Stockton was thrilling to watch. Would he shoot outside, midrange, penetrate or dish it off? You never knew. And always a defensive threat. A complete player. Also my all time fave point guard. Thanks!
Thank you, Sean for the video! It is amazing at over 30 minutes. A true tribute. When i was a child in the 1980s, i saw a Stockton highlight reel where he was double teamed, falling out of bounds on a foot at the baseline under the basket. Yet he looked calm, eyes scanning the court and then coolly threaded a pass between the two defenders to a team mate who converted. It was that very moment that i became a basketballer for life (stopped playing when i hit my early 40s due to work). Thank you, Mr. Stockton. Many would point to Magic, Bird or Jordan as their inspiration in the 80s for picking up the orange pill but you were mine.
the man is tough, pass first, also great defensive player. if you are a big man or any score first guy, you love him. nothing fancy just fundamentals and knowing the system. he and malone got 4 games on prime MJ in the finals... for that, he is always a champion in my book. respect
The best pure PG in history of the NBA. He is my starting PG just after Magic, but it really depends what team i am building to win. He was amazing, tough as nails!
Most analysist claim that Magic was the best PG to ever play the game. And most discredit Stockton as a player. But Magic wasn't a true PG, he was a P-Forward. To much is placed on Championships, and the Jazz never really had a complete team when John played there. His fundamentals were off the charts. He wasn't flashy, he didn't razzle dazzle, but he was highly effective.
I'll never forget a game I watched where he had to get around a Shaq pick. It was wild, it's like he ran into a wall, he fell, but he composed himself and STILL managed to get to his man and cover him before he could get the shot off, Stockton was a machine dude.
I'm sorry what? You must have confused the 90's with some other soft era. The 90's was hyper physical, that literally just at the tail end they decided to put the end to hand checking.
thanks for the great stories, really enjoy hearing the greats getting the love and respect from their toughest competitors. these stories are pure gold!
Growing up it was a running joke; "Stockton to Malone!" You knew it was coming at the end of games to swing it for Utah. I used to hate it. Now I've got nothing but respect for his game. In a word: consistant.
Webber: I'ma lay him out. Addelman: You sure about that? Addelman knew because those POR teams w/Drexler often had much tougher reg season battles w/ Stockton & Malone than with MJ & Pip.
John Stockton, Magic Johnson, and Steph Curry are the greatest point guards of all time. People talk about top five point guards of all-time and Stockton is a fixture on that list. He's the all-time leader in assists and steals and it isn't even close. John Stockton was GREAT.
And Isiah also, who was basically unstoppable, though more scoring oriented than John. I'd say Steph is less of a point guard and more of a shooting guard.
You do such great work, brother. Always love your videos. When I was a kid I would write my favorite players and ask for a photo and autograph. John was one of the few that sent me the real deal. A beautiful black and white photo of him posing with the ball in his uniform. It looked like a Hollywood headshot. Real autograph. Not many of them take the time to do that. He was the greatest pure point guard of all time. You are 100% correct.
@@jamesjensen5226 He's not better than Thomas who won back titles with the pistons. He's not better than J Kidd, who wasn't a great shooter, but was arguably as good if not better passer and more stout defender. He also helped the Mavs win a title against Bron's Heat, when he was on the other side of his prime. I wouldn't even put him above CP3, who's all around offensive repertoire was better. There's Magic, Curry and Thomas. No matter the order, those three are at the top.
@@shadysif6220who has all time ast and stl in career? He would have had at least 1 championship if they didn’t compete with the best team in NBA history at their height (Jordan’s Bulls). Don’t be silly John Stockton is at least in the conversation.
@@dwightcurrie8316what do you mean with "Bird"?!? But, there guys that were close. Just had 1 guy better, or luckier. Jordan hits that shot. Many don't talk about how good the other team was to have it down to the wire. Cavs, where Jordan hits over Ehlo. People dismiss Ehlo, but he was cranking shots and thry thought they won it with his last second shot. The one with Bird against Atlanta. Hardly ever mentioned how good Wilkins was.
Crazy Stockton fact: While messin' around on stats websites a while back I noticed that Stockton never had a single double-digit rebounding game in his regular season career. That's amazing to me. Even Muggsy Bogues had one. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge Stockton fan. I could watch him play forever. I just thought that stat was mind-boggling for a guy that played as many total games as he did.
