[3] Malone began his professional career out of high school after he was selected in the third round of the 1974 ABA draft by the Utah Stars.

He signed as a free agent with the Atlanta Hawks, earning his 12th straight and final NBA All-Star selection in his first season.

Malone was a tireless and physical player who led the NBA in rebounding six times, including a then-record five straight seasons (1981–1985).

Combining his ABA and NBA statistics, Malone ranks ninth all-time in career points (29,580) and third in total rebounds (17,834).

[5][7][8] Malone signed a letter of intent to play college basketball for the University of Maryland under head coach Lefty Driesell.

[13] At 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) and a somewhat skinny 215 pounds (98 kg) at the time,[6][14] Malone began his pro career playing at forward until he bulked up enough to handle the rigors at center.

[14] In the 1975 ABA Playoffs, Malone averaged 22.7 points, 17.5 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game during a first round loss to the Denver Nuggets.

[18][19] He was sold to the ABA's Spirits of St. Louis to help pay down the Stars' debts, alongside Utah teammates Ron Boone, Randy Denton, and Steve Green.

[24] Malone had already been selected by the NBA's New Orleans Jazz in a December 1975 pre-merger draft for ABA players of undergraduate age.

[25] In the 1976 dispersal draft, which was held for the remaining ABA players whose teams did not join the NBA, Malone was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the fifth overall pick.

[5] The Blazers, who had also acquired power forward Maurice Lucas in the draft,[26] chose Malone for trading purposes.

[5][14] He averaged 24.8 points with a career-best .540 shooting percentage and established another career high with a league-leading 17.6 rpg while winning the NBA Most Valuable Player Award.

[46] In their first season in the Midwest Division, Houston and the Kansas City Kings tied for second place with identical 40–42 records.

The 76ers were coming off a 4–2 loss in the Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers, whose center, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, outplayed their big-man duo of Darryl Dawkins and Caldwell Jones.

The Rockets franchise was sold, and the new owners decided that Malone's $2 million annual salary did not fit their plans.

[50] Houston matched the offer and agreed to trade Malone to the 76ers for Jones and their first-round pick in the 1983 NBA draft on September 15.

[51] With Julius Erving, Maurice Cheeks, Andrew Toney, and Bobby Jones, the Sixers ran away from the league en route to the NBA championship.

[38][39] The 76ers lost only one game in the postseason as they won the league championship, defeating the Lakers in a 4–0 sweep in the 1983 NBA Finals.

[53] It was also around this time that Malone began to tutor Hakeem Olajuwon, passing on the torch to the future Rockets superstar.

During the season he averaged 21.4 points with 13.8 rebounds in five games in the playoffs, but Philadelphia lost in a first-round upset against the New Jersey Nets.

[37] He was voted by a fan ballot to the All-Star team for the eighth time and finished the season with 24.6 ppg, which ranked ninth-best in the league.

[38] Shortly after the 1985–86 season, Philadelphia traded Malone, Terry Catledge, and two first-round draft picks to the Washington Bullets in exchange for Jeff Ruland and Clifford T.

The Hawks, featuring Dominique Wilkins, had won at least 50 games in the prior three seasons, and believed the free-agent center was a missing piece to a potential championship team.

In Mike Fratello's final year as head coach, Atlanta finished with a 41–41 record, failing to qualify for the playoffs.

On November 3, against the Indiana Pacers, Malone became the NBA career leader in free throws made with 7,695, besting the previous record set by Oscar Robertson.

[84] The Philadelphia 76ers signed Malone as a free agent in August, so that he could serve as a backup and mentor to 7-foot-6-inch (2.29 m) rookie Shawn Bradley.

During the final game of his NBA career, against the Charlotte Hornets, he hit a buzzer-beating three-point shot from the opposing free throw line, 74 feet (23 m) away from the basket.

Her affidavit for its issuance alleged that Malone had stalked her, illegally entered her home in League City, Texas, damaged her property and threatened to kill her.

[101] Malone died in his sleep from heart disease at the age of 60, on the morning of September 13, 2015, at a hotel in Norfolk, Virginia.

He had been scheduled to play in a charity golf tournament that day and was found unresponsive in his room when he did not appear for breakfast or answer his phone.