Cross-era · careers 44 years apart
Elgin Baylor vs Nikola Jokic
Elgin Baylor (1958-1971) and Nikola Jokic (2015-2025) never shared an NBA court — their careers are separated by 44 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 22.2); adjusted for era they scored at 2.34× and 2.11× their league average respectively; Nikola Jokic was the more efficient scorer (70.3% true shooting to 49.4%). Elgin Baylor holds the edge on accolades — 1 championship and the #30 all-time ranking to Nikola Jokic's #35.
Career averages
| Elgin Baylor | Stat | Nikola Jokic |
|---|
| 27.4 |
Points / game |
22.2 |
| 13.5 |
Rebounds / game |
11.1 |
| 4.3 |
Assists / game |
7.5 |
| 0.0 |
Steals / game |
1.3 |
| 0.0 |
Blocks / game |
0.7 |
| 43.1% |
Field goal % |
55.7% |
| 0.0% |
3-point % |
35.7% |
| 78.0% |
Free throw % |
82.5% |
| 49.4% |
True shooting % |
70.3% |
| 846 |
Games played |
810 |
Era-adjusted (× league average of their era)
| Elgin Baylor | Stat | Nikola Jokic |
|---|
| 2.34× |
Points vs era avg |
2.11× |
| 2.21× |
Rebounds vs era avg |
2.65× |
| 1.97× |
Assists vs era avg |
3.17× |
Advanced metrics
Advanced stats weren't tracked in Elgin Baylor's era.
| Elgin Baylor | Stat | Nikola Jokic |
|---|
| — |
Offensive rating |
116.1 |
| — |
Defensive rating |
108.9 |
| — |
Net rating |
7.3 |
| — |
Usage % |
30.4% |
| — |
Assist % |
50.3% |
| — |
Rebound % |
20.7% |
Playoff averages
| Elgin Baylor | Stat | Nikola Jokic |
|---|
| 27.0 |
Points / game |
27.4 |
| 12.9 |
Rebounds / game |
12.3 |
| 4.0 |
Assists / game |
7.6 |
| 0.0 |
Steals / game |
1.2 |
| 0.0 |
Blocks / game |
0.9 |
| 43.4% |
Field goal % |
52.5% |
| 0.0% |
3-point % |
38.9% |
| 75.3% |
Free throw % |
82.9% |
| 134 |
Playoff games |
94 |
Accolades
| Elgin Baylor | Stat | Nikola Jokic |
|---|
| 0 |
MVP awards |
3 |
| 0 |
Finals MVP |
1 |
| 1 |
Championships |
1 |
| 11 |
All-Star selections |
7 |
| 10 |
All-NBA 1st Team |
6 |
| #30 |
All-time GOAT rank |
#35 |