Interesting hypothetical! The Lakers trading proven all-time PG Magic after their '88 championship for a young Stockton may seem one of the worst trades of all time, but in reality they are only losing three seasons of Magic and would be gaining another all-time PG through and past Shaq and Kobe's three-peat. I don't see him getting the Lakers past the Pistons when Magic didn't or, later, stopping the Bulls' first three-peat. The first half of the 90s, the Lakers team basically imploded and even if I think Stockton would at least get them into the playoffs, I don't think they could compete for rings. Regarding Shaq, Kobe and three-peats...in '98, MJ was going for the third ring of his second three-peat, and his greatest challengers were the Utah Jazz, led by Stockton and Malone. With Stockton instead leading Shaq, Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell with Robert Horry ready to step in for the big shots, I'm not sure MJ would get his sixth ring. In the locker room and in training, Stockton would perhaps have been just the veteran influence Shaq needed to keep improving his game, leading to less friction with Kobe and possibly resulting in more rings for the duo, even after Stockton retires in '03. Legacy-wise, if Stockton-Kobe-Shaq stopped MJ's second three-peat and won a couple of extra rings (say '98 and '03), the Kobe-Shaq duo would probably be significantly higher on the NBA Mount Rushmore, and Stockton would have the rings to go with his insane stats. Kobe would have proven himself the successor of MJ. Oh, and with two more rings, Horry would have nine, and would probably still be snubbed for the Hall of Fame. #HorryHoF On the other team, a prime Magic joining a young Karl Malone on the Utah Jazz in '88 with Mark Eaton still holding up the defense...it's possible the dynasty the Bulls would defeat in '91 would have been a Jazz dynasty, rather than the Bad Boy Pistons.
@@isaiahwinbrone Basically every all-time great from the 80's-90's that didn't win a title should have an asterisk next to their names denoting that they played during the Jordan Era.
I agree with you 100%. John Stockton seemed to be BLAH to watch and I avoided watching games that the Jazz were playing. That is until they started playing the Bulls in the finals. Then I was forced to watch them. That first series I really began to appreciate John for what he was bringing to the game. He was one of a kind…….Thanks for sharing this video with all of these clips. It was a long video and I loved every second! Now that I have matured I am glad when the rest of the nba is acknowledging such a great player. It’s awesome that John Stockton was able to post the incredible stats and set the records that he did. Thank you for the video. I’m looking forward to the next one.
Without a doubt, Stockton is the greatest all-around PG who happened to also have the greatest longevity of excellence. Even his greatest positional peers in Magic and Zeke didn't defend on his level, set screens, or shoot from range as efficiently as him. The biggest difference (aside from Magic's rebounding and Isiah's green light to shoot) was that they had legendary depth of hall-of-fame supporting cast while Stockton had only Mailman. Same can be said about one-way Curry and his super teams. The closest parallel to Stockton after him is definitely not one-way Nash, but rather, Chris Paul. Outside of greater athleticism and rebounding, Paul has been a cerebral two-way playmaker and efficient shooter, except that he flops and lacked the mental toughness to push through injuries deep in playoff runs. Add to it, Stockton has become a hero standing up for Bodily Autonomy and Medical Freedom.🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Thomas won back to back titles. While Stockton took back to back L's in the finals. There are numerous pgs of his era and after that are better than him.
@@shadysif6220 I think there are better scoring PGs, more athletic PGs, but he stayed loyal to one team that just happened to play the best player of all time and arguably some of the best teams of all time in the finals...is what it is. He is the best "pure" PG that's ever played.
As a child, you are not able to understand the true beauty and essence of basketball. As children, we are often attracted by the bright cover. But with age you understand who the real grandmaster and genius is. Stockton's game is a minimum of unnecessary movements and posturing, but a maximum of efficiency.
John Stockton was a force on both sides of the ball for most of his career with the Utah Jazz. He was named an All-Star on ten occasions, as well as being a multiple-time All-NBA selection, and All-Defense selection. However, despite his terrific abilities, he couldn't win a ring for the Jazz. It wasn't for a lack of trying, as the team got close to winning the Finals in 1997 and 1998, but they were unable to get the job done against the Chicago Bulls. It is unbelievable that such an amazing duo (Malone and Stockton) never won an NBA Championship.
Stockton was a-GREAT-player in my opinion,like you said John played both ends of the court,didn't take games or plays off.Just laced up his sneakers and balled out. Much respect and it was a joy to watch him play.
Great video, thanks. Stockton was the best! I lived near SLC in the 90's and it was a pleasure to watch almost every Jazz game all those years. You always knew Stockton and Malone would play every game of the season and give maximum effort, and it seemed like both would play forever...knew it would be a sad day when Stockton would eventually call it a career. Some folks don't realize Stockton could've easily averaged 20 points per game during his prime...and as a fan I wanted him to shoot the ball more, like 15+ attempts per game because he was so efficient. He was also very capable of making a lot more 3's but coach Jerry Sloan was really kind of against guys taking threes/outside shots, he wanted the ball to go inside/inside-out.
If you have your top five all time picks, and you have 4 guys that can finish and get your points… Stockton has to be the point guard. He’d keep all four guys happy as fuuuuuuuuudge.
Stockton is also my favourite... And he was so even before I saw him play!! I was born in 1981 in Spain, and never watched a single basketball game until 1995. But before that I had videogames... LakersVsCeltics[1989] . He was in it and became my favourite player ever since. 😅
I saw Stockton play vs San Antonio in Salt Lake with my Dad. We were in Utah to go skiing, and had some time and got tickets. Never seen anyone so prolific, who was so unassuming. He didn't do anything great that night. I don't really remember any plays or anything that stood out. 22 points, 18 assists, 5 steals and they won by 15 ... THAT is John Stockton!
