[VIDEO] - Preliminary footage of a PRIME Elgin Baylor mix

[CavaliersFTW]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1CLJlnC7d8

Here's a tiny handfull of clips that will be part of my next project. I've covered Robertson and West already - Baylor will soon be showcased. This guy has got to be one of - if not the - greatest inside finishers of all time. He absorbs contact, and has mid-air body and fingertip control that rivals MJ - yet his frame is a solid 25lbs heavier with fantastic footwork in the post enabling him to bump back defenders like Barkley. One man wrecking crew if there's open floor space.

[stallionaire]

Thanks man. +rep.

[Stuckey]

Thanks man. +rep.

+1

[Linspired]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1CLJlnC7d8

Here's a tiny handfull of clips that will be part of my next project. I've covered Robertson and West already - Baylor will soon be showcased. This guy has got to be one of - if not the - greatest inside finishers of all time. He absorbs contact, and has mid-air body and fingertip control that rivals MJ - yet his frame is a solid 25lbs heavier with fantastic footwork in the post enabling him to bump back defenders like Barkley. One man wrecking crew if there's open floor space.

no he does not rival MJ's body & fingertip control. let's not carried away. and MJ kills him with a superior athleticism.

[Psileas]

When LeBron was starting his career, most comparisons were with Magic (the usual "imaginative" media did their work again - no non-C and non-PF great talent can avoid being compared to Magic or Jordan or Bird), some compared him to Oscar (closer) and some saw comparisons to Elgin Baylor - even closer, IMO. Baylor was the LeBron of his day - too strong for typical forwards, too quick for big men to guard and strong enough to absorb contact and make tough baskets. He could play in multiple positions, rebound, score, explode by bigger men, back down smaller ones. They did have some differences, though: LeBron is a better defender, more willing passer and more efficient scorer, while Baylor was a better rebounder and, career-wise, a better Finals performer, at least when healthy. Both could shoot from outside, though that wasn't their strongest point.

When is the whole video coming out?
Estimations for Russell's one?

[CavaliersFTW]

no he does not rival MJ's body & fingertip control. let's not carried away. and MJ kills him with a superior athleticism.

lol, yes... he does I've never seen a player move like Baylor while in flight - he's got a different body type than MJ but it's as if the mid-air balance and co-ordination part of the brain in the two of those guys is bar none. Baylor twists and turns in the air as good as anyone I've seen. I'm not talking about raw vertical here, MJ has him beat there IMO, what I'm talking about is his ability to do acrobatics while his feet aren't on the ground anymore. And his fingertip control to finish at the hoop is crystal clear in the footage - it's elite. Don't be such a homer, MJ has legendary all-around game but if you put his individual skills under a microscope they aren't all the best ever on an individual basis. Other people can rival him or exceed him at individual elements of the game. Get mad.

[CavaliersFTW]

When LeBron was starting his career, most comparisons were with Magic (the usual "imaginative" media did their work again - no non-C and non-PF great talent can avoid being compared to Magic or Jordan or Bird), some compared him to Oscar (closer) and some saw comparisons to Elgin Baylor - even closer, IMO. Baylor was the LeBron of his day - too strong for typical forwards, too quick for big men to guard and strong enough to absorb contact and make tough baskets. He could play in multiple positions, rebound, score, explode by bigger men, back down smaller ones. They did have some differences, though: LeBron is a better defender, more willing passer and more efficient scorer, while Baylor was a better rebounder and, career-wise, a better Finals performer, at least when healthy. Both could shoot from outside, though that wasn't their strongest point.

When is the whole video coming out?
Estimations for Russell's one?

No estimations, they'll just get done when they're done. Funny how u mention Lebron as being closest too Baylor... I tend to feel like Baylor is very dissimilar to Lebron. His footwork and skill inside the post >>> Lebron's and his mid-air body control >>> Lebron's and on the same token Lebron's defense and size >>>>> Baylor's... Lebron doesn't like to look fancy while Baylor does (or maybe it just comes natural to Baylor... and not Lebron) - I feel like Lebron looks more like Robertson under the eye-test. Quite efficient, and simple. Where as Baylor doesn't really even have an analogue today - he's like a hybrid Julius Erving/Charles Barkley.

