Elgin Baylor vs. Kevin Johnson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Kevin Johnson 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 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 more than Kevin Johnson, who played 12. Elgin Baylor had the first of his seasons in 1958-59, while Kevin Johnson had his rookie season in 1987-88. 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
Kevin Johnson 12 11 1987-88 to 1999-00

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:

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

Rookie Season

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1958-591987-88
Team Minneapolis LakersCleveland Cavaliers, Phoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game MVP-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsDid Not Play
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:+10+16.8+15.7+12.6+1.4-2.0+5.2+13.7+.053+5.4+7.2+.062
Kevin Johnson 80 24.0 9.2 0.5 1.9 2.4 5.5 1.3 0.3 1.8 1.9 3.4 7.5 .461 0.1 0.3 .208 2.2 2.6 .839
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
Kevin Johnson DNP------ --- ----------

Season 2

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1959-601988-89
Team Minneapolis LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
-Achievement Most Improved Player
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div FinalsSuns Lost West 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:+11+1.8+9.2+12.2+8.7-0.5+3.8+11.5+.081+1.8+3.9+.150
Kevin Johnson 81 39.2 20.4 0.6 3.6 4.2 12.2 1.7 0.3 4.0 2.8 7.0 13.9 .505 0.0 0.3 .091 6.3 7.1 .882
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:+3+4.1+9.6+9.8+8.9-1.9+4.8+10.8+.021+0.3+1.2+.087
Kevin Johnson 12 41.2 23.8 1.0 3.3 4.3 12.3 1.6 0.4 4.6 2.3 7.5 15.2 .495 0.3 0.8 .300 8.5 9.2 .927

Season 3

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1960-611989-90
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div FinalsSuns Lost West Conf Finals
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:+1+5.3+12.3+16.2+6.3-1.9+5.0+14.0+.069+2.5+3.7+.055
Kevin Johnson 74 37.6 22.5 0.6 3.1 3.6 11.4 1.3 0.2 3.6 1.9 7.8 15.7 .499 0.1 0.6 .195 6.8 8.1 .838
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:+4+8.6+16.8+12.0+6.0-1.9+6.5+14.1+.009+4.0+4.8+.003
Kevin Johnson 16 36.4 21.3 0.6 2.8 3.3 10.6 1.6 0.0 3.9 1.8 7.7 16.1 .479 0.1 0.7 .182 5.8 7.0 .821

Season 4

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1961-621990-91
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsSuns Lost West 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:+29+8.4+16.1+15.1+5.5-0.9+6.5+18.2+.088+3.2+5.1+.089
Kevin Johnson 77 36.0 22.2 0.7 2.8 3.5 10.1 2.1 0.1 3.5 2.3 7.7 14.9 .516 0.1 0.6 .205 6.7 8.0 .843
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+7.4+25.8+14.4+6.2-1.2+10.3+19.4+.136+5.5+5.4+.174
Kevin Johnson 4 36.5 12.8 0.5 2.8 3.3 9.8 0.5 0.3 3.0 2.3 4.0 13.3 .302 0.3 1.8 .143 4.5 7.5 .600

Season 5

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1962-631991-92
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Third Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsSuns Lost West Conf Semis
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+4.9+14.3+10.6+5.9-0.5+6.0+14.0+.026+2.6+2.8+.030
Kevin Johnson 78 37.2 19.7 0.8 3.0 3.7 10.7 1.5 0.3 3.5 2.3 6.9 14.4 .479 0.1 0.6 .217 5.7 7.1 .807
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:+5+1.3+9.0+9.5+7.1-0.7+4.5+11.8+.042+0.2+0.7+.036
Kevin Johnson 8 41.9 23.6 1.0 3.1 4.1 11.6 1.5 0.3 3.1 3.0 7.8 16.0 .484 0.4 0.8 .500 7.8 9.0 .861

Season 6

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1963-641992-93
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div SemisSuns 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:+29+7.1+9.3+9.9+3.4-1.0+3.9+11.3+.074+1.4+1.9+.015
Kevin Johnson 49 33.5 16.1 0.6 1.5 2.1 7.8 1.7 0.4 3.1 2.0 5.8 11.5 .499 0.0 0.2 .125 4.6 5.6 .819
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:+18+4.5+6.4+8.9+2.3-0.9+2.8+10.8+.102+0.8+1.2+.020
Kevin Johnson 23 39.7 17.8 0.4 2.3 2.7 7.9 1.5 0.6 3.7 2.5 6.2 13.0 .480 0.0 0.1 .000 5.4 6.8 .795