As a Houston Rockets Fan back in the day ... John Stockton was one of the most HATED Players the Rockets ever faced ... and I mean that in the best way possible ... He was amazing! :-}
From what I remember, Stockton was made of steel and wasn't afraid to get aggressive but Malone was more of what I'd consider the 'dirty' player. Malone was questionably strong and would poke guys in the eye, get cheap shots in the back and really didn't care if someone got injured. Stockton was smaller than most on the court and had to go hard but generally wasn't that type of player. I still don't understand how he managed to play so hard and keep it up for as long as he did with only a couple of notable injuries across his entire career. He must laugh his ass off seeing what causes players to miss so many games today.
I'm from the Gonzaga area and my wife dated his brother. He doesn't know me but knows her. So my ties are closer than maybe he realizes. Yes I'm a Zag fan and of course his basketball style is truly unmatched just as his belief system which is truly dark. He instilled fear on the court but more than anything his world view is truly scary. I'm not a fan of this man.
If you pay attention to the critical baskets he made or game changing plays he made, or step up as a go-to guy while others are not having hot hands, you will really see what a GREAT GREAT player John Stockton was. He is a legit critical moment player just as good as Bird, Michael, and Magic.
I concur with Charles. John Stockton was the perfect point guard. As was Joe Dumars. Wonderful handling, vision, understanding of the game, tenacious defense, etc., etc.
He's my starting PG. Imagine him and Karl ripping apart the league today... it would be so fun to watch. And you know the Joker would love it. (Dude, you could transplant their old offense under Sloan and Joker will kill.)
Stockton is an all timer but if I had one criticism it's that he should have been more selfish with the ball occasionally because he was so good with it.
I'll agree, I watched most Jazz games throughout the 90's and always wanted Stockton to attempt 15+ shots per game...He could've easily been the #2 scorer and average 20ppg and I felt the Jazz needed that but he was just too damn unselfish 🍻
If I could put a team together of under appreciated stars and one that I think would have chemistry my starting 5 would be pg-Stockton sg-Mitch Richmond sf-Dominique Wilkins pf-Webber c-Ewing My bench would include - Price, Strickland, Spreewell, Cooper, English, Sheed, Zo.
He was super physical as you had to be at the time. A few people mentioned it. But he was extremely strong and very underrated athletically. Also know one mentioned his huge hands for his size. That doesn’t even touch his vision, toughness, skill, etc
I have Stockton 3 or 4 on my all time PG list behind only Magic and Isiah. I cant really evaluate Oscar all that well but he's really the only other guy I'd put in the conversation. Clyde and Curry are probably right under him.
It's hard to argue, I mean the fact is Stockton could get you 25 points on any given night, and he still leads the league in assists and steals by huge margins. And his efficiency was not to be questioned either so even though the guy wasn't a high flying flashy player, you put him on any team in his prime and he is going to lead them farther than they would go without him.
The best pure PG to ever play the game. People say he couldn’t shoot. Wrong. Shot over 50% his career and 37% from three. People say he couldn’t score. Wrong. He didn’t want to. He wanted to get others the ball and be the PG. But when needed to, he did. They he wasn’t clutch. So go back and watch Malone and Stockton. Stockton was more clutch than Malone. He wasn’t a flashy passer. Why be flashy when all that matters is it gets to the target? He has all time records that may never be touched. No disrespect to any of the other all time great PG’s, but pure PG, John tops them all. If I’m looking for someone to lead my team, be the coach on the floor, play both ways and not afraid to get a little physical, I’m taking John
I'd certainly agree he was the best Point Guard of all time. The greatest PG of all time is probably Magic, while the greatest basketball player of all time is a bit trickier. Greatest of all time, even outside of basketball? No.
@@mj23goat3 Russell had 11 rings, and Wilt would grandfather MJ in a 1v1, prime to prime. There's basically no path to MJ becoming the international icon he is without Magic and Bird reviving the league after the 70s dip. A bit trickier.
@@c99kfm Russell was never even The Guy on any of his championship teams. At best he was co-The Guy with Cousy, then Co-The Guy with Heinsohn, then Co-The Guy with Sam Jones. You understand that Russell was never the Celtics top scorer for ANY of his 11 rings, right? Jordan, meanwhile, was flat out, beyond the shadow a doubt, unequivocally, no two ways about it The Guy for ALL SIX of his rings. Both Jordan and Russell are all-time great defenders so that's a wash but when it comes to offense, MJ's the greatest scorer the game has ever seen and Bill averaged a middling 15 ppg. Those last few rings Russ won he was riding on the coattails of Sam and in Bill's very last championship he didn't even break 10 ppg. Smh. And unless MJ and Wilt's 1-on-1 contest was being played with 1960's rules allowing Chamberlain to camp out in the paint all day, he ain't grandfatherin' jack. He's gonna have to pick his poison just like everyone else that ever faced MJ did; either back off him and Michael's gonna kill him with the deadliest mid-range game in history, or try to body him at which point Money will blow by him and dunk on Wilt's overrated head...again and again.
