It's been a long time...8 seasons since Stockton and Malone left. This is the start of the 9th. If anything it's probably a surprise that there has been a "player connection" for this long. Look at teams' rosters and see how many have a player who been there since 2003. Kobe, Duncan, Pierce and Dirk come to mind. Parker I guess. I'm sure there are more, but the list isn't long.