Karl Malone is the second highest scorer in NBA history for two reasons, longevity and being nearly unstoppable. Karl was probably the greatest big man in transition, running like a deer while being the size of small bus had something to do with it. On this play the Jazz come up with a steal and Malone's running mate John Stockton finds him in transition where he proceeds to dunk over Michael Jordan.
In 1977 one of the best players of his generation, and all time, "Pistol" Pete Maravich put his talents on display as he scored 68 points in a game against New York. The 1976-1977 season was his best ever as a professional player. He led the league in scoring with an average of 31.1 points per game and scored 40 points or more in 13 different games which includes the 68 point masterpiece.
One of the best John Stockton comes up clutch when it matters most. Stockton was 3/8 through the first 3 quarters but shot 3/3 in the 4th quarter including the go ahead bucket with only .7 seconds left on the clock. The Jazz would win the game and hold off elimination by the Sacramento Kings.
This weeks nbatbt comes courtesy of the Admiral, David Robinson. A quadruple double was not possible in the NBA until the 1973-1974 season since before then they didn't record blocks and steals. Since then only 4 instances of a quadruple double has occurred. Robinson had the most recent quadruple double and did so on Feb 17, 1994. The other 3 guys were Hakeem Olajuwon, Alvin Robertson and Nate Thurmond. Robinson finished the game with 34pts 10rebs 10ast and 10blks in the 115-96 win over the Detroit Pistons. The Admiral spent his entire 14 year career playing for the San Antonio Spurs and won two championships (1999, 2003). Robinson was apart of the 1992 dream team and was inducted into the Naismith memorial basketball hall of fame in 2009 along with Michael Jordan and John Stockton. Over 20 years is a very long time to go without seeing a quadruple double but I have a feeling that if anybody in the league today were to accomplish this feat it would be The Brow, Anthony Davis. Davis didn't get his growth spurt until late in his high-school career so he spent most of his time playing as a point guard. This in combination with his fantastic scoring, rebounding and blocking skills gives me enough reason to believe AD will have the next quadruple double although it probably won't happen for another few years when he is in his prime.
If you're interested in watching the almost full (part of the 1st q is missing) quadruple double game here it is below.
Ever since 1891 when Canadian Dr. James Naismith invented basketball people have been doing baller shit with the sport. Thousands of these moments have occurred throughout the history of the NBA, some like Wilt Chamberlain scoring 100 points or a multitude of Michael Jordan game winners have been replayed hundreds of times but there are still many baller instances in the NBA that haven't been largely publicized. This is where NBA TBT comes in. Each week I'll be bringing you a baller moment that you've hopefully never seen before starting this week with Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf and the game where he scored 51 points against John Stockton and the Jazz. It was December 7, 1995 when the Nuggets led by Dikembe Mutombo arrived in Utah to challenge on Stockton and Malone, and challenge them Mahmoud did as he finished the game scoring more points then the two did combined! That night Abdul-Rauf was unconscious shooting 9-14 from 3 and making all of his 8 free throws. Mahmoud looked to be in attack mode all night as he knocked down shot after shot against tight defence making buckets both off the dribble and in catch and shoot situations. His performance was very Stephen Curry like as his ability to create a shot for himself wrecked havoc on the opposing defence. This game was simply amazing but not just a fluke either since during his 9 year career Mahmoud averaged 14.6 ppg and made 1051/1161 of his total free throws (.905) with a career high of 19.2 ppg during the 92-93 season with the Nuggets.
If you're a stickler for the highest video quality possible watch it here
If not then I'd recommend checking it out here, if only to hear one of the commentators say "What screen? he don't need no screen," around the 2:50 mark.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-w3vbrj7KQ
If you're a fan of Mahmoud's game here are 3 other instances where he took over that's worth checking out:
Mahmoud was also a key factor in ending Jordan's Bulls 18 game winning streak. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e93l5so7f9s
He's just one of those players who helps prove that 'getting hot' is a real thing, scoring 2 points through 3 quarters only to finish the game with 28 pts. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozxEUAUlEFc
Abdul-Rauf was never afraid of the competition proving it once again by scoring 39 points and getting 10 assists during his win over Jason Kidd and the Mavericks in 1995. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sewdK-uoX3I
I hope everyone who read this enjoyed it and don't forget to check back next Thursday for another edition of NBA TBT.
