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 | Oh, hello, my name is Andrey. Kirilenko spoke about the first day in Utah25-11-2025 |
The NBA All-Star reminisced about his debut in the league. My most vivid memory of that time is my first day in Utah. Already at the first training session I found myself on the same court with two of the greatest players in history - John Stockton and Karl Malone. Olympic champions, members of Dream Team 92, legends whose names are inscribed in the NBA Hall of Fame.
I remember the first time I saw John Stockton at practice. He came up and said:
- Oh, hello, my name is Andrey.
He replied:
- And I`m John.
And I`m like:
- And I know, I watched your games!
I recently talked to him again, he is already 60. I say:
- Lord, you’re just an old man already!
And he laughs:
- So I was an old man when you came!
A legendary player indeed. And I am incredibly lucky that my first steps in the NBA took place next to such people, ” Kirilenko wrote.
John Stockton, Karl Malone and Andrei Kirilenko played together for two seasons on the Jazz (2001-2003), after which Malone moved to the Lakers and Stockton retired.