Prior to the 2003–04 season, Stockton announced his retirement and Malone left Utah to play for the Los Angeles Lakers. Harpring was named team captain by coach Jerry Sloan. Harpring provided leadership for the young team, which played surprisingly well despite the departures of Malone and Stockton. Harpring's season ended suddenly with a knee injury that required surgery to repair. In 31 games, he averaged 16.2 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. At the time of his injury, he was Utah's leading scorer.