Regarded as one of the greatest point guards of all time, he spent his entire NBA career (1984–2003) with the Utah Jazz, and the team made the playoffs in all of his 19 seasons.

In 1997 and 1998, together with his longtime teammate Karl Malone, Stockton led the Jazz to the franchise's only two NBA Finals appearances, both of which were losses to the Chicago Bulls.

[5] In October 2021, Stockton was again honored as one of the league's greatest players of all time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

[9][10][11][12] After considering offers from Don Monson at Idaho and Mike Montgomery at Montana (both in the Big Sky Conference), Stockton decided to stay in Spokane and play college basketball for Dan Fitzgerald at Gonzaga University.

[13] He became the third generation in his family at GU; grandfather Houston Stockton was a well-known football player for the Bulldogs in the 1920s.

The Zags posted a 17–11 record, their best in 17 years, and Stockton led the West Coast Athletic Conference in scoring, assists, and steals.

[23] Nevertheless, the announcement of his selection to the thousands of Jazz fans gathered at the Salt Palace on draft day was met with a stunned silence.

[22] On November 10, 1984, Stockton had his highest scoring game as a rookie, with 19 points in only 19 minutes of playing time, during a loss against the Denver Nuggets.

On January 15, 1991, Stockton scored 20 points and dished out a career-high and franchise-record 28 assists in a 124–102 home win against the San Antonio Spurs.

[26] On February 12, Stockton nearly recorded a triple-double after putting up 19 points, 11 assists, and 9 steals in a 113–92 win over the Houston Rockets.

[27] In 1992, Stockton and the Jazz reached the Western Conference Finals for the first time; however, they were defeated by the Portland Trail Blazers in six games.

Magic Johnson, in an interview, said to Stockton, "John, from one assist man to another, you are the greatest team leader I have ever played against.

[31] Stockton missed the first 18 games of the 1997–98 season with a knee injury, but the Jazz returned to the NBA Finals and again faced the Bulls.

Stockton missed a three-point attempt with 5.2 seconds left and said in a post-game interview that he felt confident the shot would go in.

[36] Stockton was also inducted into the Hall of Fame along with the rest of the 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team in 2010.

[40][41][42] Stockton earned the "old school" tag for his physical play; surveys of athletes and fans alike often judged him among the toughest players in the NBA, usually just behind teammate Karl Malone.

[62] Stockton was on the Jazz's long list of coaching candidates to replace Tyrone Corbin before the selection of Quin Snyder.

[63] On October 28, 2015, Stockton joined Montana State University's women's basketball program as an assistant coach to replace Kellee Barney.

[64] In 2021, Stockton appeared in a video series titled "V-Revealed, COVID Edition," raising doubt about the COVID-19 pandemic and warning against vaccines.

'"[67] He made the claim that "hundreds" of athletes had died due to receiving a COVID vaccine, which was found by PolitiFact to be a false statement.

[86] In 2022, she signed a contract with the TK Hannover Luchse ("Lynxes") in Lower Saxony, Germany, where she soon became a fan favorite thanks to her powerful, aggressive playing style.

After forward and scoring leader Angel Rizor suffered a broken hand in game 1, they lost 0–3 against the new champions, the Keltern Stars.

[89] Stockton has appeared in television commercials for Foot Locker,[90] State Farm Insurance,[91] and Diet Pepsi.

[94] In 2024, Stockton was referenced in Kendrick Lamar's Grammy Award-winning diss track "Not Like Us", which targeted Canadian rapper Drake.

The reference alluded to Stockton's skill as a passer and past paternity claims made against his teammate, Karl Malone.