WELCOME TO LA
If the Glove fits and the Mailman delivers, the Lakers are back on top
LAST NOVEMBER, BEFORE THE START OF AN NBA GAME,TWO TEAM CAPTAINS MET
at half court to plot their futures. Most such conversations don’t amount to much, but this one would
have been worth a wiretap. Karl (The Mailman) Malone, then with the Utah Jazz, and Gary Payton,
then a Seattle Supersonic, had a lot in common. They were both future Hall Of Famers, unhappy in
their respective situations, and soontobe free agents.All that was missing from their illustrious resumes
was a championship, both having been denied previously by the Michael Jordanled Chicago Bulls.
As Payton recalled,“Karl could see I wasn’t happy. He said,‘Just
keep your head up.We might cross paths and play with each other.
Don’t rule out anything.We’ll make everybody’s heads roll.’”
Did they ever. Eight months later, the two superstars made an
unprecedented decision. Instead of saying “Show me the money,”
they said,“Show me the ring.” In a stunning twist worthy of reality
TV, they chose love (of the game) over money, sacrificing millions
they could’ve earned elsewhere, for the chance to win a title
with the salary capchallenged Los Angeles Lakers. Payton, who
made $12.6 million last season, agreed to the midlevel exception
of $4.9 million. Malone, who earned $19.2 million in 2002, agreed
to play for the veteran’s minimum of $1.5 million. Of course, it
helps when you’re already wealthier than most Third World countries,
but even so, it was a remarkably unselfish gesture in an age of
avarice. “Karl made it happen,” says Payton. “If he hadn’t signed, I
might’ve looked at other options.”
 The repercussions shook the NBA like an eightplus temblor.
Not since David Beckham joined Brazilian soccer star Renaldo on
Real Madrid has one team so gorged themselves on talent.
Suddenly, the Lakers are a real Dream Team — of epic proportions.
Seventy wins isn’t out of the question. A championship seems a
foregone conclusion.
As studies in contrast, the two newest Lakers are a screenwriter’s
dream: Malone, the 6’9” brutish power forward with a body as hard
as the pickup truck he drives; and Payton, the 6’4” sinewy guard
whose suffocating defense earned him the nickname “The Glove.”
Malone, the laidback Arkansas cattle rancher; Payton, the trashtalking
streetballer from Oakland. The beginning of a beautiful
friendship, perhaps — unless you’re a Sacramento Kings fan.
After 18 years in Salt Lake City, Malone is not fazed by the
move to Los Angeles. He and his family have bought a house by
the ocean (“near Newport Beach,” is all he’ll tell me) and the
Mailman is giddy with excitement.“I feel reborn,” he says. “I feel
like a kid again.” We’re sitting inside a cabana at the W Hotel in
Westwood, where a shirtless Malone has raised temperatures poolside
on an already hot summer afternoon.
Before he signed, Malone was feverishly courted by the team
that had dethroned the Lakers as champion, the San Antonio Spurs.
But Malone’s mind was made up. “All my career, I’ve wanted to
play with a dominant center,” he says, and after years of playing with
the likes of Mark Eaton and Greg Ostertag, who could blame him?
 Opponents used to ganging up on Shaquille O’Neal in the low
post will now have to worry about Malone burning them from the
high post. Even at age 40, he promises to run the floor for 30 to 35
minutes a night.That’s because there may be no 40yearold on the
planet who trains as hard — or as obsessively — as Karl Malone.
“I may not have stopped Father Time, but I think I’ve slowed
him enough,” he says.
Statistically, his legacy is assured. Malone is the only player in
NBA history to tally 35,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, 4,000
assists, and 2,000 steals. Sometime next year, assuming he stays
healthy, he will surpass Kareem AbdulJabbar as the league’s alltime
leading scorer. While he acknowledges the magnitude of
that achievement, says Malone.“If it’s meant to happen, I want to
do it within the team concept.”
