Dominique Wilkins, Elgin Baylor: Ten NBA greats who retired without a Championship Ring (Part 5)
Dominique Wilkins
Dominique Wilkins was one of the best small forwards of his era. The 6 ft 8 player represented Atlanta Hawks for almost 12 seasons. He also took his talents to Los Angeles Clippers, Boston Celtics, San Antonio Spurs and lastly
Orlando Magic for some brief time. In his international career, Wilkins represented Greece and Italian squad.
The seven time NBA All-Star is still regarded as the most ferocious dunker in the history of the league. It was because of his highlight performances that he was given the nickname of "The Human Highlight Film." Wilkins’ name was
also included in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, back in 2006.
Dominique represented NBA All-Rookie Team in his very first year and in 1986, Wilkins won the NBA Scoring Champion award. He was selected for the All-NBA first team once, All-NBA second team four times and twice for the All-NBA
third team. He won the NBA Slam Dunk contest on two occasions, first time in 1985 and second time 1990.
Wilkins also won the gold medal in 1994 FIBA World Championship and was named as the Euro-League Champion and Euro-League Final Four Most Valuable Player in 1996.
In his NBA career, Wilkins pounded 26,668 points at an average of 24.8 points per game. He is among the only 12 players, who have scored above 25,000 points. Dominique grabbed 7,167 rebounds at an average of 7.6 boards per game
and provided 2.5 assists per game to attain a total of 2,677 assists in his entire career.
However, after achieving so much in his career, he left the league without a ring.
Elgin Baylor
Elgin Baylor was a player renowned for his athleticism and manoeuvres. The 6 ft 5 small forward was famous for his hanging jump shots, his trade mark.
The Hall of Famer has also served as the general manger of NBA. Baylor was drafted by the Minneapolis/ Los Angeles Lakers in 1958 and he stayed with them for 13 seasons. He also coached New Orleans Jazz for nearly five years.
He was selected as an NBA All-Star on 11 occasions and in his first year in NBA he was named the Rookie of the Year. He once won the Most Valuable Award in an NBA All-Star game and was a member of NBA’s 35th Anniversary
team and 50th Anniversary All-Time team.
Baylor was a strong all round player. He was not just good at shooting, but was also great when it came to rebounding and passing. Elgin scored at an average of 27.4 points per game while his rebounds came at an average of 13.5.
He also handed out 4.6 assists in his career, one that never tasted the success of a NBA championship.
Baylor and the Lakers made seven attempts to clinch the title, but failed and ironically the year in which he retired Los Angeles won the NBA Finals.
Tags: