Karl Malone vs. Trae Young Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Trae Young and Karl Malone, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.

Karl Malone played 19 years in the NBA, 11 more than Trae Young, who played 8. Karl Malone had the first of his seasons in 1985-86, while Trae Young had his rookie season in 2018-19. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achievements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Rookie Season
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1985-86	2018-19
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-Rookie First Team	All-Rookie First Team
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Did Not Play

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Rookie Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	81	30.6	14.9	2.1	6.7	8.9	2.9	1.3	0.5	3.4	3.6	6.2	12.5	.496	0.0	0.0	-	2.4	5.0	.481
difference:		+0.3	+4.2	+1.3	+3.8	+5.2	+5.2	+0.4	+0.3	-0.4	-1.9	+0.3	+3.0	+.078	+1.9	+6.0		+1.8	+0.1	+.348
Trae Young	81	30.9	19.1	0.8	2.9	3.7	8.1	0.9	0.2	3.8	1.7	6.5	15.5	.418	1.9	6.0	.324	4.2	5.1	.829
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	4	36.0	21.8	1.5	6.0	7.5	1.0	2.0	0.0	1.5	4.5	9.5	18.0	.528	0.0	0.0	-	2.8	6.5	.423
Trae Young	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 2
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1986-87	2019-20
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	-	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Did Not Play

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2nd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	82	34.8	21.7	3.4	7.0	10.4	1.9	1.3	0.7	2.9	3.9	8.9	17.3	.512	0.0	0.1	.000	3.9	6.6	.598
difference:	+22	+0.5	+7.9	+2.9	+3.3	+6.1	+7.4	+0.2	+0.6	-1.9	-2.2	+0.2	+3.5	+.075	+3.4	+9.4	+.361	+4.1	+2.7	+.262
Trae Young	60	35.3	29.6	0.5	3.7	4.3	9.3	1.1	0.1	4.8	1.7	9.1	20.8	.437	3.4	9.5	.361	8.0	9.3	.860
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	5	40.0	20.0	3.0	6.6	9.6	1.2	2.2	0.8	3.4	4.0	7.4	17.6	.420	0.0	0.0	-	5.2	7.2	.722
Trae Young	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 3
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1987-88	2020-21
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA Second Team	-
	All-Defensive Second Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf Semis	Hawks Lost East Conf Finals

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3rd Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	82	39.0	27.7	3.4	8.6	12.0	2.4	1.4	0.6	4.0	3.6	10.5	20.1	.520	0.0	0.1	.000	6.7	9.6	.700
difference:	+19	+5.3	+2.4	+2.8	+5.3	+8.1	+7.0	+0.6	+0.4	-0.1	-1.8	+2.8	+2.4	+.082	+2.2	+6.2	+.343	+1.0	+0.9	+.186
Trae Young	63	33.7	25.3	0.6	3.3	3.9	9.4	0.8	0.2	4.1	1.8	7.7	17.7	.438	2.2	6.3	.343	7.7	8.7	.886
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	11	44.9	29.7	3.0	8.8	11.8	1.5	1.2	0.6	3.5	3.2	11.2	23.2	.482	0.0	0.1	.000	7.4	10.2	.723
difference:	+5	+7.2	+0.9	+2.6	+6.4	+9.0	+8.0	+0.1	+0.6	-0.5	-1.0	+1.8	+0.8	+.064	+2.8	+8.9	+.313	+0.1	+1.8	+.143
Trae Young	16	37.7	28.8	0.4	2.4	2.8	9.5	1.3	0.0	4.0	2.2	9.4	22.4	.418	2.8	9.0	.313	7.3	8.4	.866

Season 4
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1988-89	2021-22
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	All-NBA Third Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Hawks Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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4th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	80	39.1	29.1	3.2	7.4	10.7	2.7	1.8	0.9	3.6	3.6	10.1	19.5	.519	0.1	0.2	.313	8.8	11.5	.766
difference:	+4	+4.2	+0.7	+2.5	+4.3	+7.0	+7.0	+0.9	+0.8	-0.4	-1.9	+0.7	+0.8	+.059	+3.0	+7.8	+.069	+2.2	+4.2	+.138
Trae Young	76	34.9	28.4	0.7	3.1	3.7	9.7	0.9	0.1	4.0	1.7	9.4	20.3	.460	3.1	8.0	.382	6.6	7.3	.904
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	3	45.3	30.7	7.3	9.0	16.3	1.3	1.0	0.3	4.3	5.3	11.0	22.0	.500	0.0	0.0	-	8.7	10.7	.813
difference:	+2	+8.1	+15.3	+6.3	+5.0	+11.3	+4.7	+0.4	+0.3	-1.9	-2.7	+6.6	+8.2	+.181	+1.4	+7.6		+3.5	+4.1	+.025
Trae Young	5	37.2	15.4	1.0	4.0	5.0	6.0	0.6	0.0	6.2	2.6	4.4	13.8	.319	1.4	7.6	.184	5.2	6.6	.788

Season 5
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1989-90	2022-23
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Hawks Lost East Conf 1st Rd