He was famous when I was in elementary school and I knew he holds career assists all time record, but when I checked all time assists and steals lists on official NBA site, I was WTF.
it amazes me the hate for John stockton ... undersized , not a superior jumper , not super fast ,, just smart and tough with big hands ... dude defied all odds !!! proof and hope that knowing the game and court vison can be enough !!!!
People always ask Gilbert Arenas about John Stockton for a reason. (Look up any stat sheet from any game where Arenas played against John Stockton. Stockton was smoking him constantly.)
Actually His assist was't so simple. He reminds me rugby playmaker. Lebron, Harden and many present stars playing like football, rugby players so they assist lot, scoring even more but it isn't so much spectacular in my opinion. John was such a playmaker. It wasn't mighty spectacular but His play was complicated, probably difficult and effective.
Game six against the bulls. John passes it to Karl and Karl was mugged by Jordan, Pippen, and Rodman. Coach told John to pass it and the Bulls knew Jerry’s game. If Stockton would have shot it Jazz would have won that game.
The NBA today sucks. It's just not fun to watch anymore. There are some players that are fun to watch, but as a league, not so much. The old days were awesome. A I gave him the best compliment you can give a player. He could think the game through. He was ahead of other players mentally.
I wouldn't call John dirty. He just adjusted to the things that were allowed back then. Same can be said with James Harden exploiting the gather step for his drives and step backs. If the rule allowed that and refs were not paying attention to it, then why not shouldn't they use it? Sure it can be borderline irritating for some, but there were quite a lot of players who acted way more physical during that time
As good as the Karl Malone Stockton pick and roll was, could you even imagine having Nikola jokic and John Stockton on the same team both in their primes? That would be illegal.
![โอ้เธอช่าง... - บี้เดอะสกา ft. ต๋อง เทวัญ (Prod. by ป๋าเพชร) [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/zbWhiLFmVL0/mqdefault.jpg)
Stockton was thrilling to watch. Would he shoot outside, midrange, penetrate or dish it off? You never knew. And always a defensive threat. A complete player. Also my all time fave point guard. Thanks!
wish i could like this more than once. John’s my guy. This what basketball is about.
Nobody knew he was going to be that good. Nobody.
Stock was every big man's 1st choice of pg.
Both his era and before.
That says a lot.
Most fundamentally sound guard ever to play the game. Thank you for another excellent video
Thank you, Sean for the video! It is amazing at over 30 minutes. A true tribute.
When i was a child in the 1980s, i saw a Stockton highlight reel where he was double teamed, falling out of bounds on a foot at the baseline under the basket.
Yet he looked calm, eyes scanning the court and then coolly threaded a pass between the two defenders to a team mate who converted.
It was that very moment that i became a basketballer for life (stopped playing when i hit my early 40s due to work).
Thank you, Mr. Stockton. Many would point to Magic, Bird or Jordan as their inspiration in the 80s for picking up the orange pill but you were mine.
the man is tough, pass first, also great defensive player. if you are a big man or any score first guy, you love him.
nothing fancy just fundamentals and knowing the system.
he and malone got 4 games on prime MJ in the finals... for that, he is always a champion in my book. respect
That wasn't prime M.J. he was in his mid 30's and retired after beating in them in back to back seasons.
No "Easy Feat", that. Stockton was All Hard Work and Dedication to the game(His Game)
@@shadysif6220 Still, it wasn't exactly an Easy Thing To Do, Credit Where It's Due
The best pure PG in history of the NBA. He is my starting PG just after Magic, but it really depends what team i am building to win. He was amazing, tough as nails!
I am drafting him over Magic. Because I would already have MJ and Kobe at the 2, so no one else would get the ball.
Most analysist claim that Magic was the best PG to ever play the game. And most discredit Stockton as a player. But Magic wasn't a true PG, he was a P-Forward. To much is placed on Championships, and the Jazz never really had a complete team when John played there. His fundamentals were off the charts. He wasn't flashy, he didn't razzle dazzle, but he was highly effective.
I'll never forget a game I watched where he had to get around a Shaq pick. It was wild, it's like he ran into a wall, he fell, but he composed himself and STILL managed to get to his man and cover him before he could get the shot off, Stockton was a machine dude.
With the eye test you can easily see if he wanted to be a 3pt specialist, in Today's game he would be one of the greatest of all time 3pt shooters.
Stockton was not dirty. He just played old school basketball, not the watered down pansy game the NBA became in the 90s and onward.
*I miss old school nba basketball so much*
Yes SIRRAA....
More like 2010's and beyond. The 90's was brutal.
He wasn’t dirty. He just wasn’t soft.
I'm sorry what? You must have confused the 90's with some other soft era. The 90's was hyper physical, that literally just at the tail end they decided to put the end to hand checking.
thanks for the great stories, really enjoy hearing the greats getting the love and respect from their toughest competitors. these stories are pure gold!
Love these longer vids man❤ I would love to see this for Dikembe at some point
Growing up it was a running joke; "Stockton to Malone!" You knew it was coming at the end of games to swing it for Utah. I used to hate it. Now I've got nothing but respect for his game. In a word: consistant.
Webber: I'ma lay him out.
Addelman: You sure about that?
