Elgin Baylor vs. Dwyane Wade Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Dwyane Wade and Elgin Baylor, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season / Stats / Stats Rankings

Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.

Elgin Baylor played 14 years in the NBA, 2 less than Dwyane Wade, who played 16. Elgin Baylor had the first of his seasons in 1958-59, while Dwyane Wade had his rookie season in 2003-04. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achievements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
Elgin Baylor 14 12 1958-59 to 1971-72
Dwyane Wade 16 13 2003-04 to 2018-19

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14

Rookie Season

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1958-592003-04
Team Minneapolis LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
-Achievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game MVP-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsHeat Lost East Conf Semis
more >>
Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 70 40.8 24.9 - - 15.0 4.1 - - - 3.9 8.6 21.2 .408 - - - 7.6 9.8 .777
difference:+9+5.9+8.7+11.0+0.4-1.6+2.5+8.1+.057+3.8+4.7+.030
Dwyane Wade 61 34.9 16.2 1.4 2.7 4.0 4.5 1.4 0.6 3.2 2.3 6.1 13.1 .465 0.3 0.9 .302 3.8 5.1 .747
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 13 42.8 25.5 - - 12.0 3.3 - - - 4.0 9.4 23.3 .403 - - - 6.7 8.7 .770
difference:+3.3+7.5+8.0+2.3-0.5+2.8+8.8+.052+2.2+2.9+.017
Dwyane Wade 13 39.5 18.0 1.2 2.8 4.0 5.6 1.3 0.3 4.2 3.5 6.6 14.5 .455 0.2 0.6 .375 4.5 5.8 .787

Season 2

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1959-602004-05
Team Minneapolis LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div FinalsHeat Lost East Conf Finals
more >>
2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 70 41.0 29.6 - - 16.4 3.5 - - - 3.3 10.8 25.4 .424 - - - 8.1 11.0 .732
difference:+7+2.4+5.5+11.2+3.3-0.3+2.6+8.3+.054+0.6+1.1+.030
Dwyane Wade 77 38.6 24.1 1.4 3.7 5.2 6.8 1.6 1.1 4.2 3.0 8.2 17.1 .478 0.2 0.6 .289 7.5 9.9 .762
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 9 45.3 33.4 - - 14.1 3.4 - - - 4.2 12.3 26.0 .474 - - - 8.8 10.4 .840
difference:+5+4.3+6.0+8.4+3.2-1.1+2.6+5.9+.010+0.9+0.5+.041
Dwyane Wade 14 41.0 27.4 1.6 4.1 5.7 6.6 1.6 1.1 4.4 3.1 9.7 20.1 .484 0.1 0.7 .100 7.9 9.9 .799

Season 3

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1960-612005-06
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards -Achievement Finals MVP
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 73 42.9 34.8 - - 19.8 5.1 - - - 3.8 12.8 29.7 .430 - - - 9.3 11.8 .783
difference:+2+4.3+7.6+14.1+1.6-0.9+3.5+10.9+.065+0.9+1.1
Dwyane Wade 75 38.6 27.2 1.4 4.3 5.7 6.7 1.9 0.8 3.6 2.9 9.3 18.8 .495 0.2 1.0 .171 8.4 10.7 .783
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 12 45.0 38.1 - - 15.3 4.6 - - - 3.7 14.2 30.2 .470 - - - 9.8 11.8 .824
difference:+11+3.3+9.7+9.4+1.1-0.6+4.7+11.0+.027+1.0+0.9+.016
Dwyane Wade 23 41.7 28.4 1.2 4.7 5.9 5.7 2.2 1.1 3.9 3.1 9.5 19.2 .497 0.6 1.6 .378 8.8 10.9 .808

Season 4

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1961-622006-07
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsHeat Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 48 44.4 38.3 - - 18.6 4.6 - - - 3.2 14.2 33.1 .428 - - - 9.9 13.1 .754
difference:+3+6.5+10.9+13.9+2.9-0.9+4.9+14.2+.063+1.4+2.6+.053
Dwyane Wade 51 37.9 27.4 1.0 3.7 4.7 7.5 2.1 1.2 4.2 2.3 9.3 18.9 .491 0.4 1.5 .266 8.5 10.5 .807
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 13 43.9 38.6 - - 17.7 3.6 - - - 3.5 14.3 32.7 .438 - - - 10.0 12.9 .774
difference:+9+3.4+15.1+12.9+2.7-0.2+5.3+11.7+.009+4.5+4.9+.086
Dwyane Wade 4 40.5 23.5 1.8 3.0 4.8 6.3 1.3 0.5 5.8 3.3 9.0 21.0 .429 0.0 1.3 .000 5.5 8.0 .688

