Inspired by Eric Nehm's piece on the Bucks - here is my list of the best Jazz players by every number.

00 - Greg Ostertag

Listen, I love Jordan Clarkson and I never loved Ostertag but Tag undeniably accomplished more in his long tenure with the Jazz.

https://theathletic.com/1691160/2020/04/03/the-greatest-bucks-player-at-every-uniform-number/?source=weeklyemail

0 - Enes Kanter

From one polarizing Jazz big to another, Kanter is undeniable as the top 0 in Jazz history. Olden Polynice's two seasons in Utah were unremarkable and Nigel Williams-Goss hasn't done anything (yet?)

1 - The Jazz have never had a player wear #1. Maybe that's why they've never won a title . You need to have a #1.

2 - Honorable mentions to the Jazz's attempt to join the prep-to-pro craze in the early 200s with DeShawn Stevenson and fond memories of a short time with Marvin Williams (oh and some guy who lied to get out of his contract) but the top 2 in Jazz history is Jinglin' Joe.

3 - before the #3 represented a who's who of the eternal quest for a point guard (Trey Burke, George Hill and Ricky Rubio) it belonged to the Man Who Was Pushed.

Bryon Russell is the top #3 in Jazz history.

In the good old days before Frank Layden compared him with Judas by fining him 30 pieces of silver ($3.00 to be paid all in dimes) the real AD was one of the original Jazz greats.

The top 4 in Jazz history, Adrian Dantley.

Honorable Mention: Kelly Tripucka's hair

5 - From Layden's Judas to the Cleveland Cavalier's Judas. One of the biggest FA signings in Jazz history, Carlos Boozer is the top 5 in Jazz history.

Shout outs to Rodney Hood and Devin Harris.

6 - Ignoring the one year Howard Eisley changed his number, the top #6 in Jazz history is none other than Iso Joe Johnson, whose 2017 playoff performance was the definition of clutch.

Shout out to Jamaal Tinsley and high hopes for Rayjon Tucker's future.

7 - There's no other realistic choice. His professional career was never what it should have been, but he was a New Orleans legend. Pistol is the top 7 in Jazz history.

8 - Nine different players have worn the number 8 for the Jazz, including current Jazzman Emmanuel Mudiay and Jazz legend Shelvin Mack. But there's one whose performance was levels ahead of the rest.

The top 8 in Jazz history: Deron Williams.

9 - in contrast to the number 8, only two players have worn 9 for the Jazz. In this contest, I'm giving the edge to Ronnie Brewer's 4 years in Utah over John Starks 2.

The top 9 in Jazz history, Ronnie Brewer.

10 - Mike Conley's lone season was not what we hoped it would be. Alec Burks never quite worked out despite his long tenure.

It was close between Burks and the winner, but playing a key role on two Finals teams gives Howard Eisley the nod as the top 10 in Jazz history.

11 - A LOT of players have worn the #11 Jazz jersey and, uh, none of them have been all that great. At the risk of touching the third rail of Jazz Twitter the top 11 in Jazz history is Dante Exum.

Honorable mention: Jacque Vaughn I guess? 1 season of Sasha Pavlovic?

12 - There's no question here. No player will ever again wear the number 12 for the Jazz because of what John Stockton accomplished in that jersey. In my opinion, the Jazz GOAT.

13 - Honorable mentions to John Amaechi and current up-and-comer Tony Bradley but the top 13 in Jazz history is the Money Man, Mehmet Okur.

Dishonorable mention: Mark Jackson remains the worst.

14 - Honorable mention to the PG before Stockton. Rickey Green was a lot of fun and a long-tenured Jazzman.

But the top 14 is undoubtedly Jeff Hornacek, whose acquisition was a major catalyst in helping the Jazz finally make the Finals.

15 - I'll never forget the Sundiata Gaines game and current Jazz announcer Matt Harpring's career in Utah deserves real consideration. But when push comes to shove, there's no doubt who the top 15 in Jazz history (and my heart) is.

16 - The Jazz haven't had a lot of players wear 16 and none of them have really been standouts. Based both on actual in-game performance and on optimism for what may come, the top 16 in Jazz history is 2019-20 rookie, Juwan Morgan.

17 - As the only player to wear #17 for more than one season for the Jazz, former UVSC standout Ronnie Price is our top 17 in Jazz history.

18 - At the risk of offending former Jazz players like Pace Mannion and Tim Legler, no Jazz player who has worn 18 has really accomplished much in a Jazz uniform. So, because of his role in bringing Rudy Gobert to the Jazz, I'm giving the nod to Erick Green.

19 - Raja Bell would likely be the top 19 in Jazz history against some more robust competition. But the only other player to wear 19 for the Jazz was Patrick Christopher, who played 4 total games in 2015. This one was not close.

20 - Bob Hansen's 7 seasons in Utah are a thing of legend...

Just kidding, this one also was not close. The Golden Boy Who Wouldn't Stay is the top 20 in Jazz history. Daddy's always happy.

21 - As much as I'd like to post a picture of Rick Adelman in his playing days, David Benoit is the top player to wear 21 for the Jazz.

22 - Did you know Bernard King played 19 games for the Utah Jazz before he became a Knicks legend? Among other players who have worn 22 for the Jazz, I personally love Thabo Sefolosha.

But the Top 22 in Jazz history goes to New Orleans Jazz stalwart Nate Williams.

23 - Beloved former Coach Ty Corbin deserves some consideration. As does long-time New Orleans Jazzman Aaron James. Even Wes Matthews lone season was pretty good.

