Legendary Lakers Star Elgin Baylor Has Died

Lakers legend Elgin Baylor had died at 86. The Los Angeles Lakers confirmed the death of the legendary forward. Lakers governor Jeanie Buss sent her thoughts and prayers to the family and praised Baylor’s great success on and off the court.

“Elgin was THE superstar of his era – his many accolades speak to that,” Buss said. “He was one of the few Lakers players whose career spanned from Minneapolis to Los Angeles. But more importantly he was a man of great integrity, even serving his country as a U.S. Army reservist, often playing for the Lakers only during his weekend pass. He is one of the all-time Lakers greats with his No. 22 jersey retired in the rafters and his statue standing guard in front of STAPLES Center. He will always be part of the Lakers legacy. On behalf of the entire Lakers family, I’d like to send my thoughts, prayers and condolences to Elaine and the Baylor family.”

Baylor’s wife Elaine shared a statement, too. Elaine praised her husband for his great personality and asked for privacy in these hard times.

“Elgin was the love of my life and my best friend,” she said. “And like everyone else, I was in awe of his immense courage, dignity and the time he gave to all the fans.”

Lakers legend Elgin Baylor will be missed

Elgin Baylor was part of the Minneapolis Lakers in the period between 195 and 1971. The great forward was an 11-time All-Star and a 10-time All-NBA First Team selection.

He had less success as a head coach. Baylor had three losing seasons with the New Orleans Jazz between 1976 and 1979. However, he was really interested in running basketball operations and became the general manager of the LA Clippers. In 2006, Baylor was named NBA Executive of the Year.

Baylor was one of the all-time greats. He became part of the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1977. Basketball fans will miss him and his great advice.