Season 7

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1964-651993-94
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
-Achievement All-NBA Second Team
Achievement All-Star GameAchievement All-Star Game
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsSuns Lost West Conf Semis
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:+7+4.7+7.1+10.3+5.7-1.3+3.2+11.1+.086+0.8+1.3+.027
Kevin Johnson 67 36.6 20.0 0.8 1.7 2.5 9.5 1.9 0.1 3.5 1.9 7.1 14.6 .487 0.1 0.4 .222 5.7 6.9 .819
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:+9+37.7+26.6+3.5+8.6-2.3+9.7+19.2+.458+6.9+8.1
Kevin Johnson 10 42.7 26.6 1.0 2.5 3.5 9.6 1.0 0.1 3.4 2.3 9.7 21.2 .458 0.3 1.0 .300 6.9 8.1 .852

Season 8

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1965-661994-95
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsSuns Lost West Conf Semis
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:+18+1.6+1.1+7.2+4.3-0.5+1.2+4.8+.069+1.2+0.9+.071
Kevin Johnson 47 28.8 15.5 0.7 1.8 2.4 7.7 1.0 0.4 2.2 1.9 5.2 11.1 .470 0.1 0.6 .154 5.0 6.1 .810
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:+4+4.8+2.0+10.0+5.6-0.2+1.8+8.4+.131+1.0+0.9+.035
Kevin Johnson 10 37.1 24.8 0.7 3.4 4.1 9.3 0.9 0.4 3.4 2.5 8.6 15.0 .573 0.5 1.0 .500 7.1 8.4 .845

Season 9

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1966-671995-96
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div SemisSuns Lost West Conf 1st Rd
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:+14+2.9+7.9+8.9+6.1-0.4+4.1+11.7+.078+0.2+0.6+.046
Kevin Johnson 56 35.8 18.7 0.8 3.2 3.9 9.2 1.5 0.2 3.0 2.6 6.1 12.0 .507 0.4 1.0 .368 6.1 7.1 .859
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:+1+2.5+6.4+8.7+7.8+2.5+11.0+.106+1.5+2.4+.074
Kevin Johnson 4 37.8 17.3 0.5 3.8 4.3 10.8 0.5 0.5 2.8 2.0 6.8 14.3 .474 0.3 1.0 .250 3.5 4.3 .824

Season 10

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1967-681996-97
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsSuns Lost West Conf 1st Rd
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:+7+1.3+5.9+8.6+4.7-1.0+3.5+9.5+.053+0.7+.066
Kevin Johnson 70 38.0 20.1 0.8 2.8 3.6 9.3 1.5 0.2 3.1 2.0 6.3 12.7 .496 1.3 2.9 .441 6.3 7.4 .852
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:+10+0.6+11.7+10.1+2.0-0.3+6.5+7.5+.173+0.7+0.9+.200
Kevin Johnson 5 41.6 16.8 1.6 2.8 4.4 6.0 2.6 0.0 3.6 3.0 5.2 17.6 .295 0.6 4.4 .136 5.8 6.6 .879

Season 11

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1968-691997-98
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsSuns Lost West 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:+26+14.5+15.3+7.3+0.5-1.6+6.5+14.6+2.3+3.8+.128
Kevin Johnson 50 25.8 9.5 0.7 2.6 3.3 4.9 0.5 0.2 2.0 1.1 3.1 6.9 .447 0.1 0.5 .154 3.2 3.7 .871
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:+14+5.1+1.6+6.9+0.7-1.6+0.1+4.9+.163+1.5+2.4+.018
Kevin Johnson 4 30.5 13.8 0.5 1.8 2.3 4.8 0.5 0.3 1.5 1.5 5.8 10.5 .548 0.3 1.0 .250 2.0 3.0 .667

Note: Kevin Johnson didn't play in 1998-99.

Season 12

Elgin Baylor Kevin Johnson
Season 1969-701999-00
Team Los Angeles LakersPhoenix Suns
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsSuns Lost West Conf Semis
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:+48+22.2+17.3+7.7+1.4-1.4+6.8+14.8+.085+3.9+5.4+.227
Kevin Johnson 6 18.8 6.7 0.0 2.7 2.7 4.0 0.3 0.0 1.2 1.0 2.7 4.7 .571 0.2 0.2 1.000 1.2 1.2 1.000
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
difference:+9+22.8+15.5+8.2+2.0-1.7+6.4+12.3+.142+2.7+3.8+.092
Kevin Johnson 9 14.3 3.2 0.0 1.4 1.4 2.6 0.3 0.1 1.4 1.1 1.3 4.1 .324 0.0 0.3 .000 0.6 0.7 .833

Additional Years

* Elgin Baylor played 2 seasons more than Kevin Johnson in the NBA.

In that period—his seasons 13 to 14, from 1971 to 1972—Elgin Baylor didn't play in the postseason.