Critics wonder whether Malone, accustomed to being
“The Man” in Utah, will adapt to being a third, even fourth scoring
option in Phil Jackson’s triangle offense. But Malone scoffs at
such doubts.“It’s not a matter of ‘can we share the ball,’” he says.
“We’re part of a system, with offensive and defensive schemes.
The triangle is a passing offense, based on movement.You try to
create easy shots. Run the floor; post up; cut to the basket; keep
moving. Fundamental basketball.”
“We’re all AllStars. We’ve all scored a lot of points,” he adds.
“Now let’s see what we can be like as a team.” And while some
might think four strong personalities could be divisive, Malone relishes
the opportunity. “Each guy’s going to push and bring the best
out of each other,” he asserts. “I lead by example. If I’m still willing
to learn, then Kobe and Shaq have to be willing to learn.”
If last year in Seattle was the winter of Gary Payton’s discontent,
this summer is different. Reached at his home in Las Vegas, Payton
sounded relaxed and confident. He and his family are closing on a
house in Bel Air, Lakers fans have already shown him the love, and
he’s ready to get down to business. At 34, he’s still got some prime
years ahead of him.
The fiery floor leader who can score, dish, and shut down the
opposition’s best guard sounds content to be the playmaker, dishing
to the big fellas, and easing the defensive burden on Kobe Bryant.
The Lakers would be thrilled if Payton can duplicate his career
averages of 18 points and seven assists a game.
“Phil is looking for me to be the General,” Payton says.“He’s
going to give us more options to freelance and create mismatches.
If they want to double Shaq, he can kick it out to three
guys who can score. Everyone thinks we’re going to be ballhogging
with each other. It’s not going to happen. Me and Karl
are going to be fine.”
Payton acknowledges he’s got some big shoes to fill where
Malone is concerned. For 14 years, the Mailman ran the
pickandroll to perfection with John Stockton, Utah’s non
pareil backcourt general. “I can be the baby Stockton, feeding
him the ball on the break,” Payton says. “Me and Karl
want to run, and I just have to practice with him, get a feel
for where he likes the ball.”
Just as the Lakers began to dream of an idyllic season, Kobe
Bryant’s legal troubles shifted the emphasis from the court to the
courtroom. But Payton insists that Bryant’s play will not
be distracted by the shadow of Bryant’s impending sexual
assault trial. “We’ll take him in, make sure he’s not going
off by himself and thinking about it,” Payton says calmly.
“If he plays the way he normally does, if he gets 3040
points and leads us to victory night after night, no one’s
going to be asking about the trial.” While Kobe will no
doubt be supported at Staples Center, all bets are off on
the road (and mark January 7 on your calendar, when the
Lakers visit Denver). “He’s a very strong individual,”
Payton declares. “He can get through this.”
Aware that this Lakers team will be scrutinized like no
other, both players agree that anything less than a championship
is unacceptable. “Everybody wants us to fail,” says
Payton. “Every team will be gunning for us. If we don’t
win, they’ll say we’re a flop.”
Malone agrees: “Right from preseason, we’ve got
to beat people early, show ‘em we’re confident.” Left
unspoken is the real possibility that this group may
only be together for one season. Both players signed
twoyear contracts, but can opt out next summer.
Kobe Bryant has already indicated he’d like to test the
freeagent market in 2004. There’s no learning curve
here. The time is now.
History has not always been kind to Dream Teams, be
they in sports or business. The Lakers of Jerry West, Wilt
Chamberlain, and Elgin Baylor din’t win a championship
until Baylor retired. Scottie Pippen, Charles Barkley, and
Hakeem Olajuwon were a bust in Houston. The merger of AOL
and Time Warner failed to live up to the hype. Right now, though,
nobody cares about the past. “If we’re healthy, we expect to be in
the Finals and win a championship,” Malone says.
Few would disagree.
-Graham Flashner
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