Congratulation to John Stockton and Jerry Sloan! On Monday it became official, both Stockton and Sloan are headed to the Hall of Fame as members of the class of 2009.
They enter the basketball Hall of Fame with Michael Jordan, David Robinson and Rutgers women’s coach C. Vivian Stringer in what may be the greatest Hall of Fame class ever.
Obviously, there was never any doubt that John Stockton was a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Jerry Sloan’s status was a bit more undecided but it was no surprise to learn of his upcoming induction. Stockton was in Detroit during the NCAA championship game when the official announcement was made. Jerry Sloan did not make the trip to Detroit as he continues to mourn the death of his brother and prepares the Jazz for their final five games.
As a John Stockton fan, I have witnessed many of his greatest moments in person including when he broke Magic Johnson’s assist record, when he broke the steals record, when his number was retired, game four of the 1997 NBA Finals against the Bulls (Stockton’s long pass to Malone), many games winners, etc. I still get chills every time I see his game-winner against the Houston Rockets, probably the greatest single moment in Utah Jazz history.
Of course, the NBA championship eluded John Stockton, Jerry Sloan and the Utah Jazz. They are one of a handful of teams in the modern era that competed at a championship level for at least five straight season without winning the title:
Utah Jazz (1991-2003)
Playing during the Chicago Bulls era of titles is not exactly an excuse. Just ask the Houston Rockets. Most teams on this list do not have nearly as long a window, as the key group of players were not with the team for as long as in Utah’s case. From 1984 to 2003, the Jazz made the playoffs each season, but reached the Finals just twice. Some may argue that the true window to win a title began when Jerry Sloan took over as head coach during the 1988-89 season, and while Karl Malone and John Stockton had been paired up since the 1985-86 season, the Jazz did not make it to the Western Conference Finals until 1992. That’s when they became title contenders. As we all know, Stockton’s career consisted of dishing out over 15,800 assists, which is over 5,000 assists more than Mark Jackson, who is 2nd on the NBA’s all-time assists list. Karl Malone, meanwhile, went on to finish 2nd on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. To have that kind of talent for so long and not come away with a title is almost unimaginable, if not crushing to a franchise. The window came to an abrupt close in 2003, when Stockton retired and Malone went to the Lakers in a last-ditch effort to win a title. The ultimate kicker? Between 1991 and 2003, Utah’s 632 wins were the most in the NBA.
I disagree that the Jazz run began in 1991, it really began during the 1988 NBA Playoffs when the Jazz took Magic Johnson and the Lakers to a seventh game in the Western Conference Semi-Finals. That series put Stockton, Malone and the Jazz on the map.
Once again, congratulations to John Stockton and Jerry Sloan!
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