Elgin Baylor vs. Mychal Thompson Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Mychal Thompson and Elgin Baylor, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season

Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.

Elgin Baylor played 14 years in the NBA, 2 more than Mychal Thompson, who played 12. Elgin Baylor had the first of his seasons in 1958-59, while Mychal Thompson had his rookie season in 1978-79. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achivements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
Elgin Baylor 14 12 1958-59 to 1971-72
Mychal Thompson 12 11 1978-79 to 1990-91

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14

Rookie Season

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1958-591978-79
Team Minneapolis LakersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Rookie of the Year-
-Achievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Star Game-
Achievement All-Star Game NVP-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsTrail Blazers Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 70 40.8 24.9 - - 15.0 4.1 - - - 3.9 8.6 21.2 .408 - - - 7.6 9.8 .777
Mychal Thompson 73 29.4 14.7 2.7 5.6 8.3 2.4 0.9 1.8 2.8 3.7 6.3 12.8 .490 - - - 2.1 3.7 .572
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 13 42.8 25.5 - - 12.0 3.3 - - - 4.0 9.4 23.3 .403 - - - 6.7 8.7 .770
Mychal Thompson 3 40.3 19.7 3.0 7.3 10.3 2.0 0.7 1.7 1.7 3.7 9.0 18.0 .500 - - - 1.7 3.3 .500

Note: Mychal Thompson didn't play in 1979-80.

Season 2

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1959-601980-81
Team Minneapolis LakersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div FinalsTrail Blazers Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 70 41.0 29.6 - - 16.4 3.5 - - - 3.3 10.8 25.4 .424 - - - 8.1 11.0 .732
Mychal Thompson 79 35.3 17.0 2.8 5.9 8.7 3.6 0.8 2.2 3.1 3.3 7.2 14.6 .494 0.0 0.0 .000 2.6 4.1 .641
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 9 45.3 33.4 - - 14.1 3.4 - - - 4.2 12.3 26.0 .474 - - - 8.8 10.4 .840
Mychal Thompson 3 44.0 25.0 1.7 6.0 7.7 1.3 1.0 3.0 2.3 3.3 10.3 17.0 .608 0.0 0.0 - 4.3 6.0 .722

Season 3

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1960-611981-82
Team Los Angeles LakersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 73 42.9 34.8 - - 19.8 5.1 - - - 3.8 12.8 29.7 .430 - - - 9.3 11.8 .783
Mychal Thompson 79 39.6 20.8 3.3 8.4 11.7 4.0 0.9 1.4 3.1 2.9 8.6 16.5 .523 0.0 0.0 - 3.5 5.6 .628
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 12 45.0 38.1 - - 15.3 4.6 - - - 3.7 14.2 30.2 .470 - - - 9.8 11.8 .824
Mychal Thompson ------- --- ----------

Season 4

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1961-621982-83
Team Los Angeles LakersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsTrail Blazers Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 48 44.4 38.3 - - 18.6 4.6 - - - 3.2 14.2 33.1 .428 - - - 9.9 13.1 .754
Mychal Thompson 80 37.7 15.7 2.3 7.1 9.4 4.8 0.9 1.4 3.5 2.7 6.3 12.9 .489 0.0 0.0 .000 3.1 5.0 .621
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 13 43.9 38.6 - - 17.7 3.6 - - - 3.5 14.3 32.7 .438 - - - 10.0 12.9 .774
Mychal Thompson 7 40.6 15.0 2.3 5.7 8.0 5.6 0.9 1.1 4.0 3.4 5.7 12.1 .471 0.0 0.0 - 3.6 5.4 .658

Season 5

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1962-631983-84
Team Los Angeles LakersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsTrail Blazers Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 80 42.1 34.0 - - 14.3 4.8 - - - 2.8 12.9 28.4 .453 - - - 8.3 9.9 .837
Mychal Thompson 79 33.5 15.7 3.0 5.7 8.7 3.9 1.1 1.4 3.0 3.0 6.2 11.8 .524 0.0 0.0 .000 3.4 5.1 .667
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 13 43.2 32.6 - - 13.6 4.5 - - - 3.7 12.3 27.8 .442 - - - 8.0 9.7 .825
Mychal Thompson 4 30.3 15.3 2.3 5.0 7.3 3.8 1.3 0.8 1.5 2.8 5.5 11.0 .500 0.0 0.0 - 4.3 5.5 .773

Season 6

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1963-641984-85
Team Los Angeles LakersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div SemisTrail Blazers Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 78 40.6 25.4 - - 12.0 4.4 - - - 3.0 9.7 22.8 .425 - - - 6.0 7.5 .804
Mychal Thompson 79 33.1 18.4 2.7 5.2 7.8 2.6 1.0 1.3 2.9 2.7 7.2 14.1 .515 0.0 0.0 - 3.9 5.7 .684
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 5 44.2 24.2 - - 11.6 5.6 - - - 3.4 9.0 23.8 .378 - - - 6.2 8.0 .775
Mychal Thompson 9 27.8 14.8 2.8 5.2 8.0 1.6 0.8 1.3 2.1 3.6 5.6 11.3 .490 0.0 0.0 - 3.7 5.4 .673

