Player profile · LAL / UTA

Karl Malone

Karl Malone stats, teams and career impact

#23 all-timeCareer averages · 25.0 PPG · 10.1 RPG · 3.6 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Position: Power forward
Final NBA team: Los Angeles Lakers
Height / weight: 6 ft 9 in (206 cm) · 250 lb (113 kg)
Born: July 24, 1963 (63 yrs old)
College: Louisiana Tech
NBA seasons: 19 seasons · 1985–86 to 2003–04

Career or season view

Career summaryKarl Malone was a power forward who played 19 NBA seasons, from 1985–86 through 2003–04.

Career PPG: 25.0
Career RPG: 10.1
Career APG: 3.6; #2 in 1996–97; #23 all-time

Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Career overview

Why Karl Malone ranks #23 all time

Karl Malone ranks #23 all time. 5 top-five finishes and 11 top-ten finishes give him a strong blend of peak and staying power. His full-career value ranks #7, so longevity is a major reason he lands this high.

Peak#2 in 1996–97

Best league finish

Sustained excellence5 top-five finishes

11 top-ten finishes

Career breadth19 seasons

1,476 games · Career Value Rank #7

NBA honors14× All-Star · 2× MVP · 14× All-NBA · 4× All-DefenseContext only; honors are not model inputs.

Head to head

Compare Karl Malone with…

Choose any two players →

Suggested matchups from basketball rivalries, comparable roles, and similar careers. Compare career impact, peak seasons, and the numbers behind the result.

Suggested comparisons, not a ranking of search traffic.

Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources

Full team history

Teams: Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers
Greatest Lakers →Greatest Jazz →

Career shooting

NBA regular season

Field goal: 51.6%FG%
Three-point: 27.4%3P%
Free throw: 74.2%FT%

1,476 career games · 54,852 minutes

Sources and updateConventional stats and measurements: Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 13, 2026. hussEyquation ranking data through 2025–26. Life dates: Wikidata; conflicting dates checked against Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 17, 2026.

Traditional box score

Karl Malone stats by season

Start with scoring and impact, then switch views for shooting or the full advanced picture. Career percentages use total makes and attempts.

Swipe for PPG · RPG · APG · Impact · Team · G · GS · MPG →


2003–04	13.2	8.7	3.9	+2.63	LAL	42	42	32.7	48.3%	0.0%	74.7%	#41	122.2
2002–03	20.6	7.8	4.7	+4.20	UTA	81	81	36.2	46.2%	21.4%	76.3%	#18	338.4
2001–02	22.4	8.6	4.3	+3.95	UTA	80	80	38.0	45.4%	36.0%	79.7%	#22	340.1
2000–01	23.2	8.3	4.5	+5.52	UTA	81	81	35.7	49.8%	40.0%	79.3%	#7	407.4
1999–00	25.5	9.5	3.7	+7.16	UTA	82	82	35.9	50.9%	25.0%	79.7%	#2	504.1
1998–99	23.8	9.4	4.1	+5.91	UTA	49	49	37.4	49.3%	0.0%	78.8%	#6	262.7
1997–98	27.0	10.3	3.9	+6.22	UTA	81	81	37.4	53.0%	33.3%	76.1%	#4	463.0
1996–97	27.4	9.9	4.5	+7.35	UTA	82	82	36.6	55.0%	0.0%	75.5%	#2	525.5
1995–96	25.7	9.8	4.2	+6.49	UTA	82	82	38.0	51.9%	40.0%	72.3%	#5	495.7
1994–95	26.7	10.6	3.5	+4.51	UTA	82	82	38.1	53.6%	26.8%	74.2%	#13	392.6
1993–94	25.2	11.5	4.0	+5.35	UTA	82	82	40.6	49.7%	25.0%	69.4%	#8	474.4
1992–93	27.0	11.2	3.8	+7.29	UTA	82	82	37.8	55.2%	20.0%	74.0%	#3	578.9
1991–92	28.0	11.2	3.0	+5.29	UTA	81	81	37.7	52.6%	17.6%	77.8%	#10	442.9
1990–91	29.0	11.8	3.3	+5.26	UTA	82	82	40.3	52.7%	28.6%	77.0%	#13	475.7
1989–90	31.0	11.1	2.8	+6.07	UTA	82	82	38.1	56.2%	37.2%	76.2%	#8	504.6
1988–89	29.1	10.7	2.7	+5.36	UTA	80	80	39.1	51.9%	31.3%	76.6%	#8	469.6
1987–88	27.7	12.0	2.4	+2.18	UTA	82	82	39.0	52.0%	0.0%	70.0%	#30	282.6
1986–87	21.7	10.4	1.9	+1.58	UTA	82	82	34.8	51.2%	0.0%	59.8%	#40	220.2
1985–86	14.9	8.9	2.9	-0.83	UTA	81	76	30.6	49.6%	0.0%	48.1%	#139	62.4
Career	25.0	10.1	3.6	—	LAL/UTA	1476	—	37.2	51.6%	27.4%	74.2%	—	—

Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.

Film evidence

Karl Malone highlights

Watch the selected footage or film analysis, then use the season record and impact data to put what happened on the floor in context.

Partnership retrospective

John Stockton and Karl Malone's top playoff plays

The reel shows Malone's screening, rolling, strength and open-floor finishing within the partnership that defined Utah's offense.

