Elgin Baylor vs. Jerry West: NBA Rankings Comparison
The ultimate statistical showdown: compare Elgin Baylor and Jerry West all-time NBA rankings. Explore their historical standing across total and per-game stats, regular season and playoffs. Who ranks higher?
This in-depth analysis goes beyond basic career numbers to provide an unparalleled look at where Elgin Baylor, with a career spanning 14 seasons from 1959 to 1972, and Jerry West, with 14 seasons played from 1961 to 1974, stand among the league's historical elite..
Dive into a meticulous breakdown of their positions in every major statistical category—from scoring, rebounding and assists to steals, blocks, triple-doubles, and rankings by points thresholds—across both regular season and their entire playoff careers. Our comprehensive tables offer side-by-side rankings, value comparisons, and key differences, ensuring you have all the definitive data to assess their historical impact.
First, review a concise summary of how they rank in NBA history in the main categories (points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks) for both total and per-game stats, and below, you can then explore in detail all their stats and their historical rankings.
| Elgin Baylor vs. Jerry West | ||||
|  Career Totals | Season | Playoffs | ||
| Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | |
| Points | 35th | 27th | 20th | 9th | 
| Rebounds | 28th | 244th | 10th | 72nd | 
| Assists | 161st | 37th | 57th | 17th | 
| Steals | n/a | +300th | n/a | +300th | 
| Blocks | n/a | +300th | n/a | +300th | 
| Years | 14 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 
| Elgin Baylor vs. Jerry West | ||||
|  Career Per Game | Season | Playoffs | ||
| Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | |
| Points | 5th | 7th | 12th | 5th | 
| Rebounds | 9th | +300th | 12th | +300th | 
| Assists | 194th | 44th | 187th | 44th | 
| Steals | n/a | +300th | n/a | +300th | 
| Blocks | n/a | +300th | n/a | +300th | 
Steals, blocks, offensive and defensive rebounds started to be recorded in the 1973-74 season. The 3-point shot was implemented in the 1979-80 season.
n/a = The player doesn't have data for the stat.
* Some years in Jerry West's career don't have data for steals, blocks and offensive and defensive rebounds.
| Comparisons on this page: | 
| Their rankings for: | 
Note: per game rankings include players with a minimum of games played
|  Career Totals, | |||||
| Stats Rankings: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Points | 35th | 27th | 8 | 23,149 vs. 25,192 | 2,043 | 
| Rebounds | 28th | 244th | 216 | 11,463 vs. 5,366 | 6,097 | 
| Assists | 161st | 37th | 124 | 3,650 vs. 6,238 | 2,588 | 
| Steals | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 81 | ||
| Blocks | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 23 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 30 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 86 | ||
| Field Goals Made | 27th | 25th | 2 | 8,693 vs. 9,016 | 323 | 
| Field Goals Attempted | 19th | 27th | 8 | 20,171 vs. 19,032 | 1,139 | 
| 3-Pointers Made | n/a | n/a | 0 vs. 0 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted | n/a | n/a | 0 vs. 0 | ||
| Free Throws Made | 27th | 10th | 17 | 5,763 vs. 7,160 | 1,397 | 
| Free Throws Attempted | 31st | 11th | 20 | 7,391 vs. 8,801 | 1,410 | 
| Games and Years: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Games Played | +300th | 225th | +75 | 846 vs. 932 | 86 | 
| Seasons | 194th | 194th | 0 | 14 vs. 14 | 0 | 
| Triple-Doubles: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Triple-Doubles | 21st | 41st | 20 | 26 vs. 16 | 10 | 
| Rankings by Points Scored: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| 40+ point games | 5th | 14th | 9 | 88 vs. 66 | 22 | 
| 50+ point games | 5th | 23rd | 18 | 17 vs. 5 | 12 | 
| 60+ point games | 6th | 11th | 5 | 3 vs. 1 | 2 | 
| 70+ point games | 2nd | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
