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People use the phrase “records are meant to be broken” loosely in the world of sports. However, there are always a few that happen to go untouched. Wilt Chamberlain dominates the record books, but John Stockton might have a case with his all-time assist record. Despite the surge of offense in recent years, Stockton's record of 15,806 assists is a number that still towers over the rest of the NBA's greatest passers. And at this point, it seems everyone else will have to fight for second place.
How crazy are John Stockton's assist numbers?
From the moment John Stockton entered the league out of Gonzaga in 1984, he was a maestro with the ball. After playing 19 seasons with the Utah Jazz, which included 1,504 regular season games, his career assist average is 10.5 per game. To put into context how impressive those numbers are, in the last five NBA seasons, no player has sustained those kinds of assist averages for more than two consecutive seasons despite this era's increased emphasis on pace and offense. In contrast, Stockton was able to maintain this level of consistency for nearly two decades.
Which current player has a remote chance at beating his record?
Of the top 10 assist leaders in NBA history, only three are still in the league: Chris Paul, LeBron James, and Russell Westbrook. Paul is the closest to the record among the three, currently ranked third all-time with 11,894 assists in 1,272 games played. With those numbers, Paul boasts a career average of 9.4 assists per game. If he were to ever break it, he would need at least five more seasons at his current rate to catch Stockton. Given that he's in his late 30s and his numbers have slowly declined, maintaining such a high level of play for that long are slim.
James sits right behind Paul on the all-time assists list with 10,997 assists in nearly 1,500 games played, good for a career average of 7.4 assists per game. Even though James has a reputation as one of the most durable athletes of all time, if he were the player to beat Stockton's record assuming he maintains his current assist averages, he would need to play another eight seasons.
Westbrook rounds out the trio, ranking ninth all-time in assists with 9,478 in 1,162 games played, giving him a career average of 8.1 assists per game. For Westbrook to catch Stockton, he would need to play at least 10 more seasons with his current averages. A daunting task for a player whose minutes have declined, and his role limited.
Why it will be improbable for anyone to break Stockton’s all-time assist record
There are several reasons why Stockton's assist record is safe for the foreseeable future, but it all comes down to one: longevity. In his 19 seasons, Stockton only missed 22 games in his entire career. Playing alongside Karl Malone, one of the most reliable pick-and-roll players in NBA history, significantly aided Stockton's success. Now with star players often switching teams and prioritizing rest, it will be hard for a point guard or playmaker to have someone that reliable to pass the ball to and play 82 games.
Outside of the top 10 list, the only player under 30 years old to crack the top 100 in all-time assists is Nikola Jokic, currently ranked 84th with around 4,700 assists in nine seasons good for a career average of 6.9. Even for an unselfish player like Jokic, it would take him at least 10 more seasons to approach Stockton’s record, assuming he can continue averaging the numbers he's had the past few seasons. While the NBA will continue to evolve, you can expect some things, or records to never change.