What these measures mean

Era-centered box impact: Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average.
Impact Rate Rank: The player's place among qualified players in one season.
Value contribution / Season Value: Completed seasons use a fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. The live season instead uses Season Value, combining that season's impact with workload.
Career Impact Rank: An all-time rank weighted toward the player's best three, five, and ten seasons.

Career Impact Rank#23

3.2 composite · lower is better

Best 5#25

3.2 average league finish

Career Value Rank#7

7,363 total value

Career standing

How Karl Malone ranks all time

These are league placements, not raw scores. Each season is judged against that season's qualified player pool.

Number-one seasons0

Best in the league

Top-five seasons5

Elite finishes

Top-ten seasons11

Upper-tier finishes

Top-10 Impact Margin27.5

Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons

Career Composite Score3.2

Best 3, Best 5, and Best 10 average league finishes receive 50%, 30%, and 20% window weights. Missing seasons receive a replacement finish just below the player's typical qualified field. Lower is better.

Best 3 effective weight: 74%
Missing-season finish: 297.0
Qualified seasons: 19
All-time rank: #23

Strongest seasons

Every season

Karl Malone advanced stats by season

Era-centered box impact supports comparisons through time. Impact Rate and its rank compare players only within that season.

More advanced statsAge, minutes, impact, rank, value and data coverage


2003–04Historical Defense Estimate	LAL	40	42	1,373	+2.63	87.9	#41	122.2	77th	Broad
2002–03Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	39	81	2,936	+4.20	94.7	#18	338.4	97th	Broad
2001–02Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	38	80	3,040	+3.95	93.5	#22	340.1	95th	Broad
2000–01Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	37	81	2,895	+5.52	98.2	#7	407.4	97th	Broad
1999–00Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	36	82	2,947	+7.16	99.7	#2	504.1	99th	Broad
1998–99Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	35	49	1,832	+5.91	98.2	#6	262.7	98th	Broad
1997–98Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	34	81	3,030	+6.22	99.1	#4	463.0	100th	Broad
1996–97Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	33	82	2,998	+7.35	99.7	#2	525.5	100th	Broad
1995–96Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	32	82	3,113	+6.49	98.8	#5	495.7	99th	Broad
1994–95Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	31	82	3,126	+4.51	96.1	#13	392.6	97th	Broad
1993–94Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	30	82	3,329	+5.35	97.6	#8	474.4	98th	Broad
1992–93Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	29	82	3,099	+7.29	99.3	#3	578.9	99th	Broad
1991–92Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	28	81	3,054	+5.29	96.9	#10	442.9	98th	Broad
1990–91Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	27	82	3,302	+5.26	95.9	#13	475.7	98th	Broad
1989–90Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	26	82	3,122	+6.07	97.6	#8	504.6	98th	Broad
1988–89Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	25	80	3,126	+5.36	97.3	#8	469.6	97th	Broad
1987–88Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	24	82	3,198	+2.18	88.4	#30	282.6	93rd	Broad
1986–87Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	23	82	2,857	+1.58	84.8	#40	220.2	89th	Broad
1985–86Historical Defense Estimate	UTA	22	81	2,475	-0.83	45.7	#139	62.4	54th	Broad

Career movement

Karl Malone's career impact by season

Peak +7.35 in 1996–97 · 19 seasons · 54,852 minutes

The same historical box-score model is used for every season, making the career shape comparable through time. The vertical scale adapts to this player's range and always includes zero.

Era-centered box impactMinutes

Player-specific impact scaleWorkload

Career comparison

Compare the shape, not the calendar

Align by NBA experience to compare season one with season one, or by age to compare players at the same stage of life.

Compare with a similar careerOpen full comparison →

Karl MaloneTim Duncan

Era-centered box impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average · dashed marker means the player did not play

Karl Malone and Tim Duncan era-centered impact values by NBA season number
NBA season	Karl Malone	Tim Duncan
1	-0.8	4.3
2	1.6	4.4
3	2.2	5.1
4	5.4	4.0
5	6.1	6.7
6	5.3	6.7
7	5.3	7.7
8	7.3	7.3
9	5.3	4.3
10	4.5	6.5
11	6.5	5.1
12	7.3	5.7
13	6.2	5.8
14	5.9	3.9
15	7.2	2.9
16	5.5	4.9
17	3.9	3.1
18	4.2	5.0
19	2.6	2.4

NBA season number

Similar career arcs

Players with careers similar to Karl Malone

The career-similarity score compares era-centered box impact, peak, prime, workload, career length, position, and experience-aligned trajectory. It describes career shape, not playing style, equal ability, or probability.

PF · All-Time Career #30

Tim Duncan

career similarity score

88/100 closest-season score · 1996–97 ↔ 2006–07 C · All-Time Career #31

Hakeem Olajuwon

career similarity score

90/100 closest-season score · 1996–97 ↔ 1993–94 PF · All-Time Career #42

Dirk Nowitzki

career similarity score

87/100 closest-season score · 1996–97 ↔ 2006–07

How to read this page

Impact Rate shows how strong a player was compared with everyone else that season. Season Value adds how much he played; completed player-profile rows instead show each season's fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. Career Impact Rank rewards a high peak, a long prime, and repeated seasons near the top. Older seasons use clearly labeled estimates where the NBA did not record today's full set of statistics. Read how every ranking works →