Nicknames have gotten increasingly bland over the years, but
Gary Payton had a good one – The Glove.
It was his defensive ability that kept the Seattle Sonics
invested in Payton as he developed his game. Payton was the No. 2 draft pick in
the 1990 draft – behind Derrick Coleman – but he was hardly a star for a couple
of seasons. Payton averaged just 7.2 and 9.4 points per game his first two
years in the NBA as he struggled to develop a consistent outside shot. Seattle’s
patience paid off. By 1994-1995, he was averaging 20.6 points and 7.1 assists
per game. His advanced stats were solid as well. From 1994-1995 to 2002-2003,
her had PERs above 20.0 eight times in nine seasons. In that same stretch, he
had win shares above 10.0 in seven of nine years.
His teams were consistent winners. Payton-led teams made the
playoffs in 15 of 17 seasons. The 1995-1996 Sonics, powered by Payton and Shawn
Kemp, won 65 games and stormed to the finals only to run into the best Chicago
Bulls team in the Michael Jordan era. In 2003-2004, the Lakers brought in Payton
to join Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Karl Malone to win a third straight
title only to be swept by the Detroit Pistons.
Payton finally picked up an NBA title as a 24-minute-per-game
sub on the 2005-2006 Miami Heat.
The lack of an NBA title during his peak seasons drove down
his overall standing. The fact that he was a solid NBA player even at age 37
drove up his career scores. Payton wasn’t quite top 50 all time – he was a top
10 trash-talker - but he more than lived up to his draft pick.
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Gary
Payton bio info
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Career
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1990-2007
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Games
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1,335
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Points
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16.3
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Rebounds
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3.9
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Assists
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6.7
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FG Pct.
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46.6%
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All-Star games
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9
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NBA MVPs
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0
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NBA Titles
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1
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Playoff seasons
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15
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Playoff games
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154
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Points
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14.0
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Rebounds
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3.7
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Assists
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5.3
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FG Pct.
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44.1%
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Hall of Fame
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2013
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Top 100
rankings
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Points
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Top 100 ranking
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1-year
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301.06
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88th
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5-year
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1,380.16
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65th
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10-year
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2,431.59
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57th
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Career
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3,441.51
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35th
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Gary
Payton at his peak
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|||
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1997-1998
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Payton
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Top 5
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Points
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PER
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21.6
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26.49
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Win Shares
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12.5
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14.24
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Box +/-
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5.0
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6.26
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VORP
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5.6
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6.04
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Total Advanced Stats
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44.7
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53.02
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84.30
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Playoff PER
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23.0
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26.68
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Win Shares
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1.5
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3.08
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Box +/-
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3.7
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7.35
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VORP
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0.6
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1.55
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Total Advanced Stats
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28.8
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38.66
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74.50
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Reg. Season Win %
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74.39
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74.39
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Playoff Win %
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40.00
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40.00
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MVP Voting (75 points)
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431/1,160
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27.87
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Playoff MVP (25 points)
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0
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0
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Total Score
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301.06
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Payton’s 10 greatest seasons
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1997-1998
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301.06
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1995-1996
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289.88
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1999-2000
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275.01
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1996-1997
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273.21
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2001-2002
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241.00
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1993-1994
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235.37
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2003-2004
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218.58
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1992-1993
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207.79
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1994-1995
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201.60
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2005-2006
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188.09
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Career
winning percentage
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W
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L
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Pct.
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Regular Season
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823
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512
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61.65%
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Playoffs
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76
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70
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52.05%
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