Addelman knew because those POR teams w/Drexler often had much tougher reg season battles w/ Stockton & Malone than with MJ & Pip.
I played playmaker position in Croatia and Stockton was my favorite and basketball role model
John Stockton, Magic Johnson, and Steph Curry are the greatest point guards of all time. People talk about top five point guards of all-time and Stockton is a fixture on that list. He's the all-time leader in assists and steals and it isn't even close. John Stockton was GREAT.
Gotta out Zeke there too even though he's a hater
@@theodorebelmont7922 No doubt.
Curry is not a true point guard
He's better than Stockton regardless of position.
And Isiah also, who was basically unstoppable, though more scoring oriented than John. I'd say Steph is less of a point guard and more of a shooting guard.
God bless this channel, and you, sir, Sean David! Your content keeps the love of the game alive!!!!
You do such great work, brother. Always love your videos. When I was a kid I would write my favorite players and ask for a photo and autograph. John was one of the few that sent me the real deal. A beautiful black and white photo of him posing with the ball in his uniform. It looked like a Hollywood headshot. Real autograph. Not many of them take the time to do that. He was the greatest pure point guard of all time. You are 100% correct.
Stockton doesn't care where you place him in the all time greatest list truly an unselfish player and person
It's one of many reasons why he's #1
Stockton isn't even close to being the top pg.
@shadysif6220 that's very funny well genius who's he not better than
@@jamesjensen5226
He's not better than Thomas who won back titles with the pistons. He's not better than J Kidd, who wasn't a great shooter, but was arguably as good if not better passer and more stout defender. He also helped the Mavs win a title against Bron's Heat, when he was on the other side of his prime. I wouldn't even put him above CP3, who's all around offensive repertoire was better. There's Magic, Curry and Thomas. No matter the order, those three are at the top.
@@shadysif6220who has all time ast and stl in career? He would have had at least 1 championship if they didn’t compete with the best team in NBA history at their height (Jordan’s Bulls). Don’t be silly John Stockton is at least in the conversation.
Sucks that he never won a championship
Neither did Bird, Malone and many others. Some "Experts" give being on a Championship Team Too Much Weight, IMO
@@dwightcurrie8316what do you mean with "Bird"?!?
But, there guys that were close.
Just had 1 guy better, or luckier.
Jordan hits that shot.
Many don't talk about how good the other team was to have it down to the wire.
Cavs, where Jordan hits over Ehlo. People dismiss Ehlo, but he was cranking shots and thry thought they won it with his last second shot.
The one with Bird against Atlanta. Hardly ever mentioned how good Wilkins was.
@bakerfresh ya that guy is a bot 🐥✨🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 Broke his fibula and kept playing 🍖 Love to see him with any 2000s star!!!
Amazing job 😎 Stockton one of the all time best and my favorites
Crazy Stockton fact: While messin' around on stats websites a while back I noticed that Stockton never had a single double-digit rebounding game in his regular season career. That's amazing to me. Even Muggsy Bogues had one.
Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge Stockton fan. I could watch him play forever. I just thought that stat was mind-boggling for a guy that played as many total games as he did.
He was busy with those 20+ assists! 🫶
Because Karl Malone was a rebound master. Look it up. He didn’t need to rebound
@@CaptWuppazz ... Yeah he played in an era where people did their jobs... and his wasn't to get rebounds... that said it's still a crazy stat
He was guarding guards and then immediately run the fastbreak. There was no point for him to lure for rebounds
He never needed to rebound. He always had Malone, Eaton, Bailey, Ostertag, Felton Spencer, etc.
Magic is a unicorn so he's my #1 PG. Still, if Stockton were on the Lakers and Magic on the Jazz, who would have won more titles?
Stockton,imagine him setting up Kareem,Worthy,Scott,Coop,etc,etc,..so much talent on that Laker team and they had a-GREAT-coach in Pat Riley.
Interesting hypothetical! The Lakers trading proven all-time PG Magic after their '88 championship for a young Stockton may seem one of the worst trades of all time, but in reality they are only losing three seasons of Magic and would be gaining another all-time PG through and past Shaq and Kobe's three-peat.
I don't see him getting the Lakers past the Pistons when Magic didn't or, later, stopping the Bulls' first three-peat. The first half of the 90s, the Lakers team basically imploded and even if I think Stockton would at least get them into the playoffs, I don't think they could compete for rings.
Regarding Shaq, Kobe and three-peats...in '98, MJ was going for the third ring of his second three-peat, and his greatest challengers were the Utah Jazz, led by Stockton and Malone. With Stockton instead leading Shaq, Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell with Robert Horry ready to step in for the big shots, I'm not sure MJ would get his sixth ring.
In the locker room and in training, Stockton would perhaps have been just the veteran influence Shaq needed to keep improving his game, leading to less friction with Kobe and possibly resulting in more rings for the duo, even after Stockton retires in '03.
Legacy-wise, if Stockton-Kobe-Shaq stopped MJ's second three-peat and won a couple of extra rings (say '98 and '03), the Kobe-Shaq duo would probably be significantly higher on the NBA Mount Rushmore, and Stockton would have the rings to go with his insane stats. Kobe would have proven himself the successor of MJ.