Season 5

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1962-632007-08
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 80 42.1 34.0 - - 14.3 4.8 - - - 2.8 12.9 28.4 .453 - - - 8.3 9.9 .837
difference:+29+3.8+9.4+10.1+2.1-0.1+4.3+10.0+.016+1.4+0.7+.079
Dwyane Wade 51 38.3 24.6 0.9 3.3 4.2 6.9 1.7 0.7 4.4 2.7 8.6 18.4 .469 0.4 1.5 .286 6.9 9.2 .758
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 13 43.2 32.6 - - 13.6 4.5 - - - 3.7 12.3 27.8 .442 - - - 8.0 9.7 .825
Dwyane Wade DNP------ --- ----------

Season 6

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1963-642008-09
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
-Achievement Scoring Leader
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div SemisHeat Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 78 40.6 25.4 - - 12.0 4.4 - - - 3.0 9.7 22.8 .425 - - - 6.0 7.5 .804
difference:+1+2.0+4.8+7.0+3.1-0.7+1.1+0.8+.066+1.5+2.3+.039
Dwyane Wade 79 38.6 30.2 1.1 3.9 5.0 7.5 2.2 1.3 3.4 2.3 10.8 22.0 .491 1.1 3.5 .317 7.5 9.8 .765
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 5 44.2 24.2 - - 11.6 5.6 - - - 3.4 9.0 23.8 .378 - - - 6.2 8.0 .775
difference:+2+3.5+4.9+6.6+0.3-0.5+0.7+1.7+.061+0.9+0.3+.087
Dwyane Wade 7 40.7 29.1 0.6 4.4 5.0 5.3 0.9 1.6 3.6 2.9 9.7 22.1 .439 2.6 7.1 .360 7.1 8.3 .862

Season 7

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1964-652009-10
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
-Achievement All-Defensive Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsHeat Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 74 41.3 27.1 - - 12.8 3.8 - - - 3.2 10.3 25.7 .401 - - - 6.5 8.2 .792
difference:+3+5.0+0.5+8.0+2.7-0.8+1.0+6.1+.075+0.4+0.9+.031
Dwyane Wade 77 36.3 26.6 1.4 3.5 4.8 6.5 1.8 1.1 3.3 2.4 9.3 19.6 .476 0.9 3.2 .300 6.9 9.1 .761
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 1 5.0 0.0 - - 0 1.0 - - - 0.0 0.0 2.0 .000 - - - 0.0 0.0 -
difference:+4+37.0+33.2+5.6+5.8-3.2+12.4+20.0+.564+5.4+8.0
Dwyane Wade 5 42.0 33.2 1.2 4.4 5.6 6.8 1.6 1.6 5.2 3.2 12.4 22.0 .564 3.0 7.4 .405 5.4 8.0 .675

Season 8

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1965-662010-11
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsHeat Lost NBA Finals
more >>
8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 65 30.4 16.6 - - 9.6 3.4 - - - 2.4 6.4 15.9 .401 - - - 3.8 5.2 .739
difference:+11+6.7+8.9+3.2+1.2-0.2+2.7+2.3+.099+2.7+3.4+.019
Dwyane Wade 76 37.1 25.5 1.6 4.8 6.4 4.6 1.5 1.1 3.1 2.6 9.1 18.2 .500 0.8 2.7 .306 6.5 8.6 .758
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 14 41.9 26.8 - - 14.1 3.7 - - - 2.7 10.4 23.4 .442 - - - 6.1 7.5 .810
difference:+7+2.5+2.3+7.0+0.7-0.2+1.8+5.6+.043+0.5+1.0+.033
Dwyane Wade 21 39.4 24.5 2.0 5.1 7.1 4.4 1.6 1.3 3.0 2.5 8.6 17.8 .485 0.7 2.5 .269 6.6 8.5 .777

Season 9

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1966-672011-12
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
9th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 70 38.7 26.6 - - 12.8 3.1 - - - 3.0 10.2 23.7 .429 - - - 6.3 7.7 .813
difference:+21+5.5+4.5+8.0+1.5-0.8+1.7+6.6+.068+1.5+1.6+.022
Dwyane Wade 49 33.2 22.1 1.5 3.3 4.8 4.6 1.7 1.3 2.6 2.2 8.5 17.1 .497 0.3 1.1 .268 4.8 6.1 .791
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 3 40.3 23.7 - - 13.0 3.0 - - - 2.0 9.3 25.3 .368 - - - 5.0 6.7 .750
difference:+20+0.9+0.9+7.8+1.3-0.8+0.7+6.8+.094+0.3+0.5+.021
Dwyane Wade 23 39.4 22.8 1.4 3.8 5.2 4.3 1.7 1.3 3.0 2.8 8.6 18.5 .462 0.4 1.5 .294 5.3 7.2 .729

