Cross-era · careers 27 years apart

Dirk Nowitzki vs Elgin Baylor

Dirk Nowitzki 1998-2018 · Forward Elgin Baylor 1958-1971 · Forward

Dirk Nowitzki (1998-2018) and Elgin Baylor (1958-1971) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 27 years, so this is a cross-era comparison, not a head-to-head. On the floor, Elgin Baylor was the higher-volume scorer (27.4 points per game to 20.7); adjusted for era they scored at 2.17× and 2.34× their league average respectively; Dirk Nowitzki was the more efficient scorer (57.7% true shooting to 49.4%). Dirk Nowitzki holds the edge on accolades — 1 MVP, 1 championship, 1 Finals MVP and the #25 all-time ranking to Elgin Baylor's #30.

Career averages

Dirk NowitzkiStatElgin Baylor
20.7 Points / game 27.4
7.5 Rebounds / game 13.5
2.4 Assists / game 4.3
0.8 Steals / game 0.0
0.8 Blocks / game 0.0
46.6% Field goal % 43.1%
37.9% 3-point % 0.0%
87.4% Free throw % 78.0%
57.7% True shooting % 49.4%
1,522 Games played 846

Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)

Dirk NowitzkiStatElgin Baylor
2.17× Points vs era avg 2.34×
1.82× Rebounds vs era avg 2.21×
1.14× Assists vs era avg 1.97×

Advanced metrics

Advanced stats weren't tracked in Elgin Baylor's era.

Dirk NowitzkiStatElgin Baylor
105.9 Offensive rating —
105.4 Defensive rating —
0.6 Net rating —
0.2% Usage % —
0.1% Assist % —
0.1% Rebound % —

Playoff averages

Dirk NowitzkiStatElgin Baylor
25.3 Points / game 27.0
10.0 Rebounds / game 12.9
2.5 Assists / game 4.0
1.0 Steals / game 0.0
0.9 Blocks / game 0.0
46.1% Field goal % 43.4%
36.2% 3-point % 0.0%
89.2% Free throw % 75.3%
145 Playoff games 134

Accolades

Dirk NowitzkiStatElgin Baylor
1 MVP awards 0
1 Finals MVP 0
1 Championships 1
14 All-Star selections 11
4 All-NBA 1st Team 10
#25 All-time GOAT rank #30

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