Elgin Baylor vs. Julius Erving Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Julius Erving 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, 3 more than Julius Erving, who played 11. Elgin Baylor had the first of his seasons in 1958-59, while Julius Erving had his rookie season in 1976-77. 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
Julius Erving 11 11 1976-77 to 1986-87

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

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

Rookie Season

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1958-591976-77
Team Minneapolis LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Achievement All-Star Game MVPAchievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA Finals76ers Lost NBA Finals
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:+12+4.9+3.3+6.5+0.4-0.8+0.2+4.5+.091+2.7+3.5
Julius Erving 82 35.9 21.6 2.3 6.1 8.5 3.7 1.9 1.4 - 3.1 8.4 16.7 .499 - - - 4.9 6.3 .777
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:+6+2.9+1.8+5.6+1.2-1.6+1.3+2.8+.120+0.9+1.6+.051
Julius Erving 19 39.9 27.3 2.2 4.3 6.4 4.5 2.2 1.2 - 2.4 10.7 20.5 .523 - - - 5.8 7.1 .821

Season 2

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1959-601977-78
Team Minneapolis LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div Finals76ers 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:+4+8.2+9.0+9.9+0.3-0.5+2.5+9.0+.078+4.0+6.1+.113
Julius Erving 74 32.8 20.6 2.4 4.1 6.5 3.8 1.8 1.3 3.2 2.8 8.3 16.4 .502 - - - 4.1 4.9 .845
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:+1+9.5+11.6+4.4+0.6-1.2+3.5+8.0+.015+4.6+4.8+.090
Julius Erving 10 35.8 21.8 4.0 5.7 9.7 4.0 1.5 1.8 3.5 3.0 8.8 18.0 .489 - - - 4.2 5.6 .750

Season 3

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1960-611978-79
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div Finals76ers Lost East Conf Semis
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:+5+7.0+11.7+12.6+0.5-1.1+3.6+11.0+.061+4.5+5.4+.038
Julius Erving 78 35.9 23.1 2.5 4.7 7.2 4.6 1.7 1.3 4.0 2.7 9.2 18.7 .491 - - - 4.8 6.4 .745
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:+3+3.7+12.7+7.5+1.3-1.3+4.3+11.1+.047+4.1+4.4+.063
Julius Erving 9 41.3 25.4 3.2 4.6 7.8 5.9 2.0 1.9 4.2 2.4 9.9 19.1 .517 - - - 5.7 7.4 .761

Season 4

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1961-621979-80
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA Finals76ers Lost NBA Finals
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:+30+8.3+11.4+11.2-0.5+3.5+12.4+.091+4.5+6.3+.033
Julius Erving 78 36.1 26.9 2.8 4.6 7.4 4.6 2.2 1.8 3.6 2.7 10.7 20.7 .519 0.1 0.3 .200 5.4 6.8 .787
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:+5+5.3+14.2+10.1+0.8-0.4+5.1+13.9+.050+4.0+5.3+.020
Julius Erving 18 38.6 24.4 1.7 5.8 7.6 4.4 2.0 2.1 3.1 3.1 9.2 18.8 .488 0.1 0.5 .222 6.0 7.6 .794

Season 5

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1962-631980-81
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards -Achievement Season MVP
Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA Finals76ers Lost East Conf Finals
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:+2+7.1+9.4+6.3+0.4+3.2+9.8+.068+3.2+3.4+.050
Julius Erving 82 35.0 24.6 3.0 5.0 8.0 4.4 2.1 1.8 3.2 2.8 9.7 18.6 .521 0.0 0.2 .222 5.1 6.5 .787
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
difference:+3+6.2+9.7+6.5+1.1-0.3+3.4+9.0+.033+2.9+3.0+.068
Julius Erving 16 37.0 22.9 3.3 3.9 7.1 3.4 1.4 2.6 3.4 3.4 8.9 18.8 .475 0.0 0.1 .000 5.1 6.7 .757

Season 6

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1963-641981-82
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div Semis76ers Lost NBA Finals
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:+3+6.2+1.0+5.1+0.5-0.2+0.1+5.2+.121+0.9+0.8+.041
Julius Erving 81 34.4 24.4 2.7 4.2 6.9 3.9 2.0 1.7 2.6 2.8 9.6 17.6 .546 0.0 0.1 .273 5.1 6.7 .763
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:+16+7.1+2.2+4.2+0.9-0.8+1.0+8.4+.141+0.3+0.1+.023
Julius Erving 21 37.1 22.0 2.7 4.7 7.4 4.7 1.8 1.8 3.2 2.6 8.0 15.4 .519 0.0 0.3 .167 5.9 7.9 .752

