Although...nevertheless

He was less successful after he had signed with the Washington Bullets compared to the New York Knicks, small forward Bernard King nevertheless earned a steadfast group of admirers who consider him one of the greatest scorers in basketball history.

(A) He was less successful after he had signed with the Washington Bullets compared to
(B) Being less successful after he had signed with the Washington Bullets as compared to
(C) Less successful after he signed with the Washington Bullets than he had been with
(D) Although he was less successful after signing with the Washington Bullets compared to
(E) He had been less successful after signing with the Washington Bullets than with

The answer is C
I understand that D can be eliminated due to an idiomatic error (less-than) , however, can I also eliminate it on the grounds of both 'although' and 'nevertheless' making the sentence redundant?