50 Greatest NBA Players Without A Championship (Updated Through 2015-16)
By Phil Watson
3. John Stockton
Utah Jazz 1984-2003
Long before Gonzaga became known as one of the premier mid-major programs, it produced the 16th overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft, a point guard named John Stockton.
Great pick by the Utah Jazz. Stockton was an 11-time All-NBA selection, named to five All-Defensive teams and 10 All-Star games. He also finished in the top 10 in the MVP voting five times, topped by a seventh-place finish in 1988-89.
Stockton led the NBA in assists nine seasons in a row, 1987-88 through 1995-96, and also led the league in steals in 1988-89 and 1991-92.
Utah took out the Houston Rockets in a first-round Game 5 before losing to the Denver Nuggets in five games in the second round in 1985, but lost in the first round to the Dallas Mavericks in 1986 and in a first-round Game 5 to the Golden State Warriors in 1987.
The full-time starter at point guard for the first time in 1987-88, Stockton helped the Jazz to a first-round win over the Portland Trail Blazers before they lost a Game 7 to the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in the second round.
In 1989, Utah was shockingly swept by the Warriors in the first round and in 1990 went down in a first-round Game 5 to the Phoenix Suns.
The Jazz beat Phoenix before losing to Portland in five games in the second round in 1991. A breakthrough finally happened in 1992—Utah survived Game 5 against the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round and beat the Seattle SuperSonics in five games in the second round before a six-game loss to the Trail Blazers in the Western Conference Finals.
In 1993, Seattle beat the Jazz in a first-round Game 5. The following year, Utah beat the San Antonio Spurs in the first round and took out the Nuggets in a second-round Game 7 before losing in five games to the eventual champion Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Finals.
Defending champion Houston eliminated the Jazz in Game 5 of the first round in 1995. In 1996, the Jazz beat Portland in a Game 5 in the first round, knocked out the San Antonio Spurs in six games in the second round and lost a Game 7 to Seattle in the Western Conference Finals.
The door finally got knocked down in 1997. Utah swept the Clippers and beat the Lakers in five games in the second round, then took down the Rockets in six games in the Western Conference Finals. But the defending champion Chicago Bulls took the NBA Finals in six games.
In 1998, the Jazz took a first-round Game 5 from Houston, wiped out San Antonio in five games in the second round and swept the L.A. Lakers in the Western Conference Finals before another six-game defeat at the hands of the two-time defending champions from Chicago in the NBA Finals.
Utah survived a Game 5 against the Sacramento Kings in 1999 before losing in six games to the Trail Blazers in the second round. It was a similar pattern in 2000—the Jazz won a Game 5 against Seattle before losing in five games to Portland.
Utah lost a Game 5 to the Mavericks in the first round in 2001 and lost to the Kings in 2002 and 2003.
Stockton retired in May 2003 as the NBA’s all-time leader in assists and steals. He is also third all-time in games played. His average of 10.5 assists per game is second all-time and his average of 2.2 steals per game is ninth.
Stockton was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009.
The final tally on Stockton’s playoff career:
NBA Finals: 0-2
Conference Finals: 2-3
Conference Semifinals: 5-5
First Round: 10-9
Next: 2. Stuck In Second Round