We continue with our fourth NBA Tuesday miniseries today, and it’s a daunting task: identifying the 10 best players in the history of the Boston Celtics. It seems that so many great players would get left off this list, like front-court stud Ed Macauley (75.5 Win Shares, in the Hall of Fame) and five-time NBA champion forward Don Nelson (74.6 WS, also in the Hall). They didn’t make the cut, so let’s see who did make it … Go!

No. 10: Bill Sharman, SG, 80.9 WS (1951-1961)

Bullseye Bill played on 4 title teams in Boston, while also making 8 straight All-Star teams from 1953-1960. In six of those seasons, Sharman also topped the NBA in free-throw percentage—a feat he accomplished in his final pro year, too (1960-1961). He scored 18.1 ppg with Boston in the regular season over 680 games, and in the postseason, he upped that average to 18.5 ppg over 68 contests, winning rings in his final three years.

No. 9: Dave Cowens, C, 83.7 WS (1970-1980)

Big Red roamed the Boston Garden for 10 seasons before retiring, and over that decade, he was an 8-time All Star who averaged 18.2 ppg, 14.0 rpg, and 3.9 apg. Cowens’ best season 1972-1973, when he led the NBA in Defensive Win Shares (9.9) while posting a career-best 12.0 WS overall. He also was a two-time league champ (1974, 1976), earning our Finals MVP nod the second time out. He also won the 1971 ROTY vote.

No. 8: Bob Cousy, PG, 91.0 WS (1950-1963)

Surprising that the Houdini of the Hardwood is so “low” on this list: 13 All-Star designations, 8 NBA assists titles, and 6-time NBA champion suggest more here. Either way, Cousy is an all timer—like almost everyone else on this list above him. He won the 1957 MVP vote, and we also awarded him the 1961 Finals MVP hardware. In his Celtics career, he averaged 18.5 ppg and 7.6 apg, while adding 5.2 rpg, too. Not bad.

No. 7: Sam Jones, PG/SG/SF, 92.3 WS (1957-1969)

Mr. Clutch was quite underrated as a 10-time NBA champion—with just 5 All-Star seasons, somehow. We’d probably blame racism of the era, sadly, but regardless, Jones was one of the best, clearly. He averaged 17.7 ppg over 871 regular-season games, and in the playoffs? He improved that mark to 18.9 ppg over 154 contests. His best season came in 1964-65 (12.8 WS), when Jones put up 28.6 ppg in the regular season.

No. 6: Kevin McHale, PF, 113.0 WS (1980-1993)

The Black Hole was an odd nickname for this guy, all jokes aside. Still? McHale was a 7-time All Star and a 3-time NBA champion. Often overshadowed by others on the roster (see below), he still managed to post 17.9 ppg, 7.3 rpg, and 1.7 bpg averages over his regular-season career (971 games). Twice he led the NBA in shooting percentage. He was better in the postseason, like so many on this list (18.8 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.7 bpg).

No. 5: Robert Parish, C, 122.4 WS (1980-1994)

It’s hard to remember that The Chief played 7 seasons with other teams, including 4 years with the Golden State Warriors before he joined the Celtics. Over 1,106 regular-season games with Boston, Parish averaged a double double (16.5 ppg, 10.0 rpg) while adding 1.5 bpg. He was a 9-time All Star with the Celts, and he also won 3 championships with the team. Acquiring him in his early prime from GSW was a steal for Boston.

No. 4: John Havlicek, SG/SF, 131.7 WS (1962-1978)

His 17-season career with Boston almost bridged eras nicely, as Hondo put up 20.8 ppg over 1,270 regular-season games—and 22.0 ppg in 172 playoff contests. He was a 13-time All Star and an 8-time NBA champ. In addition, Havlicek was our pick for the 1968 Finals MVP, too. He was a very good all-around player, posting 6.3 rpg, 4.8 apg, and 1.2 spg throughout his career, even though steals only started tracking in 1973.

No. 3: Paul Pierce, SG/SF, 138.4 WS (1998-2013)

Hard to conceive that Pierce would crack the all-time starting lineup for Boston, but it’s true: a 10-time All-Star player, he led the Celtics to their most recent championship (2008), winning the Finals MVP vote symbolically. Pierce averaged 21.8 ppg over 1,102 regular-season games with Boston and 20.9 ppg over 136 postseason contests, too. His best season was 2001-2002, when he compiled 12.9 WS for the Celtics.

No. 2: Larry Bird, F, 145.8 WS (1980-1992)

In only 897 regular-season games, Bird managed a lot of Win Shares. In our eyes, he was a two-time league MVP and a three-time Finals MVP, not to mention the 1980 ROTY and a 12-time All-Star selection. Look at these all-around numbers: 24.3 ppg, 10.0 rpg, 6.3 apg, and 1.7 spg. He was just as good in 164 postseason games: 23.8 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 6.5 apg, and 1.8 spg. Bird also topped the NBA 4 times in free-throw percentage.

No. 1: Bill Russell, C, 163.5 WS (1956-1969)

There’s not much to say here that hasn’t already been said, even though we took away all five of his league MVP trophies. He still received five Finals MVP nods from us—and 8 DPOY pieces of hardware, too. His 11 rings are only topped by his 12 All-Star selections, and Russell also led the league in rebounding 4 times, too. His 15.1 ppg, 22.5 rpg, and 4.3 apg averages in the regular season are revealing of his overall talent.