VANCOUVER, British Columbia — After leading the Utah Jazz to another playoff berth, Karl Malone is happy the postseason doesn't start tomorrow.
"We're not ready. Not yet," Malone said after the Jazz secured their 18th straight postseason berth on Sunday with a 92-73 victory over the Vancouver Grizzlies on Sunday.
Malone scored 31 points, and the Jazz used a 16-point third quarter to break open a close contest.
The fact the Jazz continue to rely on a 38-year-old in Malone to carry them though a tough stretch also has coach Jerry Sloan concerned.
"Karl picked it up a notch, but he does that so frequently," Sloan said. "We've all ridden him for a long time. Sure he doesn't have the energy at his age. But at this stage of his career, he still enjoys playing.
"I don't know why young guys have to pace themselves, why they can't play hard all the time. It baffles me sometimes."
Malone triggered the win for 49-24 Utah when he made 5-of-8 field-goal attempts in the third quarter.
"That's why I get the little bucks," Malone deadpanned. "It'll be my job until I'm done. We're not an outside-inside team. We're a team that goes inside first and we made them pay for that down the stretch."
"Karl gave us life," said the oldest member of the Jazz, John Stockton. "It was like 'You pass to me and I'll take care of it."'
The Grizzlies, led by Shareef Abdur-Rahim's 20 points and 12 rebounds, were playing only their third game in eight days. Utah, meanwhile, was playing its fifth in less than seven nights. But it was Vancouver which looked like the tired team down the stretch.
"I think the reality for a lot of people is hard to see that this team is still learning how to win games. It's hard to win. It's easy to lose," said Grizz coach Sidney Lowe.
The Grizzlies, who committed seven turnovers in their win over the New York Knicks on Thursday, had eight in the first quarter against Utah.