What basketball legend mentioned in The last season: A team in search of its soul is tied with Karl Malone for the most first team All-NB elections in history.
Karl Malone Karl Anthony Malone (born July 24, 1963) is an American retired professional basketball player. Nicknamed "The Mailman", Malone played the power forward position and spent his first 18 seasons (1985–2003) in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Utah Jazz and formed a formidable duo with his teammate John Stockton. Malone also played one season for the Los Angeles Lakers. Malone was a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, a 14-time NBA All-Star, and an 11-time member of the All-NBA first team. He scored the second most career points in NBA history (36,928) (second behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), and holds the records for most free throws attempted and made, in addition to co-holding the record for the most first team All-NBA elections in history (tied with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James). He is considered one of the best power forwards in NBA history.
ABA Playoffs Most Valuable Player Award The ABA Playoffs Most Valuable Player Award was an annual American Basketball Association (ABA) given in the ABA Playoffs. The award was first awarded in the 1968 ABA Playoffs, and was retired as part of the ABA–NBA merger. In sports, the player judged to be the most important to the team is the most valuable player (MVP).