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5th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	82	38.1	31.0	2.8	8.3	11.1	2.8	1.5	0.6	3.7	3.2	11.1	19.8	.562	0.2	0.5	.372	8.5	11.1	.762
difference:	+9	+3.3	+4.8	+2.0	+6.1	+8.1	+7.4	+0.4	+0.5	-0.4	-1.8	+2.9	+0.8	+.133	+1.9	+5.8	+.037	+0.7	+2.3	+.124
Trae Young	73	34.8	26.2	0.8	2.2	3.0	10.2	1.1	0.1	4.1	1.4	8.2	19.0	.429	2.1	6.3	.335	7.8	8.8	.886
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	5	40.6	25.2	3.2	7.0	10.2	2.2	2.2	1.0	2.4	4.4	9.2	21.0	.438	0.0	0.2	.000	6.8	9.0	.756
difference:	+1	+2.3	+4.0	+2.4	+4.2	+6.5	+8.0	+0.5	+0.3	-1.6	-2.6	+0.8	+3.8	+.035	+3.0	+8.8	+.333	+0.6	+1.8	+.104
Trae Young	6	38.3	29.2	0.8	2.8	3.7	10.2	1.7	0.7	4.0	1.8	10.0	24.8	.403	3.0	9.0	.333	6.2	7.2	.860

Season 6
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1990-91	2023-24
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf Semis	Did Not Play

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6th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	82	40.3	29.0	2.9	8.9	11.8	3.3	1.1	1.0	3.0	3.3	10.3	19.6	.527	0.0	0.2	.286	8.3	10.8	.770
difference:	+28	+4.3	+3.3	+2.5	+6.6	+9.0	+7.5	+0.2	+0.8	-1.4	-1.3	+2.3	+0.9	+.097	+3.2	+8.5	+.087	+1.9	+3.3	+.085
Trae Young	54	36.0	25.7	0.4	2.3	2.8	10.8	1.3	0.2	4.4	2.0	8.0	18.7	.430	3.2	8.7	.373	6.4	7.5	.855
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	9	42.6	29.7	2.6	10.8	13.3	3.2	1.0	1.2	2.9	3.9	10.6	23.2	.455	0.0	0.9	.000	8.6	10.1	.846
Trae Young	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 7
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1991-92	2024-25
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	-	Assists Leader
	-	Cup All-Tournament Team
	All-Star Game	All-Star Game
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf Finals	Did Not Play

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7th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	81	37.7	28.0	2.8	8.4	11.2	3.0	1.3	0.6	3.1	2.8	9.9	18.7	.526	0.0	0.2	.176	8.3	10.7	.778
difference:	+5	+1.7	+3.8	+2.3	+5.8	+8.1	+8.6	+0.1	+0.4	-1.6	-0.9	+2.5	+0.6	+.115	+2.9	+8.2	+.164	+1.8	+3.3	+.097
Trae Young	76	36.0	24.2	0.5	2.6	3.1	11.6	1.2	0.2	4.7	1.9	7.4	18.1	.411	2.9	8.4	.340	6.5	7.4	.875
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	16	43.0	29.1	2.7	8.6	11.3	2.6	1.4	1.2	2.9	3.6	9.3	17.8	.521	0.0	0.1	.000	10.6	13.1	.805
Trae Young	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Season 8
	Karl Malone	Trae Young
Season	1992-93	2025-26
Team	Utah Jazz	Atlanta Hawks
Honors & Awards	All-NBA First Team	-
	All-Star Game	-
	All-Star Game MVP	-
Playoffs	Jazz Lost West Conf 1st Rd	Did Not Play

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8th Season Stats Comparison
Regular Season Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	82	37.8	27.0	2.8	8.4	11.2	3.8	1.5	1.0	2.9	3.2	9.7	17.6	.552	0.0	0.2	.200	7.5	10.2	.740
difference:	+77	+10.0	+9.2	+2.8	+6.4	+9.2	+4.0	+0.7	+0.8	-0.9	-1.4	+4.5	+3.6	+.181	+1.0	+5.0	+.008	+1.1	+2.4	+.081
Trae Young	5	27.8	17.8	0.0	2.0	2.0	7.8	0.8	0.2	2.0	1.8	5.2	14.0	.371	1.0	5.2	.192	6.4	7.8	.821
Playoffs Stats
	G	Min	Pts	ORb	DRb	Reb	Ast	Stl	Blk	TO	PF	FGM / A		%	3PM / A		%	FTM / A		%
Karl Malone	5	43.2	24.0	2.4	8.0	10.4	2.0	1.2	0.4	4.0	4.2	8.8	19.4	.454	0.2	0.4	.500	6.2	7.6	.816
Trae Young	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Additional Years
* Karl Malone played 11 seasons more than Trae Young in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 9 to 19, from 1994 to 2004—Karl Malone played in 11 Playoffs. In those 11 extra years over Trae Young, Karl Malone got these achievements:
Honors & Awards	2 Season MVP 6 All-NBA First Team 1 All-NBA Second Team 1 All-NBA Third Team 3 All-Defensive First Team 8 All-Star Game