 From a historical NBA perspective , the rivalry between Chamberlain and his perennial nemesis Bill Russell is cited as the greatest on @-@ court rivalry of all time . There were three NBA Finals matchups in the rivalry between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson , but they played different positions and did not guard each other . Russell 's Celtics won seven of eight playoff series against Chamberlain 's Warriors , 76ers , and Lakers teams , and went 57 – 37 against them in the regular season and 29 – 20 in the playoffs . Russell 's teams won all four seventh games against Chamberlain 's — the combined margin was nine points . Chamberlain outscored Russell 30 to 14 @.@ 2 per game and outrebounded him 28 @.@ 2 to 22 @.@ 9 in the regular season , and also in the playoffs , he outscored him 25 @.@ 7 to 14 @.@ 9 and outrebounded him 28 to 24 @.@ 7 . The comparison between the two is often simplified to a great player ( Chamberlain ) versus a player who makes his team great ( Russell ) , an individualist against a team player . In 1961 – 62 when Chamberlain averaged 50 @.@ 4 points per game , he noted that Boston did not rely on Russell 's scoring , and he could concentrate on defense and rebounding . He wished people would understand that their roles were different . Chamberlain said , " I 've got to hit forty points or so , or this team is in trouble . I must score — understand ? After that I play defense and get the ball off the boards . I try to do them all , best I can , but scoring comes first . " Russell won 11 NBA titles in his career while Chamberlain won two . Chamberlain was named All @-@ NBA first team seven times to Russell 's three , but Russell was named league MVP — then selected by players and not the press — five times against Chamberlain 's four . 
