Elgin Baylor was the most recent Los Angeles Lakers legend to get a statue in front of Staples Center, and the person who most think will be next to join him, Kobe Bryant, had some kind words for Baylor on the day of the ceremony.
Baylor was immortalized in bronze alongside fellow Lakers legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Chick Hearn, Jerry West and Shaquille O’Neal. Baylor previously was honored by the franchise with the retirement of his No. 22 jersey.
While Bryant couldn’t be there in person to congratulate Baylor, he prerecorded a message for the Hall-of-Famer in which he revealed that some of his game is patterned after the NBA’s first uber-athletic, attacking wing, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“What you have done for the city of Los Angeles, for this organization, goes beyond words.