Oh, and with two more rings, Horry would have nine, and would probably still be snubbed for the Hall of Fame. #HorryHoF
On the other team, a prime Magic joining a young Karl Malone on the Utah Jazz in '88 with Mark Eaton still holding up the defense...it's possible the dynasty the Bulls would defeat in '91 would have been a Jazz dynasty, rather than the Bad Boy Pistons.
Stockton would be my #1 PG pick if starting a team.
That was fun. Thank you for that video.
GOAT PG
*He never won an NBA title*
@@isaiahwinbrone Malone choked at least 2 times in playoffs.
AGREED.Jason Kidd was-GREAT-also,especially when he developed a consistent out side and 3 pt shot.Was a-BEAST-on the defensive end too.
@@isaiahwinbrone Basically every all-time great from the 80's-90's that didn't win a title should have an asterisk next to their names denoting that they played during the Jordan Era.
@@mj23goat3 Magic, Bird, and Jordan were a big reason many other greats didn't get a trophy for nearly 2 decades!
I agree with you 100%. John Stockton seemed to be BLAH to watch and I avoided watching games that the Jazz were playing. That is until they started playing the Bulls in the finals. Then I was forced to watch them. That first series I really began to appreciate John for what he was bringing to the game. He was one of a kind…….Thanks for sharing this video with all of these clips. It was a long video and I loved every second! Now that I have matured I am glad when the rest of the nba is acknowledging such a great player. It’s awesome that John Stockton was able to post the incredible stats and set the records that he did. Thank you for the video. I’m looking forward to the next one.
Without a doubt, Stockton is the greatest all-around PG who happened to also have the greatest longevity of excellence. Even his greatest positional peers in Magic and Zeke didn't defend on his level, set screens, or shoot from range as efficiently as him.
The biggest difference (aside from Magic's rebounding and Isiah's green light to shoot) was that they had legendary depth of hall-of-fame supporting cast while Stockton had only Mailman. Same can be said about one-way Curry and his super teams.
The closest parallel to Stockton after him is definitely not one-way Nash, but rather, Chris Paul. Outside of greater athleticism and rebounding, Paul has been a cerebral two-way playmaker and efficient shooter, except that he flops and lacked the mental toughness to push through injuries deep in playoff runs.
Add to it, Stockton has become a hero standing up for Bodily Autonomy and Medical Freedom.🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Stockton/Jordan/Bird/Duncan/Olajuwon
Those are the top 5 players by position in league history
Now, that's a great pick!
Thomas won back to back titles. While Stockton took back to back L's in the finals. There are numerous pgs of his era and after that are better than him.
@@shadysif6220 I think there are better scoring PGs, more athletic PGs, but he stayed loyal to one team that just happened to play the best player of all time and arguably some of the best teams of all time in the finals...is what it is. He is the best "pure" PG that's ever played.
Not having Lebron is insane.
As a child, you are not able to understand the true beauty and essence of basketball. As children, we are often attracted by the bright cover. But with age you understand who the real grandmaster and genius is. Stockton's game is a minimum of unnecessary movements and posturing, but a maximum of efficiency.
John Stockton was a force on both sides of the ball for most of his career with the Utah Jazz.
He was named an All-Star on ten occasions, as well as being a multiple-time All-NBA selection, and All-Defense selection.
However, despite his terrific abilities, he couldn't win a ring for the Jazz.
It wasn't for a lack of trying, as the team got close to winning the Finals in 1997 and 1998, but they were unable to get the job done against the Chicago Bulls.
It is unbelievable that such an amazing duo (Malone and Stockton) never won an NBA Championship.
Stockton was a-GREAT-player in my opinion,like you said John played both ends of the court,didn't take games or plays off.Just laced up his sneakers and balled out. Much respect and it was a joy to watch him play.
Thank you for this
Great video, thanks. Stockton was the best! I lived near SLC in the 90's and it was a pleasure to watch almost every Jazz game all those years. You always knew Stockton and Malone would play every game of the season and give maximum effort, and it seemed like both would play forever...knew it would be a sad day when Stockton would eventually call it a career. Some folks don't realize Stockton could've easily averaged 20 points per game during his prime...and as a fan I wanted him to shoot the ball more, like 15+ attempts per game because he was so efficient. He was also very capable of making a lot more 3's but coach Jerry Sloan was really kind of against guys taking threes/outside shots, he wanted the ball to go inside/inside-out.
I had to give you a sub man. Big love to you for putting out real basketball content from days gone by.
Great video!
If you have your top five all time picks, and you have 4 guys that can finish and get your points… Stockton has to be the point guard. He’d keep all four guys happy as fuuuuuuuuudge.
That’s such high praise from Wilt !
Stockton is also my favourite... And he was so even before I saw him play!!
I was born in 1981 in Spain, and never watched a single basketball game until 1995.
But before that I had videogames... LakersVsCeltics[1989] .
