That’s got to hurt, being among the best players in NBA history but never winning an NBA championship ring. Stars like Patrick Ewing, Allen Iverson, John Stockton and Steve Nash are a few superstars to make the list. But who is the best player in history never to win an NBA championship?
That honour goes to power forward “The Mailman” Karl Malone. He’s an absolute tank at 6-foot-9 and 25 pounds power forward – that’s 205cm and 113kg if you’re an Aussie like me. Malone sits in third on the all-time list of points scorers with 36,928 having been passed by LeBron James in 2022.
LeBron James is now 2nd All-Time in Scoring.
— NBA (@NBA) March 20, 2022
Watch Now on NBA League Pass: https://t.co/oz9UCQxdQa pic.twitter.com/Q8uYLnd8o0
Malone spent all but one of his seasons of his 19-year career at the Utah Jazz. From the moment he was selected 13th by the Jazz in the 1985 NBA Draft, he played the game with brute force. He had a powerful post-game, a strong rebounding game, was an underrated passer and he had a deadly mid-range game.
It’s no surprise Malone finished his career with a 25-point average per game, 10.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists. He earned 14 All-Star appearances, 11 All-NBA First Team selections and was a two-time MVP. It all amounted to nothing as Malone failed to win an NBA championship ring.
Malone managed the cool record of making the NBA playoffs in all of his 19 seasons and his production pretty much matched his career averages. He and most of the other superstars who failed to win an NBA championship all have one thing in common stopping them. Michael Jordan.
Jordan won six NBA rings with the Chicago Bulls and the dynasty was directly responsible for leaving Reggie Miller, Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Malone and teammate John Stockton without a championship.
Malone got close a few times to winning a ring. In the NBA Finals in both 1997 and 1998, the Jazz pushed the Bulls to six games. In 1998 Jordan hit one of the most iconic game winners in history. Jordan stole possession from Malone who took the ball up court and hit the winner over Bryon Russell with Jordan’s last shot ever in a Bulls uniform.
In the 1998-99 season, Malone won MVP in a season shortened to 50 regular season games. Utah lost to Portland in six games in the Conference semifinals but the team so hellbent on routine and preparation and they probably would’ve won the championship without all the disruptions.
In a last effort to win a championship ring Malone joined the Lakers in 2003 to create a super team with the likes of Gary Payton, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant at the Lakers. Malone would hurt his knee after half-time in game three which coincided with Kobe going scoreless in the second half.
Malone would miss the rest of the series and the title favourites would be stunned by the Detroit Pistons 4-1. Had Malone remained healthy the Lakers would’ve had enough fire power to stop Ben Wallace and win the championship.
One of the greatest power forwards in NBA history almost joined the Spurs following his season with the Lakers but he ultimately retired. And guess what? The Spurs ended up winning the championship that very next season summing up Malone’s quest for an illusive NBA championship ring.
