Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Bill Russell recently sat down with NBA.com for a Q&A in which he discussed his health, the Olympic and the state of today’s NBA.

Russell had mostly positive things to say about this generation, including Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Kevin Durant.

“What I admire about Kevin Durant is that he even though he’s the leading scorer, he’s not always the first option,” Russell said. “And that’s unusual for an elite scorer because they are usually the first option. Kevin gets his points within the flow of the offense. I don’t recall seeing him calling for the ball.”

This is a very good point that Russell makes. It is true that part of what makes Durant such a great scorer, is that he can get his in the flow of an offense. In fact, that is when Durant and the Thunder are at their best. When Durant is going one-on-one solely looking to score, the Thunder are worse off. But when he can play off the ball, come off screens or act as a spot-up shooter, he becomes much more deadly.

Part of why it may seem like Durant isn’t always the first option is because of the way Russell Westbrook acts with the ball, often coming down and shooting without a pass. The Thunder have won like this and this dynamic works to keep Durant efficient while Westbrook handles the hoisting of bad, tough shots.

Russell isn’t right though when he says he doesn’t recall seeing Durant call for the ball. Durant may not be yelling for the ball but he almost always has his hand up calling for it when he is on the perimeter. That’s an area where Durant can get better is to move better without the ball and get in better position rather than standing around with his hand up.

Russell went on to compliment Durant as well as Derrick Rose and LeBron James as being first and foremost team guys, which has to be the ultimate compliment coming from the ultimate team guy in Russell.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

The 2012 NBA Draft is upon is and that means plenty of rumors, trade talks and speculation over the next 48 hours. One thing that won’t be speculated is who the New Orleans Hornets will be drafting first overall.

Anthony Davis will be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. We’ve known this for awhile now. Basically since he began playing college basketball it was clear he was the best player in the country.

Davis at 6-foot-10 with a 7-foot-5 wingspan averaged 14.2 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.7 blocks per game in his one season at Kentucky. He led them to a national championship season in which the Wildcats lost just two games.

Davis’ spot in the 2012 Draft will not be questioned but the kind of pro that he will become is certainly of some debate.

Davis will be most comfortable playing power forward in the NBA although he will be able to play some center too depending the on the team and situation. He is 6-foot-10 but only 222 pounds right now so he’s not going to overpower you.

The way that Davis will overpower you is with his skills and basketball savvy. Before his senior year of high school, Davis was a 6-foot-3 point guard not drawing much attention at all from colleges.

When you hear that now, it isn’t surprising at all. He can handle the ball like a guard, moves like a guard and has instincts most big men take a long time to develop. The best part about Davis is that he blossomed so late and for a number of reasons, most importantly being that he was not tainted by the AAU circuits.

Davis was never a prima donna who expected anything to come his way. He grew up in a poor family in Chicago and his rise to the national stage happened so fast there was never any time for an ego to grow.

Davis has been compared to a number of NBA players. Marcus Camby comes to mind immediately although it feels like Davis’ ceiling would be higher than that. There have also been comparisons to Chris Bosh and Amare Stoudemire.

Bill Russell is also a name that has come up. The 11-time NBA champion is rarely compared to NBA players nowadays. It makes sense. It was a different game in the 1960s so it’s hard to compare that era to today. Russell was only about 6-foot-9 and a modern day version of him in the NBA would look something like Thaddeus Young so it’s hard to imagine him impacting today’s game anywhere near to how he did in the ‘60s.

But what would Russell look like today? Not simply if you placed Russell in today’s game but what would the Russell equivalent be in 2012?

Anthony Davis might be it.

Russell embodied everything about team basketball. He didn’t score the most points but he got the most rebounds, blocked the most shots, ignited the most fast breaks and won the most championships.

Davis will never lead the NBA in scoring but he might become the best at everything else. If Davis peaks at 19-14-4-5 (points-rebounds-assists-blocks), isn’t that something that the modern day Russell would average.

What if Davis averages that and is simultaneously the best teammate in the NBA. He’s the perfect defensive anchor to block shots, rebound, start fast breaks and run the floor, everything that Russell was so perfect at.

Davis isn’t going to win 11 championships in today’s NBA but Russell wouldn’t have either. The equivalent of 11 would be something like 6 or 7 for Davis. It seems pretty impossible but you never know.

Alright, so comparing Davis to Russell already isn’t totally fair. But it’s a decent comparison and “best possible scenario for the 2012 No. 1 overall pick.”

The ultimate point is: if you had to think up a modern day Bill Russell, Anthony Davis sounds about right.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat matchup is a dream come true for NBA fans as it pits arguably the two most talented teams against each other with the two most talented players.

LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant.

It’s the matchup we always wanted: the two best players in the NBA to lead their teams to the NBA Finals and square off.

One of the special things about this matchup is that LeBron and Durant play the same position. They will be guarding each other throughout the entire series. And each has advantages against the other.

LeBron is of course the ultimate athlete with his strength and power being his greatest advantage. Durant has traditionally struggled somewhat against more physical defenders with LeBron fitting that exact mold.

Durant is taller than LeBron, listed at 6-foot-9 but may be closer to 7-feet according to many NBA players. He can give LeBron trouble using his length. He can play off him on defense and entice LeBron into shooting jumpers.

LeBron is the better all-around player and was the MVP this year rightfully so but he’s not better than Durant at everything. Here are their numbers from the regular season and then the playoffs.

It’s not that common for the two best players in the NBA to meet in the NBA Finals. It’s also not common for the two best players to play the same position.It doesn’t get much better than that. But is it the best individual matchup in NBA Finals history? It’s closer than you think.

We always hear Bird-Magic as the greatest matchup ever but the truth is those two rarely guarded each other. Not taking anything away from those ‘80s Celtics-Lakers series because they were the best NBA Finals’ ever.

Even looking back in 1991 at Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson matching up. They didn’t quite play the same position or guard each other much either. Magic vs. MJ might get the edge in LeBron vs. Durant in how big the names were, LeBron vs. Durant will be better in a lot of other ways too.

The only matchup in NBA Finals history that really is better than what we are about to see is Bill Russell vs. Wilt Chamberlain.

It sounds a little silly already comparing LeBron-Durant to Russell-Wilt but it really could be the beginning of the next great NBA rivalry.

The Thunder aren’t going away for awhile. They look like a team that could be dominating the West for 5-6 more NBA Finals appearances.

The Heat and LeBron are the same way. If the Thunder and Heat manage to meet in the Finals three or four times over the next five years, LeBron-Durant has the potential to turn into the greatest rivalry of all-time.

The first chapter begins Tuesday in Oklahoma City.