Former Boston Celtics point guard Gary Payton was on the back nine of his career when he was dealt to Boston in 2004, but well before than he’d established a reputation as being one of the best two-way players in the NBA.
A lethal scorer whose defense was so good, the nickname “the Glove” was bestowed on him for how tightly he’d cover opponents, Payton knows what it takes to excel on both sides of the ball.
When he was recently asked on the “All the Smoke” podcast who he’d most like to go one-on-one against out of all the players in the league today, he chose a current member of his penultimate stop in the NBA:
“Marcus Smart, from Boston.”
Gary Payton says if he could go 1-on-1 with any current PG using rules from the 90s, he'd choose @smart_MS3. "I'd wanna go at him, man. He's a dog, man. I think me and him would have a real, real good battle. I'd want to go at him because he got it."
(via All the Smoke podcast)
— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) April 23, 2020
Why the Texan defensive specialist, who has only recently found his way as a shooter?
“I want to go at him, man — he’s got a little bit of a dog [in him]. I think me and him might have a real good battle, man.”
It’s undeniable the Oklahoma State product is one of the game’s fiercest competitors, and in many ways mirrors elements of Payton in his prime in that respect.
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Payton would also like to go up against Los Angeles Clippers defensive stalwart Patrick Beverly — but judging by the past, it might rub the Clippers guard the wrong way to have been mentioned in the same sentence by the legendary point guard.
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