SALT LAKE CITY — When the Jazz left New Orleans for Utah in the 1970s, Elgin Baylor missed the trip. He had been fired as the team’s coach and never found his way to the Rockies. That was a shame, even though he had retired as a player. He was the original sky pilot. Connie Hawkins, Julius Erving and Michael Jordan followed in his slipstream.
Baylor spent so much time above the rim he would joke he got his hang time by inhaling helium. Now 84, he modestly says he didn’t stay airborne longer than anyone else; he just delayed his jump until after his opponent leaped.