10 Greatest Players in Boston Celtics Franchise History

#1 Bill Russell (1956 to 1969)

One of the game's all-time greats, Bill Russell...

Bill Russell is not only just the best basketball player in Boston Celtics history, he is also one of the best players to EVER play the game. He played for the Celtics a total of 14 seasons bringing home a total of 11 NBA Championships, the most ever in NBA history for a player. The 11 championships also tie the North American sports record with Henri Richard who won 11 Stanley Cups in the NHL.

The Celtics drafted Russell second overall in the 1956 NBA Draft and he went on to be the career leader in rebounding with 21,620 total; which is over 10,600 more than second in Boston history. Russell trails only Wilt Chamberlain for the all-time NBA rebounding mark, and he shares the honor with Chamberlain as the only two men to have pulled down 50 rebounds in a single game.

One stat that may be surprising is the fact that Russell is sixth all-time for Boston in career assists with 4100, just 200 shy of Paul Pierce. He is also eighth all-time in scoring with 14,522 points.

Russell's number 6 is retired by both the Boston Celtics and the University of San Francisco and today he works as an ambassador for the league. The NBA Finals MVP Trophy is named in his honor.

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