"I was an athlete who learned how to play basketball."Excellent assessment of Bills skills by Bill. A true legend and a great man.

"I only block about five percent of their shots. Only thing, they don't know which five percent I'm going to block.". Amazing guy.

He is by far the smartest basketball player of all time. He was a winner, like Jordan, like Gretzky.

5:27 "You really had the upper hand with Wilt didn't you?" "I said, 'Well, I tell you somethin'... if we can win 11 championships in 13 years, we had the upper hand on everybody."

I could listen to him talk about the game for hours

True GOAT of Basketball

The Greatest Of All Time is an understatement........ This man represent what Winning in life mean. My respect for him is beyond words.... Bill Russell stands head and shoulders above every one else for what he did as an athlete and as an Ambassador of freedom for all who followed in his foot steps...... what more can I say......

Always loved Bill Russell's laugh.

You can’t have an NBA’s Mount Rushmore without Bill Russell

Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain were highly intelligent players. Just tremendous.

greatest of all time

i love his last comment if you beat someone that can't play you haven't accomplished anything, no truer words have ever been spoken, i love his laugh its so contagious.

I know it's one of those generational things, but I truly believe that younger people would be stunned if we could have seen Russell in his prime against today's players because the only big man ever even close to him athletically was Hakeem, he would simply crush most of today's players, and I don't think that an old geezer's perspective, just fact. Think about the litany of athletic accomplishments he just rattled off....crazy

THE REAL GOAT!!!

I'm pleased to hear his assessment of the Big O. Oscar was my favorite player growing up, and he was generally regarded as the finest overall player in the game then, but gets little attention today. There is a clip out there of Robertson getting just outside that imaginary line with Russell, putting his fadeaway jumper just outside Russell's outstretched hand and hitting nothing but net. It's about 20 seconds long and a thing of beauty.

Greatest Of All Time--Saw him play vs. Wilt as part of NBA doubleheader in the old Madison Square Garden. Some offensive players missed layups because they "thought Russell was there too".

We've gotta appreciate him while we still have him. A legend among legends

Mr Robert laconi, played with the great Bill Russell at San Francisco State and was my 7th and 8th grade coach.

BILL RUSSELL = LIVING LEGEND!!!!

GREAT interview (her mic is a bit hot, though). Anyway - Bill Russell is a great American icon - and has ALWAYS been the center on my all time team !!

y father taught me about Bill Russel when I was young in the late 50's. He felt Russel was the greatest ever because he did what the team neded and made everybody who played with him Better.

Bill isn't kidding: he jumped over a guy like Vince Carter...it's here, look it up

Great Man .. true Legend.

Bill Russell and Larry Bird, some of the highest basketball IQs in NBA history

11 Championships in 13 years says it ALL. No one comes close.

I love bill

What a wonderful guy. :)

Wilt was a tremendous high jumper in High School.

6:18 GOS FROM LAUGHING TO SERIOUS 100 TO 0 LOL

Original GOAT. Everyone else just trying to catch him.

man what charisma,

That laugh never changes ! Great guy tells it like it is and doesnt hurt any one when he says it . Back then rebounds were fought for in the paint not a shot from 40 feet and ball comes right to you my opinion and im sticking to it .

1:18 "I could touch the top of the backboard" that's just an insane vertical leap !

I love this guy. Nothing but truths

What a learned and fascinating gentleman--a true basketball artist and a great athletic competitor. (Catch his autobiographical book, "Second Wind.")

Interviewer has a laugh as big as Russell's. They make a good pair.

8:39 “you haven’t accomplished anything if you beat a guy that can’t play” 💀

He was really fortunate to play along with Cooz, They were a devastating combo ...

In honor of black history month!!! BILL RUSSELL IS AS INFLUENTIAL IN AFRICAN AMERICAN SOCIETY AS ONE'. MLK' FREDRICK DOUGLAS' MALCOM X' THE G. O. A. T(if you don't know who I'm referring to SHAME ON YOU ) ect, ect , ect , I hope that some day the world can realize the power and influence of sport!!!!! And it's individuals ..... POWER

Ran track competitively , hurdles and long jump and could touch the top of the backboard. One of the greatest athletes and winningest of all time.

Bro Bill Russell's so good at the Boston Celtics Dude

Blunt. Matter of fact. There is no one close to him in basketball history. Because of race it didn't matter how much better than the rest he was. And for jealousy it doesn't matter now.

No current center had the athletic ability of either Russell or Wilt. Shaq had nowhere the stamina or athleticism of those two guys. Hakeem was the closest because he played soccer which developed his speed and durability.....

Wilt & Russell were just phenomenal athletes. Obviously the game has changed so much, but these guys, athleticism was far better than Jokic's today. No knock on Jokic, best player in today's NBA.

The Greatest, period!

Confucius of NBA, he brought wisdom to the game ;) His athletic gift from God was only there as a decoy, it was from his very own hard work and understanding of the game that made him so great.

Bill russell not only had hops but quick hops, like Akeem and Walton did.

Bill Russell might be as good of a comedian as he was a basketball player.

Man was more of a cerebral basketball player. Master the art of defensive rotations and positioning. Which people lack on 2K

The best PERIOD need I say more.

My lifelong idol!

I always wanted to hear what Mr. Russell thought of Kareem.

Alot of people forget just how good havlicek was.Summons had him as the 14th best player ever in his book.He might have been higher than that.He was good at everything,and he tore the league apart for years after russell left.

If Morgan Freeman is God, than Bill Russell is God's father.

this thing with oscar robertson was really funny! wish there was a tape :D

bill russell has a really great sense of humor ,and i am enjoying the female interviewers laugh !! , does anyone know her name ?

