Inn Dawn
Well-Known Member
Hopefully, not a repost.
https://www.backpicks.com/2012/02/29/was-karl-malone-actually-good-under-pressure/
https://www.backpicks.com/2012/02/29/was-karl-malone-actually-good-under-pressure/
Was Karl Malone Actually Good Under Pressure?
- Thread starter Inn Dawn
- Start date
Gyp Rosetti
Banned
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiAqzftbmCQ
6:15 mark.
6:15 mark.
vslice02
Well-Known Member
Like alot of great players - sometimes Malone came through in the clutch and sometimes he didn't. Nobody was a better closer than Michael Jordan and the Bulls so the national stage of the NBA Finals amplified the perception that Malone was a "choker," while in reality Malone in the 90's was just as dependable in crunch time as any great player not named Jordan or Reggie.
One other thing to keep in mind is when Utah needed a big basket - they often ran screen-roll with Stockton&Malone so as you can imagine, in critical situations teams would be more reluctant to leave Karl and that opened more things up for Stockton and his teammates to hit the game-deciding shots ('97 Game 2 vs. LAL, '98 Game 1 vs. Chicago, '99 Game 4 vs. Sacramento, ect.)
One other thing to keep in mind is when Utah needed a big basket - they often ran screen-roll with Stockton&Malone so as you can imagine, in critical situations teams would be more reluctant to leave Karl and that opened more things up for Stockton and his teammates to hit the game-deciding shots ('97 Game 2 vs. LAL, '98 Game 1 vs. Chicago, '99 Game 4 vs. Sacramento, ect.)
carolinajazz
Well-Known Member
....Stockton ALWAYS had the ball in his hands down the stretch.....and with a 2 point lead and less than 2 minutes to go, the Jazz were money...most of the time! The Jazz didn't use Malone to set up a play or a good shot down the stretch. They wanted Stockton handling the ball. HELLO? Anybody home up there???
D
Deleted member 848
Guest
Also, 1998 Lakers vs Jazz, game 4. Made a ridiculous midrange jumper with 1 minute and some left, and made 2 clinching free throws towards the end of the game.
Back when we would sweep rather than get swept. Of course, I didn't hate them as much then.
Thee Idiotic Minivan K
Well-Known Member
He was clutch, thing is he didn't have as many opportunities because Stockton was the better option in the clutch. Malon wasn't like Labron who disappeared in big games down the stretch or passed up the last shot. Malone had no problem taking the shot, and had no fear of doing so.
squareinthecircle
Active Member
Neither Malone or LeBron are closers necessarily, and that's OK. LeBron is more of a facilitator like Magic Johnson. He plays his game but it isn't satisfactory to boneheads who are conditioned to believe that the game of basketball only actually occurs in the last minute.
anonymous832
Member
Yeah, that's because he's the f***ing point guard, moron. That's how basketball works. The ballhandlers handle the ball down the stretch.
chawx
Active Member
*I'm brushing off a classic here, but I feel it's appropriate when someone posts such a brutal memory in my life*
...you... son... of... a... bitch.
trigg3r
Well-Known Member
trigg3r
Well-Known Member
I didn't even read your reply prior to posting nearly the exact same thing.
Lakers_Slapper
Well-Known Member
Yes Malone was good at closing out games. He didn't close every close game, the Jazz of then focused on causing distractions that led Stockton as option 1, Malone as option 2 when the game was on the line. Malone was excellent at drawing fouls with a close game and closing it out from there. Malone closed out many games for us throughout the 90's.
carolinajazz
Well-Known Member
...so then, unlike Lebron and Kobe, who go "one on one" with there man during the last 10 seconds of a game, Stockton would handle the ball and if Malone touched it at that point he was being set up by John who made sure Karl got an open shot or a layup! The initial question was "who do you want with the ball during the last 10 seconds or so?"
anonymous832
Member
LeBron and Kobe are perimeter players and ballhandlers. Malone was not. Power forwards like him do not create the same way a perimeter scorer/playmaker like LeBron or Kobe does, or the way a great point guard does. This is not difficult to understand.
vslice02
Well-Known Member
This.
If Utah needed a big basket at a critical stage of the game - they often went to Malone in the lowpost (or ran a play, not just pick&roll but a UCLA set where Stock downscreened Malone's man and freed Karl up for a 16-foot jumper). The difference is - with 10 or so seconds left it's extremely hard to throw it down to your bigman on the block because chances are he'll be double-teamed, and if the defense rotates by the time you swing the ball around you'll run out of time. Think about it, all dominant games and championships Shaq, Hakeem, and Duncan won ...how many game-winning shots in the final 10 seconds can you remember them hitting in playoff games? It was either Kobe or Robert Horry hitting the big shots from the perimeter in the final seconds for LA, Sean Elliot, Avery Johnson, Manu and Horry for San Antonio, and Sam Cassell hit the game-winner for Houston in the '94 Finals against NY.
In '97 and '98 Jordan was arguably the most effective postup player in the league but when he needed a big shot - he ended up attacking off the dribble starting outside the 3pt-line.
In the final seconds - if Utah needed a big shot they ran pick&roll with Stockton&Malone - and because of the attention Karl drew, it often freed Stock or his teammates up for an open look.
With 10 seconds left and needing a basket, chances are the ball will be in your best perimeter playmaker's hands - regardless of how great your big is.