Stockton Still Gets It Done At Age 40

BY DICK ROSETTA

The Kentucky Derby is three weeks away and Utah Jazz owner Larry Miller does not have a horse entered in the Run for the Roses. He already has his own "thoroughbred," and don't we all know it? We've known it for 17 years. We've known John Stockton. Oh, this is no news flash. You have all been watching this 40-year-old marvel zip up and down the court this NBA season as if he turned the clock back a decade and a half, scoring 13.2 points a game while still dishing out eight assists.

So, I'm not bringing you anything new. It's just that after watching Thursday night's televised win over Phoenix, in which Stockton poured in 18 points and posted 11 assists with no turnovers, it seemed only natural to dial up Miller for what seems like the 1,419th time for the paymaster's reaction. Count Miller in there among the legions who grope -- seemingly every night -- for a reasonable assessment of the most successful 40-year-old in the league's illustrious history. Coincidental that you should call, responded Miller. He told his wife, Gail, after Thursday's game that "John Stockton finds a new way every night to blow my mind." That just about sums it up, folks. Because Stockton is blowing almost every athletic theory known to man. Plus theories yet to be advanced. He is three games from becoming the first NBA player to play all 82 games of a season for the 15th time, 11 of which he has started every game. And that doesn't include the 50-for-50 of the lockout-shortened season of 1999. Nor the 64-for-64 after he came back from knee surgery in 1997-98. "Resilient" doesn't do him justice. "Indomitable" fits better. Because the guy is 40, for Pete's sake.

They are booming New Jersey's Jason Kidd for MVP honors this year. Let me give you a couple of comparisons between the Nets' 29-year-old point guard and Stockton: Kidd is averaging 15 points and 10 assists, Stockton 13.2 points and 8.2 assists. Kidd shoots 39.2 percent from the field, Stockton shoots 52.1 percent. Kidd plays 6 1/2 minutes more than Stockton (37.7-31.1). Oh, yes: Kidd is 6-foot-4, 212 pounds and Stockton is 6-1 (in elevated shoes) and 180 (soaking wet). Can you see Kidd doing what he's doing at 40? Or at 35? Bet me. Really, who's the MVP here? In their two matchups this season, Stockton had 21 assists and 28 points; Kidd had 14 and 35.

OK, we're waxing sentimental here, as Miller puts it. Think Miller would want Kidd? "If we've got a game on the line and you position every point guard in the league to win it, John Stockton would win hands down," says the Jazz boss. Is Stockton getting to the end? Only to the end of another season. He has seven double-doubles (points and assists) in his past 15 games and 21 for the season. He's shooting more than he used to. "Sadly, our team has hit those lulls this year where John just said to his teammates, 'If you can't score, I will,' " says Miller. Which begs the question -- now some 15 years old -- why Stockton didn't flaunt his scoring prowess long before now? "I've encouraged him at a couple of times to shoot more," says Miller. "But it's his recognition of the game. He does things on his own and works in concert with [coach Jerry Sloan]. And with John's record, what is there to argue?" You don't argue. You watch what Miller calls the "special fires" burn inside Stockton.

You watch, as Miller says, the guy "still beating virtually everybody down the floor." You watch him beat a team (the drive down the lane for a three-point play against the Suns), as Miller exclaims, "Great job!" Stockton's reply: "Just doing my job." Watch Stockton very closely every night, folks. You will likely never see another like him. Watch John run. He's the Secretariat we watched win the Belmont by 31 lengths. He's Miller's "thoroughbred." Watch John run. At this rate, who knows? Maybe he will run for the roses.