0:35 Actually, Bill was ranked #7 in the WORLD shortly prior to the 1956 Olympics - and would have gone in that sport had his status in Basketball due to the signed but NOT YET IMPLEMENTED contract with the Celtics caused him to not be able to go in Basketball.

bill russell

3:21 Not QUITE true - there are a couple narrow records Wilt has, but Bill has ALMOST ALL of the Playoff rebounding records - including almost all of the PER GAME ones - with WIlt a very narrow second.

I didn't know about the athletic side of Russell. All I knew was that he was a winner. I can't imagine what a team containing Russell and Magic would be like. I'll tell you this much, just being athletic doesn't get you 11 championships in 13 years. This is a guy that could take his opponent in to very deep water every time. There is a will power and a focus among other things that people like him and Magic have. They can, with their will, control the momentum of a game. They can see.

One word - Innovator!!! Bill was so ahead of his time that it wasn’t funny. What sucks in the infancy of growing the game is that he gets so undervalued but he was a cerebral assassin, bar none. His BBall IQ was on Larry Bird level and I am sure Bird learned from Bill as well. I don’t care if it’s public school, to be the anchor for 11/13, 2 as player coach, and keep the motivation is unrivalled. This is what separates him from the rest. Defence isn’t sexy, and neither is selflessness. I hope the basketball world got everything on tape from this man as there will never be another like him at the centre spot.

IM BILL RUSSELL

Consider this: Russell's final two seasons at USF, his teams win two NCAA championships. Just before heading off to the pros, he plays on the 1956 Olympic team. They win the Gold. Then he goes to Boston and plays 13 years. They win 11 championships. His final tally: 16 potential championships -- and Bill's teams win 14 of them. Should there really be any argument about the best this or that? All this guy did was WIN, WIN, WIN. Case closed.

Honestly the only guy I think that would beat jordan in an nba finals

Thank-you for uploading this visionaryproject. This is priceless. Who is the woman interviewing Mr. Russell? Please let me know. Her voice sounds familiar.

Who is conducting this interview? The woman's voice sounds familiar.

2:34 To be fair, for about half of his career when he WORKED at rebounding, Dennis probably WAS a Top 5 rebounder of all time and had a case IN THOSE YEARS for one of the 3 best ever. The OTHER half of Dennis's career though, he was an OK but nowhere near great at rebounding player.

Does anyone know who the reporter asking the questions is ?

8:42 LHAO XD

Russell is always so lighthearted and funny in these interviews, but this is not how he really is. Anybody who lived in Seattle back in the day knew that if you ever saw him anywhere, stay away!! I was boarding a plane at Seatac in the late 90s and Russell was right in front of me on the boarding line. I didn't say a word to him, because I knew.

He is with MJ, Kareem and Magic one of the four goat-candidates.

MESELF POPS

0:35 Not quite correct. He WAS ranked #7 in the WORLD at one point during 1956, despite not high jumping at the Olympics that year (one sport limit). He WAS #2 or #3 in the US prior to the Olympics. Had he NOT gotten onto the Basketball team (there was some controversy over him having signed with the Celtics, even though he'd not gotten any pay YET and had not played or practiced with them YET), he WOULD have been on the US Olympic Team as a High Jumper that year. He DID have a TIE with the eventual Olympic Champion of 1956 (Charlie Dumas, as he goes on to mention), in the West Coast Relays as I recall (they were co-champions for that meet) - but 6 other folks had better jumps that year BEFORE the Olympics (where the first OFFICIAL 7' jump happened by Charlie) and that tie was "only" at 6' 9 and a fraction inches (actually was measured METRIC, as that was the Olympic standard).

4:43 I disagree - Nate Thurmond would also have had a lot of knowledge on the subject, with how long HE and Wilt overlapped - and Nate had to PRACTICE vs Wilt when they were both on the Warriors. Nate the Great wasn't exactly a slouch as a center - when no less than KAREEM names Nate "the player that guarded me the toughest"....

If I could meet Bill Russell, I would to say I'm sorry for the racism he experienced (heard about via a Bob Cousy video). It is a shame on us as a country but on Boston especially what they tolerated. Nevertheless, Bill Russell rose above it all. He was a Jackie Robinson of basketball. Well done! But I would also like to thank him for being the gentleman he always seemed to be. Bill Russell was always a classy guy whenever and wherever I saw him interviewed. And, he certainly was and is one of the smartest players ever to play the game and comment on it. We ought to call him "the Professor". And mostly, I'd like to thank him for being the incredible player he was. My goodness! Who is the GOAT? Well, Bill Russell has to be way up there in consideration because he did everything well. Most importantly, he did whatever was necessary for his team to win. Who else has so many championships?! Thank you Mr. Russell!

I have no doubt bill and wilt would have seasons of over 20 rebounds a game in any era if not mores some people saying that they would only average 13 are idiots. smh

Just thought id through make that point,its not a knock on russell he was awesome but he usually had better players around him than jordan,abdul jabbar or wilt did.That 1962 celtics club was so loaded it was cousys last season and havliceks first.That 12 man roster had 8 future hall of famers on it.

I honestly think if bill russel was born in the 80 or 90s he would play like lebron today...similar height build and stupid athleticism court vision etc.

The surrounding cast russell had around him was far superior to the guys jordan had around him.

how would he crush todays players? He would be the smallest center in the game and would still would have no offensive game. He would be a role player at best.

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could touch the top of the backboard MY ASS

Nice to hear all this from Russ. But all the dumb laughter from the "interviewer" is really off-putting.

Just because someone is old does not make them wise/

the most overrated player of all time. No way a top ten player.