In the 90s, the Utah Jazz featured the pairing of John Stockton and Karl Malone, one of the greatest pairings the league had ever witnessed. While discussing why the combination worked on “The Ultimate Assist“, Stockton also shared what made Malone one of the greatest players in NBA history. He said:
“It’s easy to have chemistry with the guy. Karl Malone – he truly is one of the greatest ever to play the game. He can catch the ball at his shoelaces in full sprint with guys dragging on, holding on to him, and can still finish the shot.
“There’s just so many aspects of the game that if you’re paying a little bit of attention, you’re going to have a rapport with him instantly because he just has so many strong points about his game.“
Malone was an unstoppable force on the open floor. At 6’9″, he weighed a whopping 250 lbs of pure muscle. However, this didn’t make him clumsy. Instead, the forward was a combination of power and grace near the basket.
Stockton continued to expand upon his running mate’s positive traits by saying:
“He can catch everything, he can pass, he can shoot, he can run. So yeah, that chemistry clicked right away. He was a very young player, I was a very young player, and it just seemed he caught everything I threw. So that was easy to keep trying things because he would catch it.”
Malone’s inherent athletic ability allowed him to run and fill lanes. This blended perfectly with Stockton’s pinpoint passing. The union resulted in one of the deadliest pick-and-roll pairings the league had ever seen, spurring a golden era for the Jazz franchise.
With the duo running the show, the Utah Jazz were consistently a threat in the Western Conference. After some grueling failures in the early portions of the 90s, Stockton and Malone steamrolled past the competition in 1996-97 and 1997-98, making it to the NBA Finals in both seasons.
Facing Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls appeared to be an insurmountable challenge, unfortunately. In consecutive years, the Jazz fell short, resulting in both star players failing to secure title glory for Utah.
The Jazz pair remained together until the 2001-02 season, after which Malone left the team to join the Los Angeles Lakers in pursuit of a ring.
In his prime, Malone was among the best players in the league. While consistently being in the MVP debate in the 90s, the Jazz forward also won the award twice in his career.
Despite his controversial history, Malone is one of the greatest players in NBA history. With 14 All-Star selections, 14 All-NBA selections, and four All-Defensive selections, he also earned himself a spot on the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
With a penchant for being consistent, Malone retired from the NBA in 2004. He recorded a career average of 25.0 points and 10.1 rebounds, while shooting 51.6% from the field, safely securing his place as the third-highest scoring player in NBA history with 36,928 points.
