You don't really hear about Russell much in the discussion of the greatest player of all-time, except by some old hardcore Celtics fans. I don't think there is much dispute that Russell was the greatest defender in history, but I don't see him in too many discussions of "greatest player". A big part of that is that defense doesn't get proper recognition. Of those players commonly in that discussion of greatest player like Jordan, Bird, Magic, Jabbar, Kobe, West, etc, LeBron is by far the best defender.
Edit: I don't want to burst anyone's bubble in Boston, but Russell wasn't even close to the player that Wilt the Stilt was.