Forty reasons to love Stockton at 40. (NBA Insider).(John Stockton)

Hate John Stockton? Now, who could hate John Stockton?

Maybe former Rockets forward Eddie Johnson, who once said of Stockton, "He comes off as this choirboy and tries to live up to it. Meanwhile, he's trying to take your head off." And maybe Stockton had a minor on-court scrape with Michael Jordan, and maybe Charles Barkley complained about Stockton's wandering forearms once or twice.

But the guy is just trying to make a living and has done a good job of it. It's difficult to truly hate John Stockton, the kid from Gonzaga with the aww-shucks haircut and the too-tight shorts. In fact, in honor of his 40th birthday last Tuesday, there are 40 reasons to ...