But at the risk of recency bias, the top 23 in Jazz history is one of my current favorites, Royce O'Neale.

24 - Honorable mentions to Ron Boone, Raul Lopez and Jeff Malone but I think the top 24 in Jazz history was Paul Millsap. I still miss him.

25 - I think this is a close one between Big Al Jefferson and Gail Goodrich, but I'm going name Al as the top 25 for the Jazz. Goodrich gets a major demerit for costing the Jazz the opportunity to draft Magic Johnson even though that's not his fault at all.

26 - So nice they acquired him twice, Kyle Korver is pretty much the top 26 by default. John Amaechi is the only other Jazzman who ever wore the number.

27 - The only player in Jazz history to wear the number 27 has played well enough so far that the number might be retired before anybody else gets to wear it.

28 & 29 - Nobody has ever worn the numbers 28 or 29 for the Jazz in an NBA regular season game.

30 - Carlos Arroyo and Blue Edwards both played a few seasons for the Jazz and both had similar overall outputs. I'm going to give the nod to Arroyo as Utah's Top 30.

Honorable mention to Steph Curry's dad and Blue Edwards.

31 - All due respect to current fan-favorite Georges Niang, this one comes down to a battle between two long-time Jazzmen of yesteryear.

In the battle between Jarron Collins and Adam Keefe, Keefe ultimately accomplished more albeit with a better set of teammates.

32 - This one is between a guy named John Brown who played 4 games for the Jazz in 1980 and another guy nicknamed "Mailman" which seems like a lame nickname. I guess we give it to Brown by default.

Wait, I'm being told that the "Mailman" was 2-time MVP Karl Malone. He wins.

33 - Listen, I want to give this to somebody like fan-favorites Trevor Booker or Ekpe Udoh. Or selfishly give it to one of my all-time favorites in Boris Diaw.

But Jim McElroy played 4 seasons for New Orleans and averaged 16.9 points in 1979. He's the top 33 in Jazz history.

34 - Bryon Russell is ineligible, as he already was named for a different uniform number. That leaves Scott Padgett and C.J. Miles under consideration.

C.J. Miles is the top 34 in Jazz history.

35 - There's no contest here as the only player besides Darrell Griffith to wear 35 was Ollie Johnson for a lone season in 1975.

Dr. Dunkenstein is the Top 35 in Jazz history.

36 & 37 & 38 - these numbers have rarely been worn in the NBA and never been worn by a player for the Jazz.

39 - Greg Ostertag wore 39 for a few seasons, but Tag was already named on this list and so is ineligible.

40 - Three players played multiple seasons for the Jazz wearing #40: Shandon Anderson, Mike Brown and Jeremy Evans.

As much as I love Evans' slam dunk title, I think it comes down to Anderson and Brown and I'm going to give Shandon the edge.

41 - Well, there are failed Utah Jazz draftees Trey Lyles and Kosta Koufos and then there's Thurl Bailey.

..... I'm going to give this one to Thurl.

42 - Tom Chambers had the better overall career, but I think Donyell Marshall's years in Utah were better.

Donyell Marshall is the Top 42 in Jazz history, imo.

43 - A few choices here but I'm going to give the nod to Marc Iavoroni due to his extended time in Utah.

44 - No offense to Greg Foster and Kyrylo Fesenko, but I don't remember them ever hitting two game winners in the same season.

So I'm going to go ahead and give the Top 44 spot to Bojan Bogdanovic even with just one season under his belt so far.

45 - Jack Cooley, Henry Bibby, Jeff Wilkins and Darryl Dawkins are all major competitors for the Top 45 in Jazz history.

Just kidding. Another one where there should be no suspense. Donovan Mitchell is the top player to wear 45 for the Jazz.

46 -

47 - Only 6 players have worn the #47 in NBA history. AK47 is not only the greatest Jazzman to wear 47, he's the GOAT 47 in NBA history.

48 & 49

50 - Remember Felton Spencer? I remember Felton Spencer.

Anyhow, the top 50 in Jazz history is Ben Poquette.

51 - Three total choices here: Carl Kilpatrick, Aleksandar Radojevic and Michael Ruffin.

I'll be honest, I don't remember any of these guys. Ruffin actually had a multi-year NBA career and played more than a handful of games. He gets the nod.

52 - Four players here, similar to the paucity of options at 51: John Brown, Todd Fuller, Bill Robinzine and Brett Vroman.

I'll give Robinzine the edge as he played the most games (56) and averaged the most points (5.8).

53 - All due respect to Rich Kelley, this is an easy one.

Mark Eaton is the top 53 in Jazz history.

54 - There were quite a few guys who were one season and done in Utah who wore 54. Mel Turpin was the best of them.

55 - At the risk of offending BYU fans who still love Rafa Araujo, the top player to wear 55 for the Jazz was the Big Dog Antoine Carr.

56 - 80

81 - In honor of Kobe Bryant, Miye Oni changed his number from 24 to 81 earlier this season. He's only the 2nd player in NBA history to wear that number (Jose Calderon is the other).

He wins this by default.

82-98

99 - THE ONLY PLAYER IN JAZZ HISTORY TO WEAR 99 IS JAE CROWDER THE BOSSMAN!!!! I CANNOT THINK OF MANY OTHER PLAYERS WHO WOULD CHOOSE THE NUMBER SO HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE TOP 99 IF THERE WERE MORE CHOICES!!!! I MISS JAE!!!