Gary Payton

Gary Payton, nicknamed "The Glove" in recognition of his tenacious defense. As the story goes, Payton's cousin called him during the 1993 Western Conference Finals series against the Phoenix Suns and told him, "you're holding Kevin Johnson like a baseball in a glove," and the nickname "The Glove" was born. Gary Payton is well-known for his trash-talking, and is known as one of the greatest trash-talkers in NBA history, but more importantly, he is known as one of the greatest defensive guards in NBA history. He is the only guard to have won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award since Michael Jordan won it in 1988, and his 9 selections to the NBA All-Defensive First Team are tied for the highest total of all time along with Michael Jordan and he currently ranks 3rd all-time in career steals. Read More

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Gary Payton Articles

Gary Payton Not Playing, But Still Talking | Jan. 2009
Gary Payton's move from the basketball court to the broadcast studio is about as predictable as Shawn Kemp flushing one of Payton's alley-oop passes when both men played for the Sonics. Read Article

Nothing But Glove | Nov. 2008
Gary Payton, the pride of Oakland, CA, didn't give an inch from baseline to baseline. There were no easy buckets and no easy defensive stops as long as the man they called "The Glove" was on the court. Read Article

GP Feeling Free, Retirement Plans 'Kind of Definite' | Nov. 2007
How is it possible that one of the loudest mouths to ever step onto an NBA court could walk away in silence? Maybe it's because, for all of the talking Gary Payton did in his career, he never was talked about as much as a man... Read Article

Dormant Payton Winds Down | Apr. 2007
As Gary Payton prepares for what could be his last appearance at AmericanAirlines Arena, he knows he's unlikely to set foot on the hardwood after pre-game warm-ups. Payton has scored more points in his career than Larry Bird, Read Article

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Gary Payton Media

Gary Payton Articles

Not Playing, But Still Talking
Gary Payton's move from the basketball court to the broadcast...
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Nothing But Glove
An Old School q+a with the one and only Gary Payton.
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Gary Payton Career

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