The League announced its 76 biggest stars in history on its 75th anniversary, and John Stockton in "Utah Doubles" was successfully selected. Today, let's take a look at the legendary career of the league's historical assist king and steal king.
1. Career honors
10 All-Stars (1989-97, 2000)
King of 9 Assists (1988–96)
2 Steals King (1989, 1992)
2 Best Teams (1994, 1995)
6-time Best Team 2 (1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1996)
3-time Best Team 3 (1991, 1997, 1999)
5-time All-Defensive Team 2 (1989, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1997)
All-Star MVP (1993)
Member of the Hall of Fame (2009)
2. Career Profile
Some players play certain positions as if they were destined, and that is, the point guard to John Stockton.
The star, who combines speed, fortitude and endurance, understands the game better than anyone, playing 19 seasons with the Jazz, the NBA's all-time assist king (15806). In addition, he has become the king of steals twice, with a total of 3265 steals in his career, ranking first in history. He played 82 games in 17 years in 19 seasons and shot 51.5 percent from a career, a staggering number for a point guard.
Carl Malone, who has been with Stockton for 18 seasons, said: "Sure, definitely, there will never be another Stockton. ”
Stockton has never missed the playoffs in his career, and his team has reached the division finals five times in seven years. In the sixth game of the 1997 Western Conference Finals, Stockton shot a deadly three-pointer against Charles Barkley, and then hugged Malone and Hornasec to celebrate their first NBA Finals, which has become a classic picture of Stockton's career.
The Jazz reached the Finals for two consecutive years, but both lost to the Chicago Bulls.
In April 2003, when he played the last game of his career, Stockton was asked by reporters to sum up his career without a championship, saying: "The important thing is the process that goes through, I definitely have a lot of players who have won championships and have not worked as hard as I have, we have worked very hard but have not achieved our goals. I still feel that our efforts have paid off. ”
Stockton also recorded 1,164 assists in a single season, averaging 14.5 per game. He also has a record for consecutive assists. He also had 24 assists in a single game in the playoffs, the second-best all-time career average of 10.5 assists per game, and the regular season record of 28 assists per game tied for third in history.
Former UCLA coach John Woodden has said stockton is the only NBA player he admires and the only player he is willing to pay for tickets to watch him play. Hall of Fame coach Jack Ramsey called Stockton the ultimate team player and the best point guard of all time.
Stockton accomplished these feats silently, and Sam Smith once said on espn: "He doesn't do dribbling behind his back and dribbling under his crotch, he doesn't do forward changes, his collection is all about the most ordinary passes and layups." He also doesn't perform without watching people pass, but we'll all regret not being able to watch him play again. ”
Although only 1.85 meters tall, Stockton has always used the block to tell that he can always attract the defense and pass the ball to the teammates in the empty position.
Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said: "It's a shame we can't keep the numbers in front of the camera, it's one of the most important things he's ever done for the team. That's also his mark – making his teammates better. He's not photogenic, but the way he uses big cover to pass the ball may have changed some of the rules. ”
The start of his basketball career was rather low-key, and he came from the small school in his hometown of Gangsaga University. He averaged 20.9 points and 7.2 assists per game as a senior, the first player in school history to deliver at least 1,000 points and 500 assists.
The Jazz picked Stockton with the 16th pick in 1984, which also produced Hakim Olajuwon, Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley. The jazz picked Malone the following year, and the years of pairing made them the most classic guard and forward combination.
Speaking about Malone, Stockton said: "He's a great friend and I'm grateful that we can be part of each other's families. ”
Stockton's first coach at the Jazz, Frank Ryden, admitted in an article that the team didn't know what getting Stockton meant to the team. "No one could have imagined that he would be so good, but you can't estimate how strong his heart is."
On June 7, 2003, Stockton's retirement ceremony took place at the Delta Center. Stockton thanked Coach Rydon for the advice he gave him early in his career, and Leyden told Stockton not to forget his original intentions.
Stockton is a big fan of sports shorts, and he once joked: "One thing I've never changed is the length of my shorts." ”
The period from 1988-89 to 1990-91 was the peak of Stockton's career, when he averaged at least 17 points per game and assists ranging from 13.6 to 14.5. He was also the league's highest-shooting guard in 1993–95.
In 1994 and 1995 , Stockton was named to the All-Roc team. In the 1994–95 season he surpassed the Magic with 9,921 assists to become the league's all-time assists champion, surpassing 10,000 assists throughout his career. In the 1995–96 season, Stockton overtook Morris Cheeks to become the all-time steals king. He surpassed Bob Cush eight times in 1995–96 and became the league's assist king for nine consecutive seasons.
