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Jaylen Brown: "Bill Russell is one of my biggest sources of inspiration. He was humanitarian, he was a giant, so to have a trophy named after him and then that trophy being able to go to me, can't tell you what that means to me and my family."
Jaylen Brown: I think one of my highest moments is just winning a championship. I didn't play to win no award, they gave me two MVPs by the way. When I won I was never expecting that, I didn't care about nothing about that, and even after that I told everybody that like it didn’t even matter matter, it mattered way more to some people than it ever mattered to me, so when I won you can see on my face that I was shocked, cuz like it didn't change no reaction if anybody else would have won. But that don't always be the case when the shoe was on the other foot. But to get that award and it's named after Bill Russell, the Bill Russell Finals MVP. And Bill Russell somebody who lived in Boston that dealt with a lot of bullsh*t when he was here. He used to stand up for what he believed in and people treated him like sh*t. He won 11 championships. To get that award that's named after him and they get they call my name to get it, that was probably one of my highest points.
Lil Bay: Who was your greatest of all time basketball player? Jaylen Brown: I'm going to go Bill Russell. Because just on and off the court. You know what I mean? It's not just about on. It's about on and off. So, I'm going to go Bill Russell.
Lil Baby: Give me a Mount Rushmore. Jaylen Brown: My top four? Bill Russell, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant.
The Nuggets star was asked to name the four greatest players in NBA history and explain why each deserved to make his list. He selected three legends from previous generations in Bill Russell, Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain, before naming Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry as his fourth choice. Explaining his selections, Jokic told SPORTbible: "Probably Bill Russell because of the championship. "Michael Jordan because he changed the game. Probably Wilt Chamberlain because all the numbers and all the crazy stats. And I'm going to put Steph Curry because he changed the game and he's kind of my generation. "I played against the guy so he kind of changed the game. So those are the four."
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Julius Erving: "I picked my top five when I was 15 years old. I have not let anybody mess that up. I went with Chamberlain and Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, and Oscar Robertson. When you are 15 years old and you see those five out there, that's permanent."
Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Bill Russell, Charles Barkley and … Jalen Brunson. The New York Knicks’ star guard will become only the fifth NBA player to host “Saturday Night Live” when he helps tip off Season 52 this weekend. Brunson has joined elite company since coming to New York in 2022. The second-round pick from 2018 has established himself as one of the NBA’s premier players and has accumulated an off-the-court resume that has him on billboards and screens across the world, especially after the Knicks ended a 53-year drought with their NBA title in June.
Jorge Sierra: Longest streaks of consecutive Top 6 MVP finishes: 14 years: LeBron James: 12: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar; 10: Bill Russell; 9: Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, BOB PETTIT. A true NBA great. May he rest in peace.
James Brayshaw: "Is LeBron James in your view the greatest player ever?" Richard Jefferson: "There is no GOAT in basketball because there's multiple levels. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar I think had the greatest career, Bill Russell won the most championships, Michael Jordan is the icon, and I think Kobe Bryant and what he did mentally for the game and really for athletes all around the world. But I would just say if you were to build a basketball player, you could not build a better basketball player than LeBron James. There's no skill set he doesn't have, there's no physical ability. So for me, if I was building a basketball player, mentally and physically, he would be the person that I would build."
Who are your all-time Top 5 players? Danilo Gallinari: I would go with John Stockton; at two, MJ; at three, LeBron James, then Bill Russell, and Jokic.
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Stefan Bondy: Jalen Brunson will be the first Knick to host SNL He’s also just the fifth basketball player after Jordan, Barkley, LeBron, Bill Russell. He’s just the third NYC-area athlete after Eli Manning and Derek Jeter
Tomer Azarly: NBA 2K announced eras in MyCareer in this year's NBA 2K27. So if you could pick one player in NBA history to go back and play with, who would it be and why? Jaylen Brown: Probably Bill Russell, just because of what he stood for off the court. And he was a winner on the court too, so that would be my choice.
Eddie Johnson: There is no question MJ's six championships and six Finals MVPs are among the greatest accomplishments in sports history. I played against him many times and I can tell you he truly is the most maniacal competitor I have ever encountered. But if championships alone determine greatness, then why isn't Bill Russell's 11 championships the end of the discussion? Well, it's because everyone knows basketball greatness has never been measured by just one statistic. It's measured by the total body of work, accounting for championships, individual dominance, versatility, impact, etcetera.
NBA Communications: The Knicks' Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart could become the fifth set of teammates to win NCAA (Villanova) and NBA championships together. 🏆 Derek Anderson & Antoine Walker (Kentucky, Heat) 🏆 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar & Lucius Allen (UCLA, Bucks) 🏆 John Havlicek & Larry Siegfried (Ohio State, Celtics) 🏆 Bill Russell & K.C. Jones (San Francisco, Celtics) *Players must have played in at least one NCAA Tournament game and at least one NBA playoff game. The NBA Finals begin Wednesday, June 3 at 8:30 PM ET on ABC.