Season 7

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1964-651982-83
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First TeamAchievement All-NBA First Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
-Achievement All-Star Game MVP
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
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:+2+7.7+5.7+6.0+0.1-0.4+1.9+9.4+.116+1.9+2.2+.033
Julius Erving 72 33.6 21.4 2.4 4.4 6.8 3.7 1.6 1.8 2.7 2.8 8.4 16.3 .517 0.0 0.1 .286 4.6 6.0 .759
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:+12+32.9+18.4+7.6+2.4-3.2+7.3+14.2+.450+3.8+5.2
Julius Erving 13 37.9 18.4 2.5 5.2 7.6 3.4 1.2 2.1 3.0 3.2 7.3 16.2 .450 0.0 0.1 .000 3.8 5.2 .721

Season 8

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1965-661983-84
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA Finals76ers Lost East Conf 1st Rd
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:+12+4.4+5.8+2.7+0.6-0.4+2.4+1.3+.111+0.9+1.1+.015
Julius Erving 77 34.8 22.4 2.5 4.4 6.9 4.0 1.8 1.8 3.0 2.8 8.8 17.2 .512 0.1 0.3 .333 4.7 6.3 .754
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:+9+3.1+8.6+7.7+1.3-0.1+3.2+8.2+.032+2.3+3.1+.054
Julius Erving 5 38.8 18.2 1.8 4.6 6.4 5.0 1.6 1.2 4.2 2.8 7.2 15.2 .474 0.0 0.2 .000 3.8 4.4 .864

Season 9

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1966-671984-85
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div Semis76ers Lost East Conf Finals
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:+8+6.2+6.6+7.5+0.1-0.4+2.4+7.9+.065+2.0+2.0+.048
Julius Erving 78 32.5 20.0 2.2 3.1 5.3 3.0 1.7 1.4 2.7 2.6 7.8 15.8 .494 0.0 0.2 .214 4.3 5.7 .765
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:+10+6.9+6.6+7.4+0.7-0.6+2.8+10.9+.081+0.8+1.9+.107
Julius Erving 13 33.4 17.1 2.2 3.4 5.6 3.7 1.9 0.8 2.8 2.6 6.5 14.4 .449 0.0 0.1 .000 4.2 4.8 .857

Season 10

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1967-681985-86
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA Finals76ers Lost East Conf Semis
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:+3+5.9+7.9+7.2+1.2-0.4+2.8+7.5+.037+2.4+3.1+.001
Julius Erving 74 33.4 18.1 2.3 2.7 5.0 3.4 1.5 1.1 2.9 2.6 7.0 14.7 .480 0.1 0.4 .281 3.9 5.0 .785
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:+3+6.1+10.8+8.7+0.2+4.9+10.1+.018+1.1+2.1+.059
Julius Erving 12 36.1 17.7 2.2 3.7 5.8 4.2 0.9 1.3 3.3 2.7 6.8 15.0 .450 0.2 0.9 .182 4.0 5.4 .738

Season 11

Elgin Baylor Julius Erving
Season 1968-691986-87
Team Los Angeles LakersPhiladelphia 76ers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA Finals76ers Lost East Conf 1st Rd
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:+16+8.3+8.0+6.2+2.2-0.4+2.9+7.3+.024+2.3+3.6+.070
Julius Erving 60 32.0 16.8 1.9 2.5 4.4 3.2 1.3 1.6 2.6 2.3 6.7 14.2 .471 0.2 0.9 .264 3.2 3.9 .813
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:+13+0.4+2.8+4.2+0.7-0.7+0.9+1.0+.030+0.7+0.4+.191
Julius Erving 5 36.0 18.2 2.8 2.2 5.0 3.4 1.4 1.2 1.8 3.8 6.8 16.4 .415 0.4 1.2 .333 4.2 5.0 .840

Additional Years

* Elgin Baylor played 3 seasons more than Julius Erving in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 12 to 14, from 1970 to 1972—Elgin Baylor played in one postseason.

In those 3 extra years over Julius Erving, Elgin Baylor got these achievements:

Honors & AwardsAchievement 1 All-Star Game