Chris Paul's retirement announcement on Friday ended the legendary career of one of the best point guards to ever play the game, and one that was intertwined with the Utah Jazz throughout 21 years in the NBA.
As many Jazz fans know, in the 2005 NBA Draft, the Jazz were in dire need of a point guard. John Stockton had retired in 2003, and the team was 26-56 in the 2004-05 season with a variety of players vying to fill his shoes, unsuccessfully.
The pick for the Jazz brass came down to Deron Williams or Chris Paul, both great guards in college, either of whom would have been worthy successors to Stockton. Williams had a size advantage, but Paul was the more natural passer. Both were equally competitive.
In the end, the Jazz selected Williams, and Paul went fourth overall to the New Orleans Hornets.
For several years, "CP3" and "D-Will" dueled for the title of best young point guard in the game. Don't laugh - it was a legitimate argument, and for a time, D-Will was considered the superior player.
However, we know the outcome - Williams went through some rough patches in Utah, got dealt away, and his career went off-track in Brooklyn. He wasn't quite the same after that.
Meanwhile, Chris Paul became a perennial All-Star, led the league in assists five times, and steals six times. Aside from a championship, he accomplished nearly everything in his long career. It's just a shame things ended the way they did.
Why this is good news for the Utah Jazz
Throughout his career, Chris Paul had climbed up the NBA record books to the point that he was 2nd in NBA history in both assists and steals. The record holder in both categories? The Utah Jazz's own Hall of Fame point guard, John Stockton.
Once CP3 reached the 10,000 assist and the 2,200 steal marks, some wondered if he could challenge John Stockton's hold on those records.
Alas, it was not meant to be. CP3 had a few good years in Phoenix but was unable to replicate that success in his last few NBA stops.
With final marks of 12,552 assists and 2,728 steals, Chris Paul remains 2nd overall in both categories behind Stockton (15,806 and 3,265, respectively).
With Paul no longer a threat, Stockton's hold on those records is safe for quite some time. Most of the top 35 players in total assists are retired; the remaining players are past their prime.
LeBron James is the closest to Stockton in assists (11,838), but he's still nearly 4,000 away and unlikely to get there. The only active, in their prime guys that could challenge Stockton are Nikola Jokic (10,000 away), or Trae Young (nearly 11,000 away).
As for the steals mark of 3,265 that Stockton holds, LeBron is the only active player within 1,000 steals, and he's at 2,384. There are five other active players between 1,579 and 2,023 steals - Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Mike Conley, Steph Curry, and Paul George; none are a serious threat to the steals record.
So the good news (for the Jazz) is that with Chris Paul's retirement, John Stockton's records are safe, and it will likely be a decade or more before a serious threat emerges to them.