Utah Jazz: Where does Donovan Mitchell rank among guards in franchise history?

For all of the aforementioned success of the Utah Jazz from 1990 to the present day, the most successful years coincided with Jeff Hornacek’s presence on the team. That was not a coincidence.

Granted, The Paperboy was never the most prominently featured weapon on those squads, serving as something closer to an elite role player alongside the unstoppable John Stockton and Karl Malone pick-and-roll attack. None of which should do anything to undersell Hornacek’s value.

Hornacek’s best individual season as a member of the Utah Jazz came in 1995-96, when he averaged 15.2 points per game while shooting a blistering 46.6% on 2.7 three-point attempts per night. Take him and pluck him into 2021-22, and he’s assured to triple his three-point volume. Nonetheless, on the standards of the midrange heavy 1990s, Hornacek was an elite floor-spacer.

He was also a capable playmaker. His highest assists per game mark for the Utah Jazz was 4.4, however, it’s important to contextualize that number. Hornacek shared a starting backcourt with John Stockton for the duration of his Jazz career. Dropping dimes wasn’t exactly on the top of his priority list. Suffice it to say, Hornacek was capable of more, as indicated by the 6.9 assists per night he averaged for the Philadelphia 76ers in 1992-93.

In fact, Hornacek made a number of statistical concessions after he was traded to Salt Lake City in the 1993-94 season. The man averaged 20.1 points per night as a member of the Phoenix Suns in 1991-92. Obviously, he preferred getting wins to getting numbers, as he played out the remainder of his career for the Utah Jazz.