Elgin Baylor never needed to advertise what he could do on the court. His game spoke loudly enough and according to his former Los Angeles Lakers teammate and friend, Jerry West, that was precisely what separated him from other NBA superstars during his time.
In an era in which the game was still developing, Baylor was ahead of his time. He redefined the small forward position through a combination of scoring, rebounding and creativity.
West understood better than most what made his longtime teammate special: Baylor never promised spectacular performances — Elgin simply delivered nightly.
"I've heard numerous times from present players, and no disrespect to them at all, about what they're gonna do to opponents in games," West once said as he reflected on Baylor's greatness. "They say, 'I'm gonna put on a show tonight.' Well, if you have to put on a show, then you're gonna have to try to do something completely different than most of these people in the league would do."
"Elgin Baylor never had to try to put on a show," he continued. "He was just Elgin Baylor. He did things no one else could do."
Baylor's scoring and rebounding skills made him a complete spectacle
What made Baylor p...