In the first two seasons of his career, Stockton had to replace starting point guard Ricky Green, and Stockton was worried that he would not play long in the NBA. It wasn't until four months later in Salt Lake City that he added a TV to his studio apartment to watch the Super Bowl. Stockton's steals (109) and assists (415) in the rookie season both set new rookie records and were named to the rookie team of the year.
Stockton played in 82 games throughout the rookie season, averaging 5.6 points in 18.2 minutes per game. The Jazz tied for fourth in the Midwest division, and they eliminated the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, but then they were blocked by the Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals.
Stockton's playing time rose to 23.6 minutes another year, and his stats (7.7 points, 7.4 assists) also rose. This is Malone's rookie season, and he averaged 14.9 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. The Jazz won one more game than the previous season, though they lost to the Mavericks in the first round.
Stockton's bench career was finally over, and he was the starting point for the team from 1986-87, though he had to share playing time with Green. Stockton averaged 7.9 points and 8.2 assists in 22.7 minutes, while Green averaged 9.6 points and 6.7 assists in 25.8 minutes. The two delivered a total of 287 steals, with Stockton's 177 (averaging 2.16 per game) in the league in eighth place.
That year, the Jazz sent away Adrian Dantley, the team's leading scorer for the previous seven seasons, to Kelly Tribeca and Kent Benson. This put Malone under more scoring pressure, and his blocking with Stockton became a regular routine, and his average of points per game rose to 21.7 points per game. The two began to form the longest-running inner and outer line combination in history.
However, at that time, the two were difficult to bring the Jazz a playoff victory, and the jazz won two games in the first round with the Warriors, but the Warriors then won three consecutive innings to end the Jazz's season. Stockton averaged 10.0 points and 8.0 assists in five games of the series, shooting 62.1 percent from the field.
Before the 1987–88 season, the Jazz sent Green to charlotte hornets. Stockton began to take over the Jazz's point guard role in its entirety, and he lived up to his promise. Malone averaged 52 percent of the 27.7 points per game this season, many of which came from Stockton's assists. The Jazz shot 49.1 percent from the team, and the Gonzaga-based product delivered 1,128 assists, breaking Isaiah Thomas' all-time record of 1,123 in a single season in 1984-85.
Stockton averaged 13.8 assists per game, beginning his reign as the assist king for years. He averaged 2.95 steals per game (third in the league) and shot 57.4 percent from the field (fourth in the league), in addition to averaging 14.7 points per game, nearly twice as many as the previous season. He was named to the all-team team with Malone.
The Jazz played the best 47-35 in franchise history, eliminating the Trail Blazers 3-1 in the first round and then forcing defending champion Lakers into a seven-game tie. The Jazz lost 109-111 in Game 5, but Stockton's 24 assists tied the Magic's playoff record. Stockton averaged 19.5 points and 14.8 assists in 11 playoff games.
Stockton was named an All-Star for the first time in the 1988–89 season, where he had 11 points and 17 assists for the West, though the MVP was taken away by his teammate Carl Malone. Stockton won assists and steals that year, and his shooting percentage (53.8 percent) ranked 10th in the league. In the same year he was named to the All-N2 Team and the All-Defensive Team II. He averaged 17.1 points per game behind the Jazz behind Carl Malone (29.1) and Sur Bailey (19.5).
The Jazz's 51-31 record brought them a Midwestern title, with the Jazz meeting Mullin's Warriors in the first round. Stockton's astonishing performance also made it difficult for the Jazz to be swept away, averaging 27.3 points and 13.7 assists per game in this series.
Despite missing the first four games of the 1989–90 season, Stockton set a new league record with a total of 1,134 assists and 14.5 assists per game. It was his third consecutive year of breaking 1,000 assists, and Stockton became the first player in history to deliver at least 1,000 assists in a row. Over the next two years, he reached four-digit assists.
He also shot more than 50 percent from the field in the league's third year and delivered at least 200 steals (207). He averaged a career-high 17.2 points per game that year and became the starting point guard for the All-Star Western Conference, and at the end of the season he was again named to the All-NBA Team.
But their playoff woes are still not over, the Jazz lost to the Warriors in the first round of five games, Stockton shot only 42%, but he averaged 15.0 points and 15.0 assists per game.
In the 1990–91 season, the Jazz averaged 18.6 points per game on top of Carl Malone's 52.7 percent shooting percentage of 29 points per game, but Stockton was the one who fed them the ball. He again had 1,000 assists in a single season, and this year he was named an All-Star for the third time in a row.
Stockton delivered 1,164 assists in a single season, setting a new league record again. He also averaged 17.2 points and 2.85 steals per game, and was named to the All-Third Team at the end of the season.
