Utah Jazz NBA 75th anniversary team locks
You don’t need a PhD in Utah Jazz history to know that John Stockton and Karl Malone will be included on the NBA’s 75th anniversary squad. Their inclusion on the list is a mere formality.
It’s almost difficult to talk about the two best players in Jazz history individually. Together, they mastered the pick-and-roll in a way that is still felt on basketball courts across the National Basketball Association today. The symbiotic relationship between the two legends formed the backbone of Utah Jazz basketball for 18 years.
They may have never captured the coveted Larry O’Brien trophy, but back-to-back Finals appearances in 1996-97 and 1997-98 are nothing to sell short. Furthermore, the success of this duo was sustainable: across those 18 years playing together for the Jazz, they never once missed the playoffs.
As tempting as it is to treat the duo as inseparable, they were, of course, individuals. Stockton is the NBA’s all-time leader in both assists and steals. His 15, 806 career dimes stand as arguably the NBA’s least breakable record, and his 3, 265 career steals mark is in no immediate danger itself.
Stockton racked up a number of those dimes by slinging pinpoint passes to Malone on the low block out of pick-and-roll sets, and if The Mailman hadn’t been such a strong finisher, he may have fallen a thousand-or-two assists shorter. Luckily, Malone pulled his weight. His 36, 928 career points place him second in NBA history.
There is very little to think about here. After all, we’re talking about the NBA’s all-time assists and steals leader, and the NBA’s second all-time leading scorer. They’ll both make the NBA’s top 75 list, and realistically, either would have a case if it were a top 20.