Tag: Gary Payton

Q&A: Gary Payton is proud of son Gary Payton II the man first, then the basketball player

“When they first come up to me and talk to me, they never talk to me about my son’s basketball ability. They do that second.”

Gary Payton II received a standing ovation when he checked into Game 2 of the NBA Finals with 5:30 remaining in the first quarter. It was his first game action in over a month since he fractured his elbow in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Of the thousands of Golden State Warriors faithful in attendance at the sold out Chase Center, however, none was happier to see Payton back on the court than his Hall of Fame dad – who even wore GPII on his shirt. While some have just recently learned of Payton’s journey from going undrafted to becoming a key contributor on a potential title team, Gary Payton, Sr. saw a person he’s proud to call his son. And not for what he does between those four lines.

“The Glove” joined For The Win prior to Game 2 to talk about his son’s work in the community, the untimely injury before the Finals and his own work with Hennessy to help small businesses power through challenges from the pandemic.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity

Celtics champ Cedric Maxwell says Draymond Green’s play in Game 2 would have gotten him ‘knocked the (expletive) out’ in the 1980s

The Celtics champ had some sizzling takes in a post-Game 2 conversation with Gary Payton, Sr.

“The difference was that they just got into them,” said Gary Payton Sr. of the Dubs and what caused such radically different outcomes between Games 1 and 2 of the NBA Finals series between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors after Game 2. “They got into them and made them make turnovers.”

Celtics broadcaster and alumnus Cedric Maxwell felt the need to answer Payton — whose son Gary II helped force some of those turnovers — regarding Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green’s controversial play in Game 2. “Let me just say this to you, and I am going to be as clear as I can,” said Maxwell. “That (expletive) Draymond was doing? During the 1980s, he’d (have) got knocked the (expletive) out.”

Both Payton and Maxwell weighed in on the Warriors’ Game 2 win after the dust had settled at Chase Center Sunday — check out the clip embedded below to hear more of what they had to say about the series-tying victory for the Dubs.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Gary Payton wore an awesome Gary Payton II t-shirt to Game 2 of the NBA Finals

How would Gary Payton (II) guard Gary Payton?

Gary Payton II didn’t play during the opening game loss of the NBA Finals, but he was fully present when the Warriors beat the Celtics in Game 2.

Payton, who hadn’t played since a nasty elbow injury earlier in the playoffs, was activated before the Sunday victory. The 29-year-old logged 25 minutes, replacing Andre Iguodala in the rotation.

He was a perfect 3-for-3 from the field, connecting on a 3-point attempt. He also added three assists and three rebounds during the contest, and while on the defensive end of the floor, he had the tough assignment to guard Jayson Tatum. It was a great NBA Finals debut performance, worthy of the standing ovation that he received.

All the sweeter is that he put on the show in front of his father, former NBA player Gary Payton. The elder Payton, who won an NBA champion in 2006, was at the game. He was also wearing an awesome shirt:

Payton’s shirt depicted his son, the Golden State guard, defending a much younger version of himself.

If the two matched up in their respective primes, it would be a fascinating matchup.

Although the former Seattle Supersonics superstar has a more decorated career, making nine All-Star appearances during his playing career, his son would likely hold his own.

By the way, if you’re curious about why the Golden State defensive ace is known as Gary Payton II and not Gary Payton Jr., my colleague Mike Sykes has your answer.

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Gary Payton questioned how the Warriors used his son in Game 1 of the NBA Finals

Payton had choice words for the Warriors’ process with his son.

For most of Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the Warriors looked unstoppable. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson — a.ka. the Splash Bros — looked like they were locked in.

Then the fourth quarter happened, and the Celtics took complete control en route to stealing the opening win.

This didn’t sit well with NBA legend and former Sonic great Gary Payton, whose son Gary Payton II suited up to play after breaking his elbow about a month ago. Except the Warriors didn’t use Payton II. Not even for a minute.

Naturally, his father vented some of his frustrations on The Rich Eisen Show on Friday:

Here’s the full quote of Payton wondering about the Warriors’ plans for his son as the series shifts to Game 2 on Sunday:

“I don’t know what happened yesterday [Thursday]. That’s on the coaching staff and the organization of Golden State. I don’t know. Suit him [Payton II] up and you don’t play him, I don’t know.

I’m not the coach, I’m not the trainer over there, and I don’t know what the thinking was in that, but they’re not at full strength … It’s hard for guys to keep sitting over there and get in a rhythm. I think he [Payton II] should be on the floor. You know, that’s just my opinion. That’s on the coaching staff of Golden State. I hope he comes back so he can help the team try to win a championship, but like I said, that’s up to the Golden State Warriors.”

Phew. Talk about a dad stumping for his son. To be fair to Payton, he might have a point. Payton II is one of the Warriors’ better on-ball defenders. If healthy and ready to play, his presence might have helped Golden State slow the Celtics’ three-point barrage in Game 1.

Ah, but there’s the rub. Do we know if Payton II is really healthy? Payton himself alludes to the idea that only the Warriors know Payton II’s true status.  And after not playing for roughly a month, it’d be understandable if the Warriors didn’t want to throw Payton II to the fire of the NBA Finals.

