Karl Malone spent the majority of his career with the Utah Jazz, although there were chances that he could have moved to another team. Most know how "The Mailman" joined the Lakers for the 2003/04 season, although this was the tail-end of his NBA career.
Like most players, Malone was not spared from possibly getting traded to other teams. In 1994, that almost happened and Karl would have been a New York Knick. The only problem then was that Utah wanted to ensure they got someone equally talented. As far as the Knicks were concerned, Patrick Ewing was the only asset they were considering.
Never say never
Malone heard about the Knicks trade rumor and took it with a grain of salt. However, he didn't hesitate to answer whether he would be open to playing for New York. This was after a preseason game between the Knicks and the Jazz in October 1994.
"Would I like to play here? Yes, absolutely, it's a nice place to play. Am I going to play here? You never can say never, but I'm with the Jazz now, and they told me they would never release me to play here," Malone said via the New York Times .
Malone was mature enough to know that rumors were part of his basketball journey. Although he admits there could be some truth, one can never say never.
"I used to think there was no way I could play in New York, but I've changed my mind. I know what I want. I've grown up a lot," the Louisiana Tech product added.
Rather than daydreaming about what could have been, Malone did the proper thing by focusing on helping the Jazz reach greater heights. That came to fruition in 1997 and 1998 when he and the Jazz reached the NBA Finals. Unfortunately, Utah bowed to the Chicago Bulls on those two trips, both in six games.
Malone ended his career with the Lakers
The Jazz failed to sustain those two runs and started to fall short in the playoffs in the seasons that followed. Since age was catching up to him, Malone could have opted to stay in Utah and his career with the only team he played for. Instead, he opted to take a chance at winning a title, joining the Lakers in 2003.
With Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, and Gary Payton, Malone had good odds of winning a title before winding up his career. However, it also meant Karl had to play a new role and take his game down a notch. The 13th overall pick of the 1985 Draft had no problem with it for as long as the team won.
"I think first and foremost I'm coming into this situation as well as Gary realizing ... this is Kobe and Shaq's team. But if we can get on the same page, which I don't see any problem, it (doesn't) matter how many shots I get as long as we're winning," the 14-time All-Star said in an interview with ESPN in 2003.
Unfortunately, injuries and internal issues would stand in the way. Shaq, Kobe, and Malone would struggle with injuries that season, and such a turn of events would take its toll on the team's success in the postseason.
Aside from that, the chemistry within the Lakers squad deteriorated. Shaq, Malone, and head coach Phil Jackson had their hands full trying to get along with Kobe. In the aftermath of that disappointing run, all were gone with Bryant the only remnant of that 2003-04 Lakers team.
Related: "I was able to get some pretty good meat on him" - Malone on taking out Drexler with a monster screen in the 1997 WCF
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