Lakers: Kyle Kuzma and the six most impressive rookies in team history
By Jason Reed
1. Elgin Baylor
Elgin Baylor is the only Laker to win the NBA Rookie of the Year award; that is incredible. The Los Angeles Lakers are arguably the most prestigious franchise in the NBA and they have just one Rookie of the Year winner.
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Without researching, I would have assumed that the Lakers had at least a handful of winners. While I am no basketball historian, I would assume that most fans would guess the same thing as well if they did not already know.
Baylor was nothing short of incredible in his rookie season. Although the numbers do not jump off of the page as much as George Mikan’s, Baylor played in a much more competitive league; especially considering he was a six-foot-five small forward, not a six-foot-ten center.
Baylor averaged 24.9 points, 15.0 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game on 40.8 percent shooting. This would be the start of a Hall of Fame career which saw Baylor average 27.4 points, 13.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.
Like Worthy, Baylor took the backseat while playing alongside a superstar point guard/center combo. Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain played with Baylor, making him the third option on a superstar team. While his legacy still goes on, it could have been much larger if he was the true number one superstar of a franchise.
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It is safe to say that Kyle Kuzma is in elite company. While it is unfair to compare him to five Hall of Famers, his strong rookie season set the bar awfully high for what should be a great Lakers’ career.