Moses Malone would have been on 23rd. March 63 years old. With him, the NBA lost an outstanding icon that was more than just a friend to many players. Malone defined himself by his unrivalled rebounding dominance and, despite his limited abilities, won a championship title, three MVP awards and became one of the best scorers in history.
This article was first published after Malone’s death in September 2015 and has now been edited for his birthday.
For a day John Lucas and Malone were roommates at the University of Maryland, then the Big Man returned to the American Basketball Association as the first player ever, “I woke up and wanted to take him to the class,” Lucas later said: “But he just said,’I think I’d rather go to the pros.
“I know what people say,” Malone said at the time: “But it makes no difference how old I am. I’m gonna bust all of you. At the time of this statement, Malone was only 19 years old. And he was right.
The only child of a single mother, Moses Eugene Malone grew up in Petersburg, Virginia and dedicated herself to basketball from the very beginning. It was his destiny, his passion. The local high school remained unbeaten under his leadership for two years and Malone was already a full-grown man at 2.08 metres – albeit rather a linnet in stature.
After taking a sensational step past college, Malone was the All Star in his first season 74/75 for the Utah Stars with 18.8 points and 14.6 rebounds. But the disintegration of the ABA and the merger with the NBA provided for a little ping pong at Malone.
A season with the Spirits of St. Louis, the choice of Portland Trail Blazers in the ABA’s trigger draft, a trade to Buffalo, two games for the Braves and another trade later landed Malone in Houston. There he established himself as a presence among the baskets, ended the 78/79 season with 17.6 rebounds per game – 7.2 of them offensively – and was named MVP for the first time.
Chairman of the Boards – he had earned his nickname by his commitment. Because Malone wasn’t very tall, nor had long arms. But he was athletic, jumping and had more tenacity and assertiveness than any other player. He loved to rebound.
If Malone missed a goal, the defensive rebound was by no means easy prey for the opponents. With his sniff and his cleverness – nobody else used his butt so cleverly during the rebound – Malone acquired a second, third, fourth and sometimes even fifth throwing chance. Until the ball was just in.
When asked about the secret to his astronomically high rebound rate on the opponent’s board – he clawed himself 38.4 percent of all available offensive rebounders in the season, putting him ahead of Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the leaderboard – he simply said, “Most of the time I’m heading for the basket.
Malone accurately reflects this answer. In their statement on Malone’s death, the Philadelphia 76ers wrote: “No one has expressed as much in so few words as Moses Malone.
Although Malone played most of his games for the Rockets, he got stuck for his time in Philadelphia. When Malone was traded to the Sixers as reigning MVP in 1982, the race for the Larry O’Brien Trophy was already decided for many observers before the start of the season. “Today the’76s won the championship.”
And indeed: The previously strong but not outstanding Sixers around Julius “Dr. “J” Erving had found the decisive man for the championship in Malone. An unofficial play by Philly said, “When Moses is in position, just throw the ball towards the ring and Moses will type it in.”
With the best record of the Regular Season behind him, Malone made the most daring and minimalist play-off prediction imaginable: “Fo, Fo, Fo.” Or in other words: “We won’t lose a single game in the post-season” What an announcement from an otherwise quiet guy like Malone.
After the walk-through in the first round the Knicks were swept away in the Conference Semifinals with 4-0, but in the Conference Finals the mishap happened. The third match against No. 2 Seed Milwaukee was lost away before Philly entered the finals 4-1.
Malone’s teammate Earl Cureton reported two years ago: “To this day, Moses claims that if Andrew Toney had fitted the ball under his basket at the end of the game, we would have made’Fo, Fo, Fo’ come true”.
In the end, the defeat was no more than a flaw because when the defending Lakers were swept 4-0, the Sixers had proven their dominance enough. And the reason was Moses Malone.
“Let’s not kid ourselves,” says Sixers coach Billy Cunningham: “It was Moses who made the difference from last year. He gave us a constant presence under the basket that the Lakers always got from Abdul-Jabbar. Moses gave us that and more.”
More like it. In the playoffs he scored 26 points, 15.8 rebounds, 1.9 blocks, 1.5 assists and 1.5 steals in 40 minutes, crowned by 24 points and 23 boards in the final club against Abdul-Jabbar. Kareem grabbed himself in the series 30 Rebounds, Moses 70. He was not called the Chairman of the Boards for nothing.
For team-mate Maurice Cheeks, something else played a big role in winning the title: “It’s especially what an incredible person Moses was. He was one of the best who ever played, and yet he never acted like one.”
Malone never wanted to be the big leader. He just wanted to do his job. He simply inserted himself,” Cheeks says: “There wasn’t the slightest problem. He said from the beginning that it is and remains Doc’s team,” and yet, in a way, he was the leader. He went ahead with his attitude and set the course. It was hard not to get infected.
One of his problems was dealing with the public. Malone was rude and had no interest in building a good relationship with the media. He gave meagre answers and was only interested in basketball in its purest form. Sparse, reserved and introverted – the journalists agreed with Malone’s characterization. And in a way, they were right.
But as much as he closed himself to the media, he built up a relationship with his fellow players. Many of his former teammates describe their relationship with Malone as an intense friendship.
“I will never understand why a Hall of Famer treated a fat, lazy child from Auburn like his son and made him a real NBA player,” said Charles Barkley: “Every time I saw him, I called him Dad. I hope he knew how much I valued and loved him.”
For Doc Rivers, Malone was more than a teammate: “He was a friend, a mentor. He taught me what it means to be a professional. Moses Malone was truly unique.”
After a break in his orbit in the 85/86 season, Malone was cycled to the Washington Bullets and from then on he was wearing striking protective goggles. In the capital and later with the Atlanta Hawks, he collected eight to twelve All-Star honors before ending his career with a detour to Milwaukee, a brief comeback in Philly and an engagement with the Spurs.
In his last game for San Antonio on 27.12.1994, Malone met a one-handed full-court buzzerbeater – the eighth in his career. It was the last special action on the field, but Moses Malone will not be remembered first and foremost after his death. Not even for his partly weak passes, his immature low-post-opense or his shaky throw.
Malone has collected more offensive friends in his career than any other basketball player. Significantly more. 2566 more. Despite his otherwise unsurpassed skills, he perfected this one quality to such an extent that it helped him become the eighth best scorer of the NBA and three times MVP to enter the Hall of Fame, and to go down in history as the mainstay of a championship team.
He was the role model for every hard-working player who has entered a court in recent decades. He was mentor and friend, helper and leader. And that’s another reason why it’s unforgotten.
He was Moses Malone.