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Jeff Hornacek
[[Utah Jazz\|Utah Jazz]]
Hornacek in March 2013
Coaching consultant
Personal information
Born	(1963-05-03) May 3, 1963 (age 62) Elmhurst, Illinois, U.S.
High school	Lyons Township (La Grange, Illinois)
Listed height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
College	Iowa State (1982–1986)
NBA Draft	1986 / Round: 2 / Pick: 46th overall
Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Pro career	1986–2000
Coaching career	2011–Present
League	NBA
Career history
As player:
1986–1992	Phoenix Suns
1992–1994	Philadelphia 76ers
1994–2000	Utah Jazz
As coach:
2011–2013	Utah Jazz (assistant)
2013–2016	Phoenix Suns
2016–2018	New York Knicks
2020–2022	Houston Rockets (assistant)

Career highlights and awards
NBA All-Star (1992) 2× NBA Three-Point Contest champion (1998, 2000) No. 14 retired by Utah Jazz First-team All-Big Eight (1986) No. 14 retired by Iowa State Cyclones

Career NBA statistics
Points	15,659 (14.5 ppg)
Rebounds	3,646 (3.4 rpg)
Assists	5,281 (4.9 apg)

Jeffrey John Hornacek (born May 3, 1963) is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He is currently a coaching consultant for the Utah Jazz in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before this, he was a head coach for the Phoenix Suns and the New York Knicks. He also worked as an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets. Hornacek played as a shooting guard in the NBA from 1986 to 2000. He played college basketball at Iowa State University.

Early Life and School
College Basketball Career
NBA Playing Career
NBA Career Statistics
- Regular Season Stats
- Playoff Stats
Coaching Career
Personal Life
See also

Early Life and School

Jeff Hornacek went to Komarek Elementary School in North Riverside, Illinois. He also attended Gurrie Middle School and Lyons Township High School in La Grange, Illinois.

College Basketball Career

Hornacek started playing basketball at Iowa State University (ISU) in 1982. He joined the team as a "walk-on," meaning he wasn't given a scholarship at first. His father was a high school basketball coach, so Jeff grew up around the sport.

He became a star player in the Big Eight Conference under coach Johnny Orr. As a point guard, he helped the Cyclones reach the "Sweet Sixteen" in the 1986 NCAA tournament.

A famous moment for Hornacek happened in 1986. He made a shot to tie the game and send it into overtime. Then, he hit a game-winning shot from 26 feet away as time ran out in overtime. This shot gave ISU its first NCAA tournament win since 1944. Two days later, he led the Cyclones to upset Michigan, reaching the Sweet Sixteen.

Hornacek finished his college career with 665 assists and 1,313 points. In 1991, his No. 14 jersey was retired by Iowa State, a big honor for a college player.

NBA Playing Career

Playing for the Phoenix Suns

Hornacek playing for the Phoenix Suns in 1987

In the 1986 NBA draft, the Phoenix Suns picked Jeff Hornacek as the 46th player overall. The Suns were not very good in his first two seasons. But things changed when they got a new coach, Cotton Fitzsimmons, and a new player, Tom Chambers.

The Suns went from winning 28 games in 1988 to 55 games in 1989. Hornacek, Chambers, and Kevin Johnson became a strong trio. They helped the Suns make it to the NBA playoffs four times in a row. They even reached the Western Conference Finals twice. In the 1991–92 season, Hornacek was the team's top scorer, averaging 20.1 points per game. He was also chosen to be an NBA All-Star that year.

Time with the Philadelphia 76ers

In 1992, Hornacek was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. He was asked to play point guard, even though he was naturally a shooting guard. In his one full season with the Sixers (1992–93 season), he had a career-high 6.9 assists per game. However, the team struggled, winning only 26 games and losing 56.

Midway through the 1993–94 season, he was traded again, this time to the Utah Jazz. This allowed him to go back to his main position as a shooting guard.

Success with the Utah Jazz

With the Utah Jazz, Hornacek joined two other famous players, Karl Malone and John Stockton. He became an important "third option" for the team. He helped the Jazz reach the NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998. In both years, the Jazz lost to the Chicago Bulls.

Hornacek stayed with the Jazz until 2000, when knee problems forced him to retire. He had no left meniscus, which is a part of the knee that helps with cushioning.

On November 23, 1994, he set an NBA record by making eight three-pointers in a row in one game. He was also one of the best free throw shooters in the league. He once made 67 free throws in a row! Before every free throw, he would stroke the side of his face three times. This was his special way of saying hello to his three children during the game. He has one of the highest career free throw percentages in NBA history.

Hornacek also won the NBA three-point shooting contest twice. He retired from basketball after the 1999–2000 season to spend more time with his family. The Utah Jazz retired his No. 14 jersey, honoring his contributions to the team. He played 1,077 games in his 14-year NBA career.

