Bill Walton has passed away at 71 years old

sfidc3 said
I would take either of them over Shaq any day.....and that's not a knock on Shaq.....

Hakeem was incredibly skillful, creative offensively had a zillion moves and was also a much better defender.....Shaq was 10 + years younger, he never played against the best version of Hakeem.....

Russell? Probably the best defensive player of all time, hard to compare as the games were just so different over the time span....

I tend to believe that of all of the past greats from before the modern era (Magic and Bird) Russell would have the most trouble trying to adapt his game to the modern game. He was THE rim protector, but the modern game would make his game thinner. He was athletic and smart, but guys like Joker would be very difficult. Shaq would be quite impossible for Bill even though he held his own against Wilt.