He was in it and became my favourite player ever since. 😅
What is the song in the intro? Gets me amped everytime. Naasty horn break
90's jerseys... bring those back
I saw Stockton play vs San Antonio in Salt Lake with my Dad. We were in Utah to go skiing, and had some time and got tickets.
Never seen anyone so prolific, who was so unassuming. He didn't do anything great that night. I don't really remember any plays or anything that stood out.
22 points, 18 assists, 5 steals and they won by 15 ... THAT is John Stockton!
John Stockton almost made that 3 against the Bulls in 98 to send the game to game 7! That was one scary dude.
As a Houston Rockets Fan back in the day ... John Stockton was one of the most HATED Players the Rockets ever faced ... and I mean that in the best way possible ... He was amazing! :-}
From what I remember, Stockton was made of steel and wasn't afraid to get aggressive but Malone was more of what I'd consider the 'dirty' player. Malone was questionably strong and would poke guys in the eye, get cheap shots in the back and really didn't care if someone got injured. Stockton was smaller than most on the court and had to go hard but generally wasn't that type of player. I still don't understand how he managed to play so hard and keep it up for as long as he did with only a couple of notable injuries across his entire career. He must laugh his ass off seeing what causes players to miss so many games today.
Stockton isn't only my favorite PG of all time, he is probably my favorite player.
He was always my favorite point guard. When I was playing basketball in school, I always tried to emulate Stock!
Nice video. I’ll always separate and celebrate the work of the athlete over the character of the athlete. Same for artists.
The other players show up in their Slick, Sleek Rides, and her comes Stockton in his Mini Van. Had to love that about him. He was "all bidness"
I'm from the Gonzaga area and my wife dated his brother. He doesn't know me but knows her. So my ties are closer than maybe he realizes. Yes I'm a Zag fan and of course his basketball style is truly unmatched just as his belief system which is truly dark. He instilled fear on the court but more than anything his world view is truly scary. I'm not a fan of this man.
I’m glad Stockton is getting his most deserved recognition now. His game did all his talking for him
If you pay attention to the critical baskets he made or game changing plays he made, or step up as a go-to guy while others are not having hot hands, you will really see what a GREAT GREAT player John Stockton was. He is a legit critical moment player just as good as Bird, Michael, and Magic.
I'm amazed by the margin by which he holds those records. #1 in assists AND steals by a wide margin. Wow.
I concur with Charles. John Stockton was the perfect point guard. As was Joe Dumars. Wonderful handling, vision, understanding of the game, tenacious defense, etc., etc.
John Stockton, Jason Kidd and Jerry West were true point guards, who were ball handling wizards and they dribbled with their hands on top of the ball.
He's my starting PG.
Imagine him and Karl ripping apart the league today... it would be so fun to watch.
And you know the Joker would love it.
(Dude, you could transplant their old offense under Sloan and Joker will kill.)
Stockton is an all timer but if I had one criticism it's that he should have been more selfish with the ball occasionally because he was so good with it.
I'll agree, I watched most Jazz games throughout the 90's and always wanted Stockton to attempt 15+ shots per game...He could've easily been the #2 scorer and average 20ppg and I felt the Jazz needed that but he was just too damn unselfish 🍻
If I could put a team together of under appreciated stars and one that I think would have chemistry my starting 5 would be
pg-Stockton
sg-Mitch Richmond
sf-Dominique Wilkins
pf-Webber
c-Ewing
My bench would include - Price, Strickland, Spreewell, Cooper, English, Sheed, Zo.
John Stockton, my favourite point guard. #12 Utah.
Love the more intelligent players. No bs, just 3 steps ahead. There's been many in my lifetime.
Your videos always leave a mark in my heart and mind. Thank you for your creativity and passion!🔳🔶🫶
He was super physical as you had to be at the time. A few people mentioned it. But he was extremely strong and very underrated athletically. Also know one mentioned his huge hands for his size. That doesn’t even touch his vision, toughness, skill, etc
My favourite Player of all time
He was typical point guard so i take Him to my all time best 5. I was wondering about Thomas and Iverson but for my classic 5 i did choose Stockton.
I have Stockton 3 or 4 on my all time PG list behind only Magic and Isiah. I cant really evaluate Oscar all that well but he's really the only other guy I'd put in the conversation. Clyde and Curry are probably right under him.
I model my 2K pg on Stockton. Dude was on another level.
He has the most perfect in the pocket one-hander pass I've ever seen
It's hard to argue, I mean the fact is Stockton could get you 25 points on any given night, and he still leads the league in assists and steals by huge margins. And his efficiency was not to be questioned either so even though the guy wasn't a high flying flashy player, you put him on any team in his prime and he is going to lead them farther than they would go without him.
You can have Stockton but I will take Zeek.
Zeke.
One of the (mentally & physically) toughest players of all time.
John Stockton was the greatest PG to ever play the game of basketball.
My favorite
"leave that man alone" category.
