Two MVP seasons and a MVP runner up. A reasonable comparison, I think.
Notes
- Regular season stats below.
- Did not include playoff stats but you should consider their postseason forms in your evaluation of them as a player. This is not “who had the best regular season?” It’s more like “which player do you trust more to win you a championship?”
- For 2011 Rose and 2017 Russ, try not to consider anything that happened after their MVP season.
- Yes I know Rose was far younger than them and this is inherently “unfair.” Speaks to how good he was.
2011 Rose
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26.7 / 4.4 / 8.2 per 75 possessions
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+0.9% rTS%, 6.8 BPM
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+4.29 LEBRON (+4.29 off, -0.53 def)
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62-19, +8.8 on-court, +2.8 on/off
2017 Russ
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33.6 / 11.3 / 11.0 per 75 possessions
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+0.02% rTS%, 11.1 BPM
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+5.79 LEBRON (+5.63 off, +0.16 def)
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46-35, +4.0 on-court, +12.5 on/off
2024 Shai
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31.8 / 5.9 / 6.6 per 75 possessions
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+5.6% rTS%, 9.0 BPM
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+5.26 LEBRON (+4.34 off, +0.92 def)
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55-20, +11.9 on-court, +11.4 on/off
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Bold indicates the highest value among the three. “LEBRON” is an all-in-one impact metric based on both box score data & play-by-play data.
Again, question is who is the best player, not who has the best stats - the stats should simply help inform you. Who would you trust most to win you a championship if you built a team around them? And rank the three.
Maybe the dude that’s leading in advanced metrics, on/off and all 3 major counting stats
2017 Russ>
TBF it’s easier to lead in counting stats when you’re carrying a bad team than it is when you’re carrying a good team.
It’s also generally agreed upon that sustaining high on/offs is harder (or more important) as your team is better. Easy to argue that Shai’s +11.4 on/off is more impressive and/or supportive of his case than Russ’ +12.5.
That’s why I added the disclaimer for people not to rely upon the numbers too much.
Of course Russ is more than a fair pick though.
maybe the guy who could actually win a playoff series
Rose/SGA > Westbrook