March 22 (UPI) -- Former Los Angeles Lakers player Elgin Baylor died Monday at age 86.
The NBA Hall of Famer died of natural causes, surrounded by his wife, Elaine, and daughter, Krystal, the Lakers said in a statement posted to Twitter.
Born on Sept. 16, 1934, Baylor was drafted by the Minneapolis Lakers in 1958, averaging 24.9 points, 15 rebounds and 4.1 assists in his first year, earning Rookie of the Year honors.
He played 14 seasons for the Minneapolis and Los Angeles Lakers, raking in 11 All-Star honors and 10 First Team All-NBA appearances.
He retired from the NBA in 1971 and coached the New Orleans Jazz and served as the vice president of basketball operations for the Los Angeles Clippers.
"Elgin was the superstar of his era -- his many accolades speak to that," Lakers governor Jeanie Buss said in a statement.
"He was one of the few Lakers players whose career spanned from Minneapolis to Los Angeles. But more importantly, he was a man of great integrity, even serving his country as a U.S. Army reservist, often playing for the Lakers only during his weekend pass."
Baylor was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1977. A statue of Baylor was unveiled in front of Staples Center in 2018, and his No. 22 jersey was retired in 1983.
Retired NBA star Earvin "Magic" Johnson was among those to share memories on Twitter.
"RIP to the NBA's first high flyer, Lakers Legend, & Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor," Johnson said. "Before there was Michael Jordan doing amazing things in the air, there was Elgin Baylor!
"A true class act and great man, I'll always appreciate the advice he shared with me when I first came into the league."
NBA Hall of Famer Rick Barry called Baylor his idol.
"I am saddened by the passing of my boyhood idol @Hoophall @theelginbaylor He was the first player I watched as a kid to captivate fans with his athleticism and style of play. My prayers go out to his wife and family," Barry said on Twitter.
Baylor detailed his career and activism in an autobiography, Hang Time, released in 2018. He described a 1959 boycott of a game in Charleston, S.C., among his most significant moments. Baylor sat out the game after a hotel wouldn't allow him and two other Black players to stay with the rest of their team.
His activism is credited with helping bring widespread change to the league, including shifts in player pensions and healthcare.
A former general manager of the Los Angeles Clippers, Baylor sued the team's owner, Donald Sterling, for wrongful termination and accused him of age and race discrimination.
A jury ruled against Baylor in 2011, but Sterling later was banned from the NBA after a recording surfaced of him using racist language.
"No one has the right to tell us to just 'shut up and dribble' That's wrong! We are as entitled to free speech as anybody else," Baylor told UPI in 2018 after the controversial comment by Fox News' Laura Ingraham.
"Being a professional athlete doesn't mean we lose our right to free speech. And it certainly doesn't mean we lose the right to express our opinions about what's happening in this country."