Karl Malone's Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Speech

welcoming Carl to the Hall of Fame is his childhood hero and fellow legend from the status Louisiana Willis Reed class of 1982 ladies and gentlemen Carl Malone Wow a couple of things I said what I'm going to do we're going to talk long I wasn't going to cry but I Charles I lost a bed and you was responsible for that tie - I want you to defend no well I just want to say that I'm I'm very honored very respectful the Naismith Hall of Fame this is not anything that I plan I want to thank my wife and my children or riding that journey with I realize being up here that I'm very humble and I didn't make this journey alone and I kind of bittersweet but I say that to the end I just want to say to all the members of the Hall of Fame before me be after me I'm honored I think if you talk to any hall-of-famer here I don't think anybody to tell you that they went to bed every night saying I'm going to be in the Hall of Fame the guys worked hard got dedicated themselves and I'm a living witness being from Sommerfeld Louisiana by way of my Sinai Louisiana to Ruston Louisiana Utah and the ultimate I want to thank the NBA for giving this little snotty nosed kid from Louisiana opportunity to play the game I hope I did it the way my peers did it before me I didn't do anything but try to play horn I didn't have a motive it wasn't about me never was about me it's not about me tonight it's about a lot of other people I think it's knowing that I loved outdoors I love to hunt and when you're out there in the field everything got to be a line just purple so for me to be here tonight everything had to be perfect I had to be get drafted by Utah had to play with a point guard like John Stockton had to be coached by Jerry Sloan and Franklin and mr. Dave check it is here thank you but also I would like to say to my friends that made the journey here from Louisiana from North Louisiana I'm proud of it I'm country I love it this is me - I say mr. Willis Reed because I'm respectful thank you Willis grew up about five miles from me in Louisiana Bernese Louisiana and I grew up in Summerfield I want to say thank you more importantly I want to just say thanks to everybody here that make this possible a lot of people was behind the scene I want to say to all the guys that I played with I played against thank you thank you for making me a better person and a better player these guys here are also great people you don't know all the things they do behind the scene and last but not least I would like to say thanks to Larry Miller for believing in me he's not with us now but uh - the jazz organization thank you for believing in me I might not say it right all the time I might not have did it right like you wanted me to do all the time but I were respectful the way I wanted to do it and tried to do it and I would like to say this was a seventh year my mom passing was today it's our running that it was seven years today I was in being inducted to the Hall of Fame I will not be here without her and I will tell you one thing I would lie to you if I tell you that every single day every single breath I take my mom was well mom my dad my hero I just want to save it I'm here because of her thanks for coming I always tried to do it the right way and I tell I tell all my friends and family try to live life the way you want to be remember try to leave life better than you found it and what good is success if you're not willing to share and also I would like to say once again it was not about me it was about trying to do something to make everybody proud love you guys thank you you you

Channel: OfficialHoophall

Views: 1,038,349

Keywords: Karl Malone, Speech, Basketball Hall of Fame, Enshrinement, basketball, history

Id: ABG-pOHop5w

Length: 6min 36sec (396 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 17 2012