Top 25 rookie seasons in NBA history: No. 8 Elgin Baylor
The greatest rookie seasons in NBA history share a number of qualities, starting with individual statistical dominance. However, you can't overlook the context beyond the box score; initial expectations, team success, and overall legacy all matter.
While we wait for the 2019-20 season to resume, theScore's NBA editors have dusted off the record books to determine the top 25 rookie seasons in league history.
No. 8 in our series is Minneapolis Lakers small forward Elgin Baylor. Catch up on previous posts in the series here.
Before the Association
A poor academic record resulted in Baylor playing a season at the College of Idaho, a small liberal arts institute. After another year of AAU ball, Baylor landed with Seattle, beginning a short but electric two-year run for the program.
Baylor averaged 31.2 points and 19.8 rebounds per game at Seattle and led the program to its only Final Four appearance during his junior season in 1957-58. The team fell to Adolph Rupp's powerhouse Kentucky squad in the title game, but Baylor was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player and a consensus first-team All-American.
Draft day
The Lakers first attempted to lure Baylor in 1956, selecting him in the 14th round of that year's draft. The team finally succeeded in prying him from the college ranks in 1958, selecting him first overall and convincing him to forgo his senior season.
Minneapolis was in desperate need of a shot in the arm, too.
The team had reassigned legendary coach John Kundla to a front-office role before the 1957-58 season, starting the year with former franchise player George Mikan manning the sideline. The team reversed course after a disastrous 9-30 start, returning Kundla to his previous role for the remainder of the campaign. After making the playoffs in each of their first nine seasons - winning five titles in that span - the Lakers finished with a league-worst 19-53 record.
Individual success
Baylor didn't miss a beat. The rookie phenom put up 24.9 points, 15 rebounds, and 4.1 assists in 40.8 minutes per game in Year 1, leading the team in all four categories. He ranked third in the league in rebounding average and fourth in scoring.
In January of his rookie year, Baylor made the first of 11 career All-Star appearances. He finished with a 24-point, 11-rebound double-double, helping secure the win for the West. He likely would've been named the exhibition's MVP if not for Bob Pettit's performance,.
Baylor was unanimously voted Rookie of the Year at season's end. He was also named to the All-NBA first team and finished third behind Pettit and Bill Russell for league MVP honors.
Team success
Despite their poor performance in 1957-58, the Lakers had a number of bona fide stars when Baylor arrived.
Shooting guard Dick Garmaker was already a two-time All-Star entering his age-26 season. Larry Foust also made the All-Star team in 1958, his first year with the Lakers. Longtime power forward Vern Mikkelsen, 30, was only a year removed from All-Star status himself.
Baylor elevated the holdovers beyond the sum of their parts. With their new star in the fold, the Lakers improved by 14 wins to finish 33-39 in 1958-59. Qualifying for the playoffs despite a losing record, Minneapolis knocked off a pair of winning teams - including Pettit's Hawks - before getting swept by Russell's Celtics in the 1959 Finals.
Enduring legacy
Considering the three players selected after Baylor - Archie Dees, Mike Farmer, and Pete Brennan - combined for 4,404 points in 629 career NBA games (an average of seven points per contest), the Lakers clearly made the right choice.
In Baylor, the franchise secured a generational talent - a high-leaping, dynamic scorer who became the Lakers' first superstar of the Los Angeles era after the team relocated to California in 1960.
Unfortunately, Baylor never won an NBA title. He retired just nine games into the 1971-72 season - right before Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain led the team on a historic 33-game winning streak and eventually to the 1972 championship.
Come back tomorrow to see who came in at No. 7 in theScore's Top 25 Rookie Seasons series.