Jazz playoff hero is shoo-in for long-deserved honor

The Basketball Hall of Fame announced its eligible candidates for 2026 earlier today. While hardly any of the names that were mentioned are considered esteemed Utah Jazz alumni, Jazz fans will certainly remember one that was on the list: Joe Johnson.

Johnson, who played for the Jazz from 2016 to 2018, was named among the nominees. Looking at the other nominees, it's hard to see how he won't get into the Hall of Fame.

He may have never been an MVP candidate, and he didn't win any titles, but Johnson's claim to fame wasn't just that he was one of the best pure scorers of his era, but his longevity as a player was impressive. All Jazz fans remember this, as his scoring abilities made Utah a formidable playoff team back in 2017.

They then got rid of him at the right time, but it had been years since the Jazz actually had some playoff success. Johnson was not his prime self by that time and he definitely wasn't the Jazz's best player, but fans still remember him very fondly for what he did in his brief time with the team.

Being in his mid-30s at the time, it was impressive Johnson was still a threat as a bucket getter by that age. He may not have much juice left, but the Jazz got the very last of Iso Joe's prime.

His best days were with the Atlanta Hawks, who were a playoff team year in and year out for the majority of his time there. Because Johnson was a tough one to stop, his teams were typically a threat. It's a shame his abilities didn't translate into a ton, but it should be enough for him to get the highest honor a basketball player can have post-retirement.

He would be the 11th Jazz alum in the Hall

If Johnson gets into the Hall, he would join Karl Malone, John Stockton, Jerry Sloan, Adrian Dantley, Pete Maravich, Hot Rod Hundley, Gail Goodrich, Walt Bellamy, Spencer Haywood, and Bernard King as Jazz alumni who have received such an honor.

Surprisingly, Utah has so few HOF representatives of the franchise, but it's fair to suggest the list will grow over time, as it's hard not to think Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell will be in the Hall in due time. Even though those are the only Jazzmen who have received the honor, the Jazz have gotten some recognition by proxy, such as their alumni being mentioned in historic team elections, like the 2008 USA Redeem Team (Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer).

It's not like it would be the end of the world for Jazz fans if Johnson didn't get in, but it would be a reminder of what was a pretty happy memory this century. Here's to hoping the Hall makes the right choice!