We’ll see what the Warriors’ plans for Payton II are on Sunday night. For now, Payton seems to be speaking more like a passionate dad, rather than someone in the know. Which, more power to him.

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With LeBron James breaking the all-time scoring record, where do Boston Celtics alumni stack up behind him?

Out of the top 40 scorers of all time in the regular season and playoffs combined, there are now 9 Celtics alumni. Can you guess them?

After flirting with the record for some time, Los Angeles Lakers star forward LeBron James finally broke the all-time scoring record of combined playoff and regular-season points scored with 44,157 total scored as of this writing in the Lakers’ recent 117 – 115 road loss to the Golden State Warriors this past Saturday.

Given how storied the Boston Celtics organization has been through its three-quarters of a century of existence, there are plenty of Celtics alumni below James on that list — but where in relation to each other, and how many in total make up the top 40 scorers in all games in NBA history? Building off of a comprehensive list of all top 40 scorers in league history put together by our sister site HoopsHype, we’ve identified nine Boston alumni.

See if you can suss them all out on your own — and better yet, in order — before scrolling down to check.

Six Boston Celtics alumni make The Athletic’s John Hollinger’s 25 greatest NBA defenders list

A solid representation from the storied franchise.

The Athletic’s John Hollinger cut his front office teeth with the “grit and grind” Memphis Grizzlies, so it is safe to say that he knows a little bit about what makes a great defense exceptional compared to a good one.

So his new article highlighting (in his estimation) the 25 greatest defenders at any position in the 75-year history of the league, his assessment is probably a better one than most despite his effusive self-deprecation on the subject. And as one might expect with a franchise as storied as the Boston Celtics, there is a string Boston alumni contingent to be found populating his list — 6 of the 25, in fact.

Let’s take a look at the six Celtics alumni who made Hollinger’s top-25 all-time NBA defenders.

18 Lakers selected to NBA 75th Anniversary Team

The Los Angeles Lakers had 18 players, both current and former, selected to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.

The 2021-22 NBA season marks the 75th anniversary of the league, which is an astonishing milestone for any league.

To celebrate, the NBA has been acknowledging legends of the game both current and former in a variety of ways.

For the NBA 75th Anniversary Team, the league named 75 of the league’s best players in batches of 25.

The Los Angeles Lakers had 18 players make the list. For a franchise with such a rich history, being one of the most represented teams on the list was expected.

LeBron James was among those selected, and he shared his reaction to the news on Twitter.

From James and more, here is the full list of Lakers that made the team:

Former Thunder, Sonic players on USA TODAY’s Top 75 all-time list

Russell Westbrook and James Harden tied. Kevin Durant was in the top-15. See where else former Thunder/Sonics land in USA TODAY’s Top 75 NBA players list.

Despite being less than two decades old, the Oklahoma City Thunder had a fair amount of representation in the much-anticipated release of the USA TODAY Top 75 NBA Players of All Time list.

Five former Thunder players and two former Seattle Supersonics were listed in this ranking to honor the upcoming 75th season of NBA basketball.

Russell Westbrook and James Harden ended up tied. Kevin Durant got into the top-15. Two other players who spent less time in OKC but are surefire Hall of Famers made the list. And Ray Allen and Gary Payton provided glory to Seattle.

Here are the seven players in franchise history to make the list.

HoopsHype lists 16 Boston Celtics on their projected 75 greatest players list

16 Celtics alumni make the cut for HoopsHype’s projected 75 greatest players list for the NBA’s 3/4 century celebratory accounting.

Not to be left out of the NBA’s 75th anniversary list creation extravaganza gripping the league’s wider media sphere, our sister site HoopsHype assembled a list of their own 75 greatest players of all time building off of (and cutting a few of) the NBA 50 greatest players list released for the Association’s 50th anniversary.

Given that the initial official list was, shall we say, a little generous to some and not as much as others perhaps warranted, we expected some players — including Boston Celtics alumni — to not make the cut of a list that was heavily dominated by the team in green and white.

They include Bill Walton, Sam Jones, Dave Bing, and Bill Sharman.

Gary Payton says Kyrie Irving needs to ‘respect the coaches’ more

Gary Payton calls out Kyrie Irving for what he said about the Nets’ coaching staff before the 2020-21 season.

Basketball legend Gary Payton is a historian of the game. He spent 13 years in the NBA playing for the Milwaukee Bucks, the Miami Heat, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics. Throughout the journey, Payton took home an NBA ring after winning a championship in 2006 with the Miami Heat.

Still to this day, the 53-year-old continues to follow the game while also critiquing players in the league today. His most recent criticism targeted Nets guard Kyrie Irving for what he said last year regarding coaching. The former Duke product had this to say before the start of last season:

“I don’t really see us having a head coach,” Irving said. “You know what I mean? KD could be a head coach. I could be a head coach.”

In response, although it took a long time coming, Payton didn’t hold back on Nothing Personal for a Sampson Sit-Down:

“That’s just a shame right there. I think that that was a bad statement by him. You should respect the coaches, you should respect the guys that have been put in those positions. And if you want to be that guy, if you were a guy that was my superstar, and you come to me, and you perform on the floor and do the things on the floor that you are supposed to, then I’m gonna bring you in on everything I’m gonna do, anyway. Because I wanna keep you happy and keep my team happy.”

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