Copy Paste + Wilt, Garnett and Shaq.
Advanced Cumulative-Statistical Profile:
*Michael Jordan's numbers will include his 22 game stretch in 1995, it is simply far easier to include them
Michael Jordan RS ('87-'98): 29.4 PER, 189.0 WS (.281 WS/48), 8.1 OBPM, 101.9 VORP
Michael Jordan PS ('87-'98): 28.7 PER, 38.6 WS (.258 WS/48), 8.8 OBPM, 23.8 VORP
Tim Duncan RS ('98-'10): 25.0 PER, 162.3 WS (.219 WS/48), 3.8 OBPM, 72.8 VORP
Tim Duncan PS ('98-'10): 25.7 PER, 28.6 WS (.204 WS/48), 4.2 OBPM, 15.0 VORP
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar RS ('70-'84): 26.0 PER, 235.7 WS (.247 WS/48), 5.0 OBPM, 72.7 VORP
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar PS ('70-'84): 25.3 PER, 28.4 WS (.223 WS/48), 6.0 OBPM, 10.5 VORP
Bill Russell RS ('57-'67): 19.4 PER, 144.4 WS (.201 WS/48)
Bill Russell PS ('57-'67): 20.4 PER, 24.7 WS (.204 WS/48)
Wilt Chamberlain RS ('60-'67): 29.3 PER, 163.2 WS (.268 WS/48)
Wilt Chamberlain PS ('60-'67): 27.8 PER, 16.9 WS (.254 WS/48)
Kevin Garnett RS ('98-'08): 25.0 PER, 139.6 WS (.206 WS/48), 5.0 OBPM, 75.2 VORP
Kevin Garnett PS ('98-'08): 23.4 PER, 9.6 WS (.161 WS/48), 4.2 BPM, 6.2 VORP
Shaquille O'Neal RS ('95-'05): 28.5 PER, 129.0 WS (.232 WS/48), 5.8 OBPM, 57.4 VORP
Shaquille O'Neal PS ('95-'05): 27.6 PER, 28.4 WS (.204 WS/48), 6.0 OBPM, 14.4 VORP
The Spurs in 2011 were disappointing, Duncan was bad in the post-season and the Spurs dynasty appeared to be nearing an end. Duncan would ignore all doubters in 2012, anchoring a team which went 19-2 in Duncan's final 21 regular season games. In 2013 and 2014 Duncan was the defensive anchor and key contributor on 2 NBA Finals team, finally getting over the hump for the final time in 2014. Duncan's game 6 in the 2013 NBA Finals was an all-time classic performance, as were his game 3's against the Lakers and Grizzles.
The 1985 Finals featured Kareem posting a ridiculous 28.4/10.2/6.0 in the games 2-6 while being un-guardable as a scorer on the floor. Although Kareem's 1986 campaign ended poorly, Kareem willingly took on a lesser, still impactful role in 1987 to help the Lakers win Kareem's 5th title on behalf of Magic Johnson.
Russell's impact didn't fall on a game by game basis until 1969, where Russell was still phenomenal in the post-season. At age 35 Russell led the Celtics, in the finals, in rebounds and assists on the way to his 11th title after dismantling a soon-to-be-champions in the New York Knicks with their newly acquired secret weapon, Dave DeBusschere. The Celtics and Russell in 1968 were able to stave off two juggernauts in the 76ers and Lakers on the way to their 10th title.
Wilt had very productive years in 1969 and 1971 with the Lakers. His impact was felt largely after changing his style of play after 1966, following the 76ers disappointing post-season. Wilt was finally able to put it all together on a team in 1972 while Wilt missing 1970 highlighted his impact as the Lakers were significantly worse in this season compared to 1969 and 1971. Wilt really is the closest player
statistically to Jordan and James over a "shorter prime" period and his "non-prime" years which I touched on above simply out match any other players on this list when looked at on a year to year basis.
Kevin Garnett's prime is difficult to contextualize but I will focus on his "non-prime" years here. Garnett was already the best player on a playoff team at the age of 20, which is rarely seen in the NBA's vast history. His 1997 was a great carry job on the defensive end where Garnett's versatility shined and his fluid offense set the tone for one of the greatest careers in NBA History. Garnett's 2009 campaign was ruined by injury but his following 2010-2012 campaigns still featured high impact seasons from both ends of the court. Although Garnett's offense started to slip in 2013, his defense was still at a near all-time level from a per-minute basis.
Shaq simply isn't a favorite of mine...to put it nicely. His dominance in his prime was often coupled by a dominant perimeter star, but, and a big but here, all of the players in this comparison so far have played with talented players, some less than others (Garnett and Wilt notable). Ultimately, Shaq's "non-prime" seasons here simply do not move the needle in comparison to anyone else here, in fact, he has the worst years here.
Ultimately, I come away with a few conclusions from the 1st thread, posts from this one and my own research over the years. Shaquille O'Neal doesn't separate himself from this pack in his prime in a way like Jordan did and his CORP is dead last in this group, both focusing on "Prime CORP" and "other years". Wilt ends up closer to Shaq than to the rest of the players in this comparison, making this a 5-player group with Russell and Jordan a "half-step" up on Kareem, Duncan and Garnett. Kareem and Duncan are still ahead of Garnett for me, and if Garnett is this high I am probably going to bring in Moses, Hakeem and a few others soon as I don't like limiting myself to 3 players and, as we move down the GOAT list, the more players have arguments for a position.
Focusing back in at the #3 spot on this vote I am putting a few more eggs into the Duncan basket in comparison to the Kareem basket. 2002 and 2003 Duncan reached a level I don't put Kareem on. I'm higher on his later years in comparison to Kareem as his defense was still great and offensively I don't see a major difference, certainly smaller than the gap defensively.
1. Bill Russell
2. Michael Jordan
3. Tim Duncan