Elgin Baylor, Lakers Legend and Basketball Hall of Famer, Dies at 86
March 22, 2021
The Los Angeles Lakers announced that team legend and NBA Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor died of natural causes on Monday. He was 86.
The team released the following statement:
Baylor spent 14 NBA seasons with the Lakers (1958-72), with the first two coming in Minneapolis before the team moved West. He averaged 27.4 points, 13.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game and was an 11-time All-Star, a 10-time first-team All-NBA selection and the 1958-59 Rookie of the Year.
His best statistical season came in 1961-62, when he averaged a whopping 38.3 points and 18.6 rebounds per game. He was one of his generation's most innovative players, bringing a high-flying style later emulated by players like Julius Erving, Michael Jordan and many of today's wing players in an era when centers dominated.
Rafe Bartholomew @RafeboogsDr. J in BB: A Love Story: "Even till this day, Elgin's game was probably the most influential—strong, rebounding the ball, handling in transition, making plays around the hoop, up and under, left hand, right hand, body control, hang time. He was like a guy from another planet." https://t.co/twMxJYXbGa
Harrison Faigen @hmfaigenGrowing up, one of my best friends and I would always talk Lakers in the car. His dad was always arguing that Elgin Baylor would have destroyed in today's game, and that he was super underappreciated. He was a forebear for modern wing stars. NBA wouldn't be the same without him.
Michael Lee @MrMichaelLeeI don't know if there is a more unappreciated or underrated great than Elgin Baylor. Had a season when he averaged 35 & 20, then had 38 & 19 the next. Had a 71-pt game. A 61-pt game in the Finals. Did all of this at 6-5! During an era when big men like Wilt & Russell ruled #RIP
"As a shooter, as a dribbler, Elgin Baylor had no match," NBA legend Oscar Robertson once said of Baylor, per Mike Kupper of the Los Angeles Times. "The greatest game I ever saw was a Los Angeles playoff game in Boston when the Celtics double-teamed Elgin and Jerry West, and Elgin still scored about 60 points [it was 61]."
He was also an influential figure in the Civil Rights Movement:
Anthony F. Irwin @AnthonyIrwinLAElgin Baylor once sat out a game because a hotel wouldn’t let him and his Black teammates stay there. This is what was written about that decision at the time. (https://t.co/G592BhqFQE) Baylor’s life on and off the court was marred by racism and he stared it down at every turn. https://t.co/7yNSY5OmNk
And while he never won an NBA title, he would have had he not decided to end his playing career in the 1971-72 season:
Benjamin Hoffman @BenHoffmanNYTOne of the wildest things about Elgin Baylor's DRAMATICALLY UNDERRATED career is he never won a ring because he wasn't willing to not be great. He walked away during the Lakers' 71-72 championship season because he wasn't playing up to his own standards. Legend. https://t.co/oAOhH8jX9y
After his playing career, Baylor worked as an assistant coach and then head coach (1976-79) for the New Orleans Jazz, leading them to an 86-135 record.
He was hired by the Los Angeles Clippers as the team's vice president of basketball operations in 1986 and spent 22 seasons in the role.