O&B Classic: Elgin Baylor & Celtics vs. Lakers in the Finals

As a result of Elgin Baylor's passing, we are re-uploading a classic episode discussing the life, career and impact of Elgin Baylor as well as his noted NBA Finals battles with Bill Russell and the Boston Celtics.  Our guest on this show was Bijan C. Bayne, author of the incredible book "Elgin Baylor: The Man Who Changed Basketball." You can order the book today at https://amzn.to/3980dLP. We will have a full episode dedicated to Baylor coming out later this week.  Thank you. We discuss the Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers NBA Finals rivalry between 1959 and 1969 with Bijan C. Bayne, author of “Elgin Baylor: The Man Who Changed Basketball,” in our continuing #RussellMania series dedicated to the life and legacy of Bill Russell. We break down each of their seven NBA Finals battles (1959, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1968 and 1969), talk about Elgin Baylor's rise to superstardom and his role in popularizing basketball in Los Angeles, Baylor's revolutionary influence on offensive play, the basketball and social parallels of Russell and Baylor, how Baylor was the first NBA player to boycott a game because of segregation, Baylor's relationships with longtime teammate Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain, some of the other key Lakers of the 1960s (including Frank Selvy, Rudy LaRusso, Tom Hawkins, Hot Rod Hundley, Dick Barnett, Leroy Ellis, Gene Wiley, Walt Hazzard, Bob Boozer, Archie Clark, and Gail Goodrich), what Don Nelson's failure in Los Angeles and success in Boston said about both teams, and much more.Original airdate: 4/19/16Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy