Gary Payton

Biography

Date of Birth 23 July 1968, Oakland, California, USA Birth Name Gary Dwayne Payton Height 6' 4" (1.93 m) Gary Dwayne Payton is an American professional basketball player, formerly in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is best known for his 12-year tenure with the Seattle SuperSonics. He has also played with the Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics and Miami Heat. The only point guard ever to win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award, Payton is widely considered one of the greatest of all time at that position. He was selected to the NBA All-Defensive First Team nine times, an NBA record he shares with Michael Jordan. His tenacious defense also earned him the nickname "The Glove". As the story goes, Payton's cousin called him during the 1993 Western Conference Finals series against Phoenix and told him, "you're holding Kevin Johnson like a baseball in a glove," and the nickname was born. Considered the "NBA's reigning high scorer among point guards" in his prime, Payton is referred to as "probably as complete a guard as there ever was" by NBA Hall of Famer Gail Goodrich.