Report: Mailman to call it quits

Malone, who will turn 41 on July 24, recently underwent surgery to repair a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee that limited the future Hall-of-Famer to just 42 games during his one turbulent season with Los Angeles. He declined a 1.65 million contract option shortly after the Lakers lost in five games by the Detroit Pistons in the NBA finals.

Malone signed with the Lakers last summer for far below market value in an attempt to win the NBA title that has eluded him during his Hall of Fame career.

That dream ended in a nightmare for Malone, whose injury forced him to the sidelines for the majority of Detroit’s stunning series win. He played sparingly in Games 3 and 4 and sat out the deciding final contest.

Malone will end his career as the NBA’s second career-leading scorer with 36,928 points, behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s 38,387. A 14-time All-Star and the league’s MVP in 1996-97 and 1998-99, Malone averaged 25 points and 10.1 rebounds per season but posted career-lows of 13.2 points and 8.7 rebounds in 2003-04.

Malone was also selected as one of the NBA’s 50 greatest players in 1996.

After spending 18 years with Utah and earning $19 million in his final season with the Jazz, Malone signed with Los Angeles for $1.5 million.