Shirley Jackson Malone, mother of the former Utah Jazz all-star, died of an apparent heart attack Wednesday. She had not been ill, according to wire service reports.
Karl Malone, who was in New York practicing with the U.S. Team for an Olympic qualifying tournament in Puerto Rico, left at midday for his home along the Louisiana-Arkansas border and arrived there in late afternoon to be with his family of four brothers and four sisters.
His wife, Kay, and their children were in their new home in Newport Beach, Calif., still moving in and having work done there as they make the transition from the Jazz to Malone's new team, the Los Angeles Lakers.
Malone called his wife at about 7 a.m. to tell her the news, said family friend Roxanne Hasegawa of Salt Lake City.
"He was her rock when her mom died, and she'll do the same for him," Hasegawa said.
Malone's immediate family planned to travel to Louisiana-Arkansas and stop in Phoenix to pick up Malone's daughter, Cheryl Ford, who was there for a WNBA game with the Detroit Shock.
Funeral plans were undetermined Wednesday night. Malone is from Summerfield, La., but has a ranch in nearby El Dorado, Ark.
It was in their Summerfield hometown that "Miss Shirley" would make a basket rim with her arms so that her young son Karl could learn to play the game. He has been very close to his mother all of his life, and she often attended Jazz games in nearby Dallas or when visiting her son in Salt Lake City.
Utah Jazz owner Larry H. Miller released this statement Wednesday: "Gail and I and our family, as well as the entire Jazz organization, are saddened at the death of Shirley Jackson Malone, Karl Malone's mother. Shirley was a wonderful example to Karl throughout his life, and her influence on Karl and Karl's immediate and extended family will be missed. Through her son, Shirley was a popular and loved member of the Jazz family. We extend our love and prayers to Karl and to the Malone family at this time."
Jazz team president Dennis Haslam added: "We were extremely saddened to learn of the death of Karl's mother. Over the 18 years he was a member of the Utah Jazz, 'Miss Shirley,' as she was affectionately known, became a good friend of the organization, and we will miss her. The love and devotion Karl had for her was immeasurable. Our hearts go out to Karl and his family for their tremendous loss."
Jazz spokesman Kim Turner said Miller may attend the funeral and was certain that Jazz coach Jerry Sloan would. Turner spoke Wednesday with Sloan's wife, Bobbye, at the Sloans' home in McLeansboro, Ill.
E-mail: lham@desnews.com