On This Day (March 26)

Notable events from NBA history that occurred on March 26.

John Stockton’s Birthday

On this day in 1962, Hall of Famer John Stockton was born in Spokane, Washington. A 10-time All-Star and member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, Stockton averaged 13.1 PPG, 10.5 APG, and 2.2 SPG in 1,504 career games. He also won two Olympic gold medals playing for the U.S. men’s basketball team, one in 1992 (Barcelona) and the other in 1996 (Atlanta).

Stockton is the NBA’s all-time leader in assists and steals, both by convincing margins. Stockton recorded 15,806 assists, 3,715 more than the next-closest player, Jason Kidd. Kidd is closer to Andre Miller in 12th place (8,524) than he is to Stockton.

Kidd also rank second to Stockton in steals, with Stockton holding a 581-steal advantage (3,265 versus 2,684). The difference between Stockton and Kidd is greater than the difference between Kidd and 11th place Alvin Robertson, who had 2,112 steals.

Stockton is responsible for seven of the nine 1,000-assist seasons in NBA history. No other player has recorded more than one such season. The top four single-season assist totals in NBA history belong to Stockton.

Stockton averaged at least 10 APG 10 times, the most such seasons in NBA history. He’s the only player in NBA history to average at least 14 APG in a season, doing so twice (1989-90 and 1990-91).

Stockton led the NBA in total assists nine times, the most such seasons in NBA history. Since the NBA began tracking steals in 1973-74, Stockton is one of only five players to lead the league in assists and steals in the same season, and he and Chris Paul are the only players to do so twice.

Stockton scored 19,711 career points on 51.5% shooting from the field. With a listed height of 6-feet-1-inch, Stockton is the shortest player in NBA history to score at least 15,000 points with a field goal percentage of 50%.