philly and Boston were a wash. From ’66 through ’69, Wilt played for stronger teams, making the final record 5-4-1, Russel. For six of those ten seasons, you could have described the talent disparity and “equal” or “relatively equal.” After Russell retired that summer, ’70 Lakers lost to famous Willis Reed in Game 7 of the Finals; the ’71 Lakers season-ending injury to Jerry West and lost the eventual champions, the Bucks; the ’72 Lakers won 69 games and cruised to Wilt’s second title; and the ’73 Lakers lost a Finals rematch to the Knicks. Wilt retired after a ten-year stretch in which he played in the 1964 Finals and lost, then played for teams teams talented enough to win a championship every single year for the next nine. So much for Russell being blessed with a better supporting cast. If there is a legitimate gripe on Wilt’s behalf, it’s that Russell was lucky enough to have Auerbach coaching him for ten years. Then again, Red is on record saying he would never coach a prima donna like Wilt. Also if you are scoring at home: Russell played with four members of the NBA’s Top 50 at 50 (Havlicek, Cousy, Sharman and Sam Jones); Wilt played with six members (Baylor, West, Greer, Cunningham, Arizin and Thurmond). And Russell’s teammates from 1957 to 1969 were selected to twenty-six All-Star games, while Wilt’s teammates from 1960 to 1973 were selected to twenty-four. Let’s never mention the supporting-cast card card again between Russell and Chamberlain. Thank you.

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