Ranking the Top 10 NBA Draft wins in Utah Jazz history
By Ryan Aston
1) The Mailman Delivered (1985)
Without question, John Stockton was a transcendantal talent, but it was the arrival of ‘The Mailman’ Karl Malone that trasformed the Jazz from a band of plucky upstarts to one of the elite franchises in the NBA and a perennial title contender.
Like Stockton, Malone was a steal in the middle of the first round. Some of the players taken in the lottery ended up becoming stars in their own right, but none of them had a career like the Mailman, who was a two-time NBA MVP and arguably the best power forward in league history.
The three players taken immediately ahead of him were Ed Pinckney, Keith Lee and Kenny Green (a career role-player and two guys who were quickly out of the league). It goes to show how hard it is to win big in the draft and Malone ranks among the biggest.
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Again, I won’t keep you here reading his entire list of basketball accomplishments, but here are some of the most notable —
- NBA Most Valuable Player in ’97 and ’99
- 14-time NBA All-Star and ASG MVP in ’89 and ’93
- 11-time All-NBA first team selection
- Two-time All-NBA second-team selection
- All-NBA third team in ’01
- Three-time All-Defensive first team selection
- No. 2 scorer in NBA history