NBA Career Statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Regular Season Stats

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1986–87	Phoenix	80	3	19.5	.454	.279	.777	2.3	4.5	.9	.1	5.3
1987–88	Phoenix	82	49	27.4	.506	.293	.822	3.2	6.6	1.3	.1	9.5
1988–89	Phoenix	78	73	31.9	.495	.333	.826	3.4	6.0	1.7	.1	13.5
1989–90	Phoenix	67	60	34.0	.536	.408	.856	4.7	5.0	1.7	.2	17.6
1990–91	Phoenix	80	77	34.2	.518	.418	.897	4.0	5.1	1.4	.2	16.9
1991–92	Phoenix	81	81	38.0	.512	.439	.886	5.0	5.1	2.0	.4	20.1
1992–93	Philadelphia	79	78	36.2	.470	.390	.865	4.3	6.9	1.7	.3	19.1
1993–94	Philadelphia	53	53	37.6	.455	.313	.873	4.0	5.9	1.8	.2	16.6
1993–94	Utah	27	9	30.6	.509	.429	.891	2.5	3.9	1.2	.1	14.6
1994–95	Utah	81	81	33.3	.514	.406	.882	2.6	4.3	1.6	.2	16.5
1995–96	Utah	82	59	31.6	.502	.466	.893	2.5	4.1	1.3	.2	15.2
1996–97	Utah	82	82*	31.6	.482	.369	.899	2.9	4.4	1.5	.3	14.5
1997–98	Utah	80	80	30.8	.482	.441	.885	3.4	4.4	1.4	.2	14.2
1998–99	Utah	48	48	29.9	.477	.420	.893	3.3	4.0	1.1	.3	12.2
1999–00	Utah	77	77	27.7	.492	.478	.950	2.4	2.6	.9	.2	12.4
Career		1,077	910	31.5	.496	.403	.877	3.4	4.9	1.4	.2	14.5
All-Star		1	0	24.0	.714	.500	–	2.0	3.0	1.0	.0	11.0

Playoff Stats

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1989	Phoenix	12	12	31.2	.497	.000	.840	5.8	5.2	1.3	.3	14.1
1990	Phoenix	16	16	36.4	.511	.250	.932	3.9	4.6	1.5	.0	18.6
1991	Phoenix	4	4	36.3	.431	.500	.929	6.3	2.0	.8	.5	18.3
1992	Phoenix	8	8	42.9	.484	.471	.912	6.4	5.3	1.8	.3	20.4
1994	Utah	16	16	34.9	.475	.441	.912	2.4	4.0	1.5	.4	15.4
1995	Utah	5	5	35.6	.510	.538	.786	1.2	4.0	1.6	.2	14.0
1996	Utah	18	18	35.8	.502	.586	.890	3.6	3.3	1.1	.2	17.5
1997	Utah	20	20	35.2	.433	.358	.876	4.5	3.7	1.1	.2	14.6
1998	Utah	20	20	31.8	.416	.467	.846	2.5	3.2	1.0	.2	10.9
1999	Utah	11	11	27.6	.462	.389	.879	3.7	2.4	1.0	.0	12.2
2000	Utah	10	10	29.7	.422	.409	.833	3.0	3.3	1.0	.0	11.5
Career		140	140	34.0	.470	.433	.886	3.8	3.8	1.2	.2	14.9

Coaching Career

After retiring as a player, Hornacek joined the Utah Jazz in 2007 as a special assistant coach. He helped players improve their shooting skills. He waited until his children were older before looking for a full-time coaching job.

In February 2011, he became a full assistant coach for the Utah Jazz. In 2013, Hornacek was considered for head coach positions by several teams, including his former teams, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Phoenix Suns.

Head Coach of the Phoenix Suns

On May 28, 2013, Jeff Hornacek was named the head coach of the Phoenix Suns. He said his coaching style was similar to his former coaches, Cotton Fitzsimmons and Jerry Sloan.

Hornacek also coached the Suns' Summer League team in 2013. He led them to a six-game winning streak. In his first regular season game as head coach, the Suns won against the Portland Trail Blazers. He became the first Suns coach to start with a 4–0 record at home games.

In December 2013, Hornacek won the NBA Coach of the Month award. He led the Suns to a 10–3 record that month. He was also the third former NBA player to win both Player of the Month and Coach of the Month awards. In his first season, the Suns improved a lot, winning 23 more games than the previous season. They finished with a 48–34 record, becoming the most improved team in the 2013–14 NBA season. Even with this big improvement, they still missed the playoffs. Hornacek was the runner-up for the NBA Coach of the Year Award.

On February 1, 2016, Hornacek was fired as the head coach of the Phoenix Suns.

Head Coach of the New York Knicks

On June 2, 2016, the New York Knicks announced Hornacek as their new head coach. His first season started well, with the team having a 16–13 record early on. However, problems within the team led to a 31–51 record by the end of the season. On April 12, 2018, the Knicks fired Hornacek after a 29–53 season.

Assistant Coach and Consultant Roles

On November 30, 2020, Hornacek was hired by the Houston Rockets as an assistant coach. Later, on September 15, 2022, he was hired by the Utah Jazz as a coaching consultant.

Personal Life

Jeff Hornacek is of Czech background. His father, John, was a high school basketball and baseball coach. Jeff considers his father, along with Cotton Fitzsimmons and Jerry Sloan, as important people who influenced his coaching career.

Jeff married Stacy on June 7, 1986. They have three children: Ryan (born 1989), Tyler (born 1990), and Abby (born 1994). Abby became a digital host for 120 Sports and later joined Fox Nation.