Byron Scott explains what makes Tim Duncan superior to Karl Malone: 'Tim got rings and Karl got zero'

During the recent episode of "Byron Scott's Fastbreak podcast," the former Los Angeles Lakers guard had his Showtime running mate James Worthy as a guest. One of the topics they discussed was naming their all-time starting five.

Worthy named Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Karl Malone as his five. Scott then told "Big Game" that they almost have the same five, but he is picking San Antonio Spurs big man Tim Duncan over Malone as his all-time best power forward because Timmy was a proven winner.

"I think if you look at their careers, it doesn't mirror each other but both were winners, no doubt about it. Both of them have unbelievable impacts on their organization but Tim got rings and Karl got zero. Tim got four rings. And to me, that gives him the edge," said Scott.

Duncan won five, not four championships

While Scott is right about the ring comparison, he understated "The Big Fundamental's" ring count by saying four. In fact, Duncan led the Spurs to a total of five NBA championships during his 19-year NBA career. Not only that, but he was also the Finals MVP in three of those five title wins.

Looking at the stats, however, Malone posted career averages of 25.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. Duncan, meanwhile, averaged 19.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game.

"If you look at numbers," added Scott. "Karl's got him by a little bit in probably almost every category but look at the winning percentages and championships and things of that nature, I think Tim got it."

Malone liked Timmy

In 2010, Malone refused to say that he was the best power forward of all time. When he was asked by KSL-TV, the "Mailman" said that he never thought of those things during his playing days. Instead, he gave flowers to Duncan.

"My all-time favorite right now is still Tim Duncan. He just plays. He's old, but he's been playing like that now for 15 years. He don't care about really what he's worth to the game or what you think about it; he just play," Malone said.

If you look at the numbers, it's not as lopsided as Scott thought it was. Accolades-wise, each won two MVP awards; Karl had one more All-NBA First Team selection at 11-10, while Tim had one more All-Star game nod at 15-14. 

The major disparity lies in All-Defensive Team selections, where the San Antonio Spurs legend boasts 15 compared to the Utah Jazz icon's 4—add in the championships, and B-Scott's argument holds strong.