Season 7

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1964-651985-86
Team Los Angeles LakersPortland Trail Blazers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsTrail Blazers Lost West Conf 1st Rd
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 74 41.3 27.1 - - 12.8 3.8 - - - 3.2 10.3 25.7 .401 - - - 6.5 8.2 .792
Mychal Thompson 82 31.3 14.7 2.2 5.2 7.4 2.1 0.9 0.4 2.4 3.3 6.1 12.3 .498 0.0 0.0 - 2.4 3.8 .641
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 1 5.0 0.0 - - 0 1.0 - - - 0.0 0.0 2.0 .000 - - - 0.0 0.0 -
Mychal Thompson 4 35.0 19.0 2.8 5.5 8.3 3.5 0.3 0.8 2.5 3.3 7.8 13.5 .574 0.0 0.0 - 3.5 6.5 .538

Season 8

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1965-661986-87
Team Los Angeles LakersSan Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 65 30.4 16.6 - - 9.6 3.4 - - - 2.4 6.4 15.9 .401 - - - 3.8 5.2 .739
Mychal Thompson 82 23.0 11.4 1.7 3.3 5.0 1.4 0.5 0.9 1.6 2.5 4.4 9.7 .450 0.0 0.0 .500 2.7 3.6 .737
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 14 41.9 26.8 - - 14.1 3.7 - - - 2.7 10.4 23.4 .442 - - - 6.1 7.5 .810
Mychal Thompson 18 22.3 8.8 1.6 3.3 4.9 0.5 0.4 0.9 0.9 2.8 3.4 7.6 .453 0.0 0.0 - 1.9 2.8 .680

Season 9

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1966-671987-88
Team Los Angeles LakersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost West Div SemisNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 70 38.7 26.6 - - 12.8 3.1 - - - 3.0 10.2 23.7 .429 - - - 6.3 7.7 .813
Mychal Thompson 80 25.1 11.6 2.5 3.6 6.1 0.8 0.5 1.0 1.4 3.1 4.6 9.0 .512 0.0 0.0 .000 2.3 3.7 .634
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 3 40.3 23.7 - - 13.0 3.0 - - - 2.0 9.3 25.3 .368 - - - 5.0 6.7 .750
Mychal Thompson 24 25.6 9.7 2.6 4.5 7.1 0.5 0.7 0.9 1.4 2.9 4.1 8.0 .513 0.0 0.0 - 1.5 2.6 .581

Season 10

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1967-681988-89
Team Los Angeles LakersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsLakers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 77 39.3 26.0 - - 12.2 4.6 - - - 3.0 9.8 22.2 .443 - - - 6.3 8.1 .786
Mychal Thompson 80 24.9 9.2 2.0 3.9 5.8 0.6 0.7 0.7 1.2 2.8 3.6 6.5 .559 0.0 0.0 .000 2.0 2.9 .678
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 15 42.2 28.5 - - 14.5 4.0 - - - 2.7 11.7 25.1 .468 - - - 5.1 7.5 .679
Mychal Thompson 15 25.1 11.4 2.6 2.5 5.1 0.7 0.4 0.8 0.9 3.5 4.3 8.5 .508 0.0 0.0 - 2.7 4.0 .683

Season 11

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1968-691989-90
Team Los Angeles LakersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsLakers Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 76 40.3 24.8 - - 10.6 5.4 - - - 2.7 9.6 21.5 .447 - - - 5.5 7.5 .743
Mychal Thompson 70 26.9 10.1 2.5 4.3 6.8 0.6 0.5 1.0 1.1 3.0 4.0 8.0 .500 0.0 0.0 - 2.1 2.9 .706
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 18 35.6 15.4 - - 9.2 4.1 - - - 3.1 5.9 15.4 .385 - - - 3.5 5.6 .630
Mychal Thompson 9 25.0 6.4 1.7 2.7 4.3 0.2 0.2 1.4 1.9 2.9 2.3 4.9 .477 0.0 0.0 - 1.8 2.9 .615

Season 12

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1969-701990-91
Team Los Angeles LakersLos Angeles Lakers
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Lakers Lost NBA FinalsLakers Lost NBA Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 54 41.0 24.0 - - 10.4 5.4 - - - 2.4 9.5 19.5 .486 - - - 5.1 6.6 .773
Mychal Thompson 72 15.0 4.0 1.0 2.1 3.2 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.7 1.6 1.6 3.2 .496 0.0 0.0 .000 0.9 1.2 .705
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 18 37.1 18.7 - - 9.6 4.6 - - - 2.8 7.7 16.4 .466 - - - 3.3 4.5 .741
Mychal Thompson 8 5.3 0.5 0.4 0.8 1.1 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.1 1.3 0.3 0.9 .286 0.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 -

Season 13

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1970-71-
Team Los Angeles Lakers-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 2 28.5 10.0 - - 5.5 1.0 - - - 3.0 4.0 9.5 .421 - - - 2.0 3.0 .667
Mychal Thompson ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor ------- --- ----------
Mychal Thompson ------- --- ----------

Season 14

Elgin Baylor Mychal Thompson
Season 1971-72-
Team Los Angeles Lakers-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Did Not Play-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor 9 26.6 11.8 - - 6.3 2.0 - - - 2.2 4.7 10.8 .433 - - - 2.4 3.0 .815
Mychal Thompson ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
Elgin Baylor ------- --- ----------
Mychal Thompson ------- --- ----------