[Linspired]

lol, yes... he does I've never seen a player move like Baylor while in flight - he's got a different body type than MJ but it's as if the mid-air balance and co-ordination part of the brain in the two of those guys is bar none. Baylor twists and turns in the air as good as anyone I've seen. I'm not talking about raw vertical here, MJ has him beat there IMO, what I'm talking about is his ability to do acrobatics while his feet aren't on the ground anymore. And his fingertip control to finish at the hoop is crystal clear. Don't be such a homer, MJ has legendary all-around game but if you put his individual skills under a microscope they aren't all the best ever on an individual basis. Other people can rival him or exceed him at individual elements.

i don't like bashing old school players because i consider myself a big fan of old school. but there is nothing really acrobatic about baylor's game from the footages i've seen. and we all talking about body control here. I don't believe anybody can match MJ's body control except few elite athletes we've seen since MJ left.

baylor is clearly a below the rim player, and there is nothing wrong with that. i don't believe having too much vertical helps the game anyway. he is one of those thick dudes with sick core strength and nice bun buns which is rare for 60's player. i would buy 230-235lb playing weight for prime baylor. he does seem heavier than his 225lb listed weight. but that means he had about 15-20lb on prime MJ, not 25lb.

[MiseryCityTexas]

dunking on 7 footers and doing reverse layups in the 60s. wow.

[CavaliersFTW]

i don't like bashing old school players because i consider myself a big fan of old school. but there is nothing really acrobatic about baylor's game from the footages i've seen. and we all talking about body control here. I don't believe anybody can match MJ's body control except few elite athletes we've seen since MJ left.

baylor is clearly a below the rim player, and there is nothing wrong with that. i don't believe having too much vertical helps the game anyway. he is one of those thick dudes with sick core strength and nice bun buns which is rare for 60's player. i would buy 230-235lb playing weight for prime baylor. he does seem heavier than his 225lb listed weight. but that means he had about 15-20lb on prime MJ, not 25lb.

[Linspired]

are you saying baylor is dr. j or MJ type of athlete? just watch the video you just posted.

[Psileas]

No estimations, they'll just get done when they're done. Funny how u mention Lebron as being closest too Baylor... I tend to feel like Baylor is very dissimilar to Lebron. His footwork and skill inside the post >>> Lebron's and his mid-air body control >>> Lebron's and on the same token Lebron's defense and size >>>>> Baylor's... Lebron doesn't like to look fancy while Baylor does (or maybe it just comes natural to Baylor... and not Lebron) - I feel like Lebron looks more like Robertson under the eye-test. Quite efficient, and simple. Where as Baylor doesn't really even have an analogue today - he's like a hybrid Julius Erving/Charles Barkley.

When it comes to basketball body and distance from their similar position peers, Baylor is the one that reminds me of LeBron. Magic is too dissimilar to him to compare their games (more willing passer, less willing to score, better leader, worse defender, better post player), Oscar is admitedly closer, but I'd rather see James getting compared to forwards, despite starting his career as a guard. After all, many of the dissimilarities that you posted apply for LeBron vs Oscar as well: LeBron is much bigger (though more comparable when we take into account their positions), Oscar played the "ground game" more than LeBron (and Baylor), James is the better defender, etc.
I did admit that Baylor and LeBron had dissimilarities and mentioned some of them, including a few that you did, as well. It's a fact, though, that if we delve deep enough, we'll find lots of dissimilarities among other stars that are considered similar...

PS. Another similarity between Baylor/Oscar and LeBron: They were/are better clutch players than what are remembered for. Specifically for Baylor, there were games when he, not West, would make the game winning basket or FT's or have significant scoring runs in crucial points. Example: In the arguably worst Finals series of his career (1969), he still had a game (#2), when he scored the last 12 points of his team in a close victory for the Lakers.

[Linspired]

and i didn't even get into your ridiculous jerry west thread.

[WillC]

Possibly the most underrated player in NBA history.

[Punpun]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1CLJlnC7d8

Man, Do MAGIC.