~Stockton, John (1962- ),

basketball player, was born in Spokane, Washington. John

played point guard for his high school basketball team, and he
won a scholarship to Gonzaga University in Spokane. There,
he led the West Coast Athletic Conference in scoring, steals,
and assists in his senior year. In the 1984 National Basketball
Association (NBA) draft, Stockton was picked in the first round
by the Utah Jazz. As Utah's point guard, he set an NBA
season record in 1987-1988 with 1128 assists. He increased that
record to 1164 in the 1990-1991 season. One of the greatest
passers in NBA history, John once recorded 27 assists in a
single game. The 1991-1992 season was his fifth straight year to
lead the league in assists. At the end of
that season, he ranked fourth in career
assists. Many times John scored 20
points and made 20 assists in the same
game. He also consistently finished
among the league leaders in steals.
At the 1992 Olympics, John Stockton
played with the U.S. Dream Team,
which captured the gold medal in
1r~ if, Barcelona, Spain.
"When they choose up teams,
they don't take the littlest guy in
the gym," said John Stockton, think-
ing back about his own experiences
as a 5-foot, 5-inch ninth grader. As
all smaller kids know, the players
who pick the sides usually pick the
biggest kids first. That meant John
was often picked last or not at all.
"So I'd dribble off on the side-
lines, waiting to play," he recalled.
"When I did get to play, I saw right
away the way to get back into the
game was to pass it to the big guys
all the time."
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In those early pickup games,
the big guys loved getting a pass
from little John, so they'd keep him
in the game. They thought they
were great, but it was the great
passes from John that made them
look good. All through high school
and college, John Stockton kept
passing the ball to the big guys.
Much to the surprise of many of
those guys, little John kept passing
the ball right into the National Bas-
ketball Association (NBA).
John Houston Stockton was
born on March 26, 1962, in Spo-
kane, Washington. John and his
older brother lived with their par-
ents in a close-knit Irish-Catholic
neighborhood on the city's north
side. John's father was part owner
of a small tavern that served food
and drinks. As a boy, John would
often stop there on his way home
from school to see his dad or watch
a game of pool.
Year after year, John Stockton of the
Utah Jazz led the NBA in assists.
During the 1990-1991 season, he set
the record for assists in one season
with 1164.
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Stockton, John
John went to the Catholic
grade school a few blocks from his
house and not far from the tavern.
One spring day, his father heard
from a customer that John was run-
ning the mile in a track meet down
at the school. Although he hadn't
heard anything about it before, he
decided to walk down the street to
see what his son could do.
-1
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Stockton throws up a shot over the
Lakers' Magic Johnson.
As the dad sat in the stands,
little John broke the grade-school
city record by 15 seconds in the
preliminary race. Then, in the final,
he blew away the competition, break-
ing the record for the mile run by
35 seconds. Tears came to the
man's eyes as he watched his son
win the race.
"He's coming down the stretch,
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and I'm sitting there bawling in the
stands," remembered John's father.
"That's the only time John ever sur-
prised me. He's never surprised me
.
" SInce.
Although John did not have
great size, everyone could see he
had natural ability and the desire to
win. His basketball coach in grade
school watched many times as John
gave everything he had during a
game. Thinking of the Stockton boy,
the coach commented, "He'd run
face first into this brick wall at full
speed if he had to to get a victory."
As a ninth grader at Gonzaga
Prep, the local Catholic high school,
John weighed only 90 pounds. By
the time he was a senior, he was
a thin 6-footer who still looked like
a kid. During his years playing high
school ball, he had developed into
a good point guard, the player who
handles the ball and calls the plays.
Still, the major colleges thought
John was too small to play. So he
accepted a scholarship from Gon-
zaga University, a few blocks from
home.
At Gonzaga, John improved
steadily. He concentrated on his
passing, but he also learned how to
score. In his senior season, 1983-
1984, he led his conference in scor-
ing average (20.9 per game), assists,
and steals.
John almost made the 1984
U.S. Olympic team. He played so
well at the tryouts that NBA scouts
took notice. In the 1984 NBA draft,
Stockton was picked in the first
round by the Utah Jazz.
He played part-time with the
Jazz for three seasons, as he
learned the pro game and improved
his skills. His coach made John the
starting point guard at the begin-
ning of the 1987-1988 season, and
he quickly became one of the
NBA's best. That season, he made
a record 1128 assists. Only two
other players had ever made more
than 1000 assists in a season.
Stockton's passing amazed
both his teammates and his oppo-
nents. He demonstrated pinpoint
accuracy no matter what the situa-
tion-a lob pass for a dunk, a short
bounce pass to the inside, or a
sharply angled pass on a fast break.
He could be dribbling the ball look-
ing one way and then with a snap
of the wrist send the ball the other
way to an open teammate. Stock-
ton's favorite target was Karl
Malone, the NBA's bruising "Mail-
"
man.
Malone came to understand
that his own success and the team's
improving record owed much to the
team leader, Stockton. "He's our
quarterback," said Malone. "With
him we go. Without him we don't.
It's as simple as that."
As the team leader, John was
in the classic mold of Bob Cousy,
the old Celtic great. Like Cousy,
Stockton was fairly small, at 6 feet,
1 inch, and 175 pounds. Also like
Cousy, John had large hands, which
helped him in his dribbling and
passmg.
Stockton came to excel in
other parts of the game, as well.
He led the NBA in steals in 1988-
1989, and he always played excel-
lent defense. He also grew into a
solid NBA scorer, averaging about
17 points a game. His percentage
at the three-point range was often
one of the best in the league, and
he hit over 80 per cent of his free
throws.
Stockton's team leadership and
great passing helped make the Jazz
one of the best teams in the NBA.
In 1990-1991, he raised the league
record to 1164 assists in a season.
The following season was his fifth
straight as the league leader in as-
sists-and he again led the NBA in
steals. Then, in 1992, he won a gold
medal with the Dream Team at the'
Barcelona, Spain, Olympic Games.
Back home in Spokane, many
remembered John as a short, skinny
youngster, and they marveled at his
achievements in basketball. "If you'
told me he'd be a chess champion,
I wouldn't have argued," said his
grade school coach. But that wasn't
too far from the secret of John
Stockton's success. Said Karl
Malone, "He's the smartest player
I've ever known."
Stockton drives to the hoop against
one of his toughest rivals-Kevin
Johnson of the Phoenix Suns.
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