John Stockton’s Triumphant Return To Television Commercials

Screen grab of ‘Don Stockton’

The State Farm Insurance assists campaign, that feature Chris Paul with a fictional salesman twin, Cliff Paul, went to a new level on Christmas day during the traditional NBA marathon of games with NBA Hall of Famer and former Utah Jazz point guard John Stockton joining the commercial fray with a triumphant return to television.

There are two brilliant ads, a 30 second spot and a 60 second spot, both featuring John Stockton’s “twin” brother “Don Stockton” in the same role as “Cliff Paul.” The shorter one features spectacular NBA puns and a bull piñata that Jazz fans wish Don had taken a swing at with an aluminum bat.

The longer, 60 second spot begins by referencing Stockton’s “over 15,000 assists, and only one expression,” and is pure gold. “Cliff” and “Don” are joined by  “Sebastian Curry,” “Summer Bird” and “Darius Lillard” at the “National Bureau of Assists.”

"The ad campaign, which consists of the “National Bureau of Assists” (otherwise also known as the NBA), where the “twin brothers” of some the basketball’s elite work as State Farm agents.Clippers point guard Chris Paul and his “alter-ego” Cliff has been a staple of the company’s advertising campaign the past few years of the assist leaders on and off the court. However, State Farm added Stockton, former Weber State star Damian Lillard as well as NBA star Stephen Curry and WNBA star Sue Bird to their latest commercial to round out the team’s starting lineup. Well, their alter-egos, at least.–Carter Williams, Deseret News"

This fun ad campaign, that Chris Paul gets asked about wherever he goes, just got a whole lot funner.

It’s been so long since John Stockton has been in a commercial that Chris Paul didn’t even know he’d been in any at all.

"“The person I’m sure I was probably the most excited about was John Stockton,” Chris Paul said of the NBA’s all-time leader with 15,806 assists. “First of all, I have never seen him in a commercial, period. I think back to when I was a kid and he was playing, and I think even more so than the commercial spot, we literally talked the entire time we were on set, and just some of the knowledge that he passed on to me is invaluable.”–LA Times"

John Stockton is, in fact, an old veteran of commercial spots, most of which only long-time Jazz fans will recall any of.

Hopping in the way-back machine, John Stockton and Karl Malone in a milk commercial from 1986 — a campaign that continues to this day for the Dairy Council of Utah & Nevada, headquartered in Sugarhouse, Utah, with Derrick Favors.

A year later Stockton could be seen teaming up with another Utah Jazz legend, Hot Rod Hundley, for an America First Credit Union commercial, an entity that still sponsors the Jazz to this day. At the time, Rickey Green was still the starting point guard for the Jazz. Strange to imagine, looking back, huh?

A few years later John Stockton had nabbed the starting spot and this Foot Locker spot along with it.

And who can forget the outtakes from his Diet Pepsi commercial?

Diet Pepsi-John Stockton Audition

It’s been too long since we saw John Stockton in the national spotlight, even if he is sporting a look more suited to a 1970s cop series on TV. We love the ad campaign. Well played, State Farm ad department.