The best pure PG to ever play the game. People say he couldn’t shoot. Wrong. Shot over 50% his career and 37% from three. People say he couldn’t score. Wrong. He didn’t want to. He wanted to get others the ball and be the PG. But when needed to, he did. They he wasn’t clutch. So go back and watch Malone and Stockton. Stockton was more clutch than Malone. He wasn’t a flashy passer. Why be flashy when all that matters is it gets to the target? He has all time records that may never be touched. No disrespect to any of the other all time great PG’s, but pure PG, John tops them all. If I’m looking for someone to lead my team, be the coach on the floor, play both ways and not afraid to get a little physical, I’m taking John
John Stockton was the purest point guard ever
Hey CC! Here is your example. Go girl.
John Stockton was the greatest of all time. Period.
I'd certainly agree he was the best Point Guard of all time. The greatest PG of all time is probably Magic, while the greatest basketball player of all time is a bit trickier.
Greatest of all time, even outside of basketball? No.
@@c99kfm Stockton is by far the best pg ever, but if I had to pick one, I'd pick Magic; he could help your team in so many different ways.
@@c99kfm "...while the greatest basketball player of all time is a bit trickier."
Nope. It's MJ...by a LOT.
@@mj23goat3 Russell had 11 rings, and Wilt would grandfather MJ in a 1v1, prime to prime. There's basically no path to MJ becoming the international icon he is without Magic and Bird reviving the league after the 70s dip. A bit trickier.
@@c99kfm Russell was never even The Guy on any of his championship teams. At best he was co-The Guy with Cousy, then Co-The Guy with Heinsohn, then Co-The Guy with Sam Jones. You understand that Russell was never the Celtics top scorer for ANY of his 11 rings, right?
Jordan, meanwhile, was flat out, beyond the shadow a doubt, unequivocally, no two ways about it The Guy for ALL SIX of his rings.
Both Jordan and Russell are all-time great defenders so that's a wash but when it comes to offense, MJ's the greatest scorer the game has ever seen and Bill averaged a middling 15 ppg. Those last few rings Russ won he was riding on the coattails of Sam and in Bill's very last championship he didn't even break 10 ppg. Smh.
And unless MJ and Wilt's 1-on-1 contest was being played with 1960's rules allowing Chamberlain to camp out in the paint all day, he ain't grandfatherin' jack. He's gonna have to pick his poison just like everyone else that ever faced MJ did; either back off him and Michael's gonna kill him with the deadliest mid-range game in history, or try to body him at which point Money will blow by him and dunk on Wilt's overrated head...again and again.
He was famous when I was in elementary school and I knew he holds career assists all time record, but when I checked all time assists and steals lists on official NBA site, I was WTF.
Stockton and Malone were the only NBA All-Star Game MVP duo ever.
Stockton is my all time favorite PG. As great as Magic was, I wonder how many titles he would have won if he didn’t get drafted by the Lakers.
it amazes me the hate for John stockton ... undersized , not a superior jumper , not super fast ,, just smart and tough with big hands ... dude defied all odds !!! proof and hope that knowing the game and court vison can be enough !!!!
John Stockon's assist and steals records are so high, it's likely they will never be touched.
Best 3 point guards Johnson, Stockton and Thomas.
People always ask Gilbert Arenas about John Stockton for a reason. (Look up any stat sheet from any game where Arenas played against John Stockton. Stockton was smoking him constantly.)
Stockton was a cold dude but I'm a Gary Payton guy
Basketball was great when John was playing!
My backcourt two players, John Stockton and The Big O backing him up.
Got my shoulder in the neck area to make it a lil dirty lol c Webb classic
Robbed of his best years. Still a legend in basketball….🏀🏀👊🏾👊🏾🔥🔥🔥
I put Jason Kidd on the same level (below Stock..but not far).....in reaction to his interview!!!
Messi is also very, very one leg player but He is genius in keeping ball with Himself.
Actually His assist was't so simple. He reminds me rugby playmaker. Lebron, Harden and many present stars playing like football, rugby players so they assist lot, scoring even more but it isn't so much spectacular in my opinion. John was such a playmaker. It wasn't mighty spectacular but His play was complicated, probably difficult and effective.
Game six against the bulls. John passes it to Karl and Karl was mugged by Jordan, Pippen, and Rodman. Coach told John to pass it and the Bulls knew Jerry’s game. If Stockton would have shot it Jazz would have won that game.
24:20 Kenny Smith "I dont see that" 💪
❤ 💯
Andre Miller didn’t learn enough from the boys
The NBA today sucks. It's just not fun to watch anymore. There are some players that are fun to watch, but as a league, not so much. The old days were awesome. A I gave him the best compliment you can give a player. He could think the game through. He was ahead of other players mentally.
I wouldn't call John dirty. He just adjusted to the things that were allowed back then. Same can be said with James Harden exploiting the gather step for his drives and step backs. If the rule allowed that and refs were not paying attention to it, then why not shouldn't they use it? Sure it can be borderline irritating for some, but there were quite a lot of players who acted way more physical during that time
John Stockton was totally athletic.
What if John became a NBA coach?...probably would have more potential than 'some' of these retired NBA players who are going to be coaches now 🤔
As good as the Karl Malone Stockton pick and roll was, could you even imagine having Nikola jokic and John Stockton on the same team both in their primes? That would be illegal.