|  Career Totals, | |||||
| Stats Rankings: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Points | 20th | 9th | 11 | 3,623 vs. 4,457 | 834 | 
| Rebounds | 10th | 72nd | 62 | 1,724 vs. 855 | 869 | 
| Assists | 57th | 17th | 40 | 541 vs. 970 | 429 | 
| Steals | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 0 | ||
| Blocks | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 0 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 0 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds | n/a | +300th | 0 vs. 2 | ||
| Field Goals Made | 16th | 9th | 7 | 1,388 vs. 1,622 | 234 | 
| Field Goals Attempted | 12th | 10th | 2 | 3,161 vs. 3,460 | 299 | 
| 3-Pointers Made | n/a | n/a | 0 vs. 0 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted | n/a | n/a | 0 vs. 0 | ||
| Free Throws Made | 17th | 7th | 10 | 847 vs. 1,213 | 366 | 
| Free Throws Attempted | 16th | 8th | 8 | 1,098 vs. 1,506 | 408 | 
| Games and Years: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Games Played | 80th | 44th | 36 | 134 vs. 153 | 19 | 
| Playoffs | 76th | 45th | 31 | 12 vs. 13 | 1 | 
| Triple-Doubles: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Triple-Doubles | 13th | 38th | 25 | 4 vs. 1 | 3 | 
| Rankings by Points Scored: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| 40+ point games | 4th | 3rd | 1 | 14 vs. 20 | 6 | 
| 50+ point games | 9th | 5th | 4 | 1 vs. 2 | 1 | 
| 60+ point games | 1st | - | 1 vs. 0 | 1 | |
| 70+ point games | - | - | 0 vs. 0 | 0 | |
|  Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
| Stats Rankings: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Points per game | 5th | 7th | 2 | 27.36 vs. 27.03 | 0.33 | 
| Rebounds per game | 9th | +300th | +291 | 13.55 vs. 5.76 | 7.79 | 
| Assists per game | 194th | 44th | 150 | 4.31 vs. 6.69 | 2.38 | 
| Steals per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 2.61 | ||
| Blocks per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.74 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.97 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 2.77 | ||
| Field Goals Made per game | 3rd | 8th | 5 | 10.28 vs. 9.67 | 0.60 | 
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 1st | 8th | 7 | 23.84 vs. 20.42 | 3.42 | 
| 3-Pointers Made per game | n/a | n/a | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | n/a | n/a | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Free Throws Made per game | 11th | 3rd | 8 | 6.81 vs. 7.68 | 0.87 | 
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 10th | 4th | 6 | 8.74 vs. 9.44 | 0.71 | 
|  Career Per Game Averages, | |||||
| Stats Rankings: | Elgin Baylor | Jerry West | Rk Diff. | Values | Diff. | 
| Points per game | 12th | 5th | 7 | 27.04 vs. 29.13 | 2.09 | 
| Rebounds per game | 12th | +300th | +288 | 12.87 vs. 5.59 | 7.28 | 
| Assists per game | 187th | 44th | 143 | 4.04 vs. 6.34 | 2.30 | 
| Steals per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Blocks per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Offensive Rebounds per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Defensive Rebounds per game | n/a | +300th | 0.00 vs. 2.00 | ||
| Field Goals Made per game | 9th | 5th | 4 | 10.36 vs. 10.60 | 0.24 | 
| Field Goals Attempted per game | 4th | 9th | 5 | 23.59 vs. 22.61 | 0.98 | 
| 3-Pointers Made per game | n/a | n/a | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | ||
| 3-Pointers Attempted per game | n/a | n/a | 0.00 vs. 0.00 | ||
| Free Throws Made per game | 26th | 6th | 20 | 6.32 vs. 7.93 | 1.61 | 
| Free Throws Attempted per game | 24th | 9th | 15 | 8.19 vs. 9.84 | 1.65 | 
Note: the per game rankings on this page respect the minimums usually applied by the NBA for all-time leaders, 400 games for regular season stats unless the player reached these thresholds before: 10,000 points; 4,000 rebounds; 2,000 assists; 625 steals; 500 blocks; 250 3-pointers made. Also 3 minimum games for the Playoffs are applied.