- published: 02 Sep 2013
- views: 1058643
Gary Dwayne Payton (born July 23, 1968) is an American former professional basketball point guard. He is best known for his 13-year tenure with the Seattle SuperSonics, and holds Seattle franchise records in points, assists, and steals. He has also played with the Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics and Miami Heat, the last with whom he won an NBA championship. He was nicknamed "The Glove" for his excellent defensive ability. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on September 8, 2013.
Payton is widely considered one of the best of all time point guards and is the only point guard that has won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award. He was selected to the NBA All-Defensive First Team nine times, an NBA record he shares with Michael Jordan, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant. He was also a nine-time NBA All-Star and a nine-time All-NBA Team member. Payton got his nickname "The Glove" when Payton's cousin Glenn 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.
Kenneth "Kenny" Smith, nicknamed "The Jet" (born March 8, 1965) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association and went on to become a TV basketball analyst, primarily for Inside the NBA on TNT and for CBS/Turner during the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.
Smith was born in Jamaica, Queens, New York and grew up in Lefrak City. He attended Archbishop Molloy, where he was coached by the legendary Jack Curran, the winningest coach in New York City and New York State history. Smith graduated in 1983 and then played basketball at the University of North Carolina for Dean Smith. In his young career he played for the New York Riverside Church.
Smith was selected as a 6'3" 170 lb point guard by the Sacramento Kings with the sixth pick of the 1987 NBA draft. He played in the NBA from 1987 to 1997 as a member of the Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, and Denver Nuggets. In his professional career, Smith scored 9,397 points and recorded 4,073 assists. He won two NBA championships with the Rockets in 1994 and 1995. In the first game of the 1995 Finals against the Orlando Magic, Smith made seven three-pointers, including a game-tying shot which sent the game into overtime. The Rockets won the game 120–118.
Kobe Bean Bryant (born August 23, 1978) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He entered the NBA directly from high school, and he has played for the Lakers his entire career, winning five NBA championships. Bryant is an 18-time All-Star, 15-time member of the All-NBA Team, and 12-time member of the All-Defensive team. He has led the league in scoring twice, and he