Season 10

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1967-682012-13
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
10th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 77 39.3 26.0 - - 12.2 4.6 - - - 3.0 9.8 22.2 .443 - - - 6.3 8.1 .786
difference:+8+4.6+4.8+7.2+0.5-1.0+1.6+6.4+.078+1.8+1.9+.061
Dwyane Wade 69 34.7 21.2 1.2 3.7 5.0 5.1 1.9 0.8 2.8 2.0 8.2 15.8 .521 0.2 1.0 .258 4.5 6.2 .725
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 15 42.2 28.5 - - 14.5 4.0 - - - 2.7 11.7 25.1 .468 - - - 5.1 7.5 .679
difference:+7+6.7+12.6+9.9+0.8-0.7+5.2+10.8+.011+2.4+3.9+.071
Dwyane Wade 22 35.5 15.9 1.7 2.9 4.6 4.8 1.7 1.0 2.6 2.0 6.5 14.3 .457 0.0 0.2 .250 2.7 3.6 .750

Season 11

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1968-692013-14
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsHeat Lost NBA Finals
more >>
11th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 76 40.3 24.8 - - 10.6 5.4 - - - 2.7 9.6 21.5 .447 - - - 5.5 7.5 .743
difference:+22+7.4+5.8+6.1+0.7-0.7+1.9+7.4+.098+2.0+2.7+.010
Dwyane Wade 54 32.9 19.0 1.1 3.4 4.5 4.7 1.5 0.5 3.0 2.0 7.7 14.1 .545 0.2 0.6 .281 3.5 4.8 .733
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 18 35.6 15.4 - - 9.2 4.1 - - - 3.1 5.9 15.4 .385 - - - 3.5 5.4 .649
difference:+2+0.9+2.4+5.3+0.2-0.3+1.1+1.5+.115+0.9+.118
Dwyane Wade 20 34.7 17.8 0.8 3.1 3.9 3.9 1.5 0.3 2.7 2.8 7.0 13.9 .500 0.5 1.2 .375 3.5 4.5 .767

Season 12

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1969-702014-15
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
12th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 54 41.0 24.0 - - 10.4 5.4 - - - 2.4 9.5 19.5 .486 - - - 5.1 6.6 .773
difference:+8+9.2+2.5+6.9+0.6-0.7+1.3+2.0+.016+0.5+0.6+.005
Dwyane Wade 62 31.8 21.5 0.9 2.6 3.5 4.8 1.2 0.3 3.4 1.7 8.2 17.5 .470 0.5 1.6 .284 4.6 6.0 .768
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 18 37.1 18.7 - - 9.6 4.6 - - - 2.8 7.7 16.4 .466 - - - 3.3 4.5 .741
Dwyane Wade DNP------ --- ----------

Season 13

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1970-712015-16
Team Los Angeles LakersMiami Heat
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Did Not PlayHeat Lost East Conf Semis
more >>
13th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 2 28.5 10.0 - - 5.5 1.0 - - - 3.0 4.0 9.5 .421 - - - 2.0 3.0 .667
difference:+72+2.0+9.0+1.4+3.6-1.4+3.3+6.5+.035+2.4+2.5+.126
Dwyane Wade 74 30.5 19.0 1.1 3.0 4.1 4.6 1.1 0.6 2.7 1.6 7.3 16.0 .456 0.1 0.6 .159 4.4 5.5 .793
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor DNP------ --- ----------
Dwyane Wade 14 33.8 21.4 0.9 4.8 5.6 4.3 0.8 0.9 2.7 1.6 8.5 18.1 .469 0.9 1.6 .522 3.6 4.6 .781

Season 14

Elgin Baylor Dwyane Wade
Season 1971-722016-17
Team Los Angeles LakersChicago Bulls
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not PlayBulls Lost East Conf 1st Rd
more >>
14th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor 9 26.6 11.8 - - 6.3 2.0 - - - 2.2 4.7 10.8 .433 - - - 2.4 3.0 .815
difference:+51+3.3+6.5+1.8+1.8-0.3+2.2+5.1+.001+1.3+1.7+.021
Dwyane Wade 60 29.9 18.3 1.1 3.5 4.5 3.8 1.4 0.7 2.3 1.9 6.9 15.9 .434 0.8 2.4 .310 3.7 4.7 .794
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TOPF FGM / A% 3PM / A% FTM / A%
Elgin Baylor DNP------ --- ----------
Dwyane Wade 6 31.7 15.0 1.0 4.0 5.0 4.0 0.8 1.3 1.7 1.3 5.3 14.3 .372 1.0 2.8 .353 3.3 3.5 .952

Additional Years

* Dwyane Wade played 2 seasons more than Elgin Baylor in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 15 to 16, from 2018 to 2019—Dwyane Wade played in one postseason.

In those 2 extra years over Elgin Baylor, Dwyane Wade got these achievements:

Honors & AwardsAchievement 1 All-Star Game