Stockton limited the Suns' point guard Kevin Johnson in that year's playoffs, and the Jazz beat the Suns 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs. However, they failed to make it past the Blazers in the Western Conference Semifinals, and Stockton averaged 18.2 points and 13.8 assists per game in the playoffs.
Stockton won the fifth consecutive assists title the following year, averaging 13.7 assists in 1126 single-season appearances. On the final day of the season, he overtook the Timberwolves' Michael Williams to become the league's all-time steals champion (averaging 2.98 per game).
He was named an All-Star for the fourth time in a row, with a second team for the All-N team and a second team for the defensive team. The Jazz played 26-10 in the final three months of the season, beating the Clippers and Supersonics to reach the Western Conference Finals for the first time. They lost six games to the Blazers in the Western Conference Finals, and Stockton played very beautifully in 16 playoff games: averaging 14.8 points, 13.6 assists and 2.13 steals per game.
After a crushing defeat in the Western Conference Finals, Stockton and Malone joined the Dream Team for the Barcelona Olympics. Despite being unable to play at full strength due to a right leg injury, Malone and the Dream team teammates easily won the championship. The two also teamed up for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and successfully defended their title.
In the 1992–93 season, the Jazz's Salt Lake City was home to the All-Star Game. Stockton and Malone shared that year's All-Star Game mvp, with the West winning 135-132 in overtime, With Malone having 28 points and 10 rebounds and Stockton having nine points and 15 assists. Stockton scored four straight points in overtime and delivered two assists to give the West a narrow 16-13 win.
In 1993-94, Stockton became the third player in history to break 9,000 assists, with only the Magic (9921) and Robertson (9887) outnumbering him. In addition to averaging 12.6 assists per game to lead the league, Stockton also proved his worth with averaging 15.1 points, 2.43 steals and 52.8 percent shooting per game.
He is fourth in the league in steals and has the top shooting percentage among defenders. He was named a sixth consecutive All-Star that year and was named to the All-Team First Team for the first time in his career. His performance helped the Jazz reach the Western Conference Finals, but the team lost 4-1 to the Rockets. They lost to the Supersonics in the 1995–96 Western Conference, and in the next two seasons, they reached the Finals, both against the Chicago Bulls.
The 1996–97 Jazz played the league's best 64-18 to win the Western Conference Championship. Stockton lost to Mark Jackson on the assists list, the end of his 9th consecutive assists title. That year Stockton became an All-Star Western Conference starter, with 12 points and five assists.
But their journey to the Finals is worth a big deal, with Stockton averaging 16.9 points, 9.6 assists and 1.65 steals in 20 playoff games. In the second game of the Western Conference Finals and the Rockets, he had 26 points and 12 assists; in the sixth game of the elimination, he scored 25 points and shot a three-point shoot in front of Charles Barkley.
He had 17 points and 12 assists in Game 3 of the NBA Finals to help the Jazz beat the Bulls 104-93, and in Game 4 he scored 17 points and hit a crucial three-pointer in the final moments. In the fifth game, Jordan overcame the flu troubles and led the Bulls to a 90-85 victory; in the sixth game, the Bulls won 90-86 to win their fifth NBA championship.
Stockton missed the first 18 games of the 1997-98 season due to a knee injury, and in the following games he achieved full attendance, once again helping the Jazz back to the Finals with an average of 8.5 assists per game. The Jazz, who won 62-20 in the regular season, won their first game 88-85 in overtime. However, the tragedy was repeated again, and the Bulls won 6 games. In Game 6, Jordan steals Malone's final-minute jump shot to help the Bulls win their sixth title in eight years.
In the 1998–99 contraction season, the Jazz tied for a league best of 37 wins and 13 losses. Tied with them this time were the future champions, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Western Conference Semifinals Jazz lost to the Blazers. The following year, the Blazers again won the Jazz in the Western Conference semifinals.
The 200-01 Jazz began to decline, but Stockton still finished second on the assists list with 8.7 assists per game, behind the Suns' Jason Kidd's 9.8. The team will win more than half of the next two seasons and make it to the playoffs. Although he is over 40 years old, Stockton is still efficient.
The 2001–02 season was Stockton's 18th year with the Jazz, where he set a record for the longest time playing for the same team. He was the 10th player in NBA history to still play at a 40-year-old, and he delivered his 15,000th career assist that season.
Stockton announced his retirement after the 2002–03 season, and he played a total of 1504 games in his career, a number that is second only to Robert Parrish (1611) and Abdul-Jabbar (1560) in NBA history. He also ranks 28th on the all-time scoring list with 19,711 points.
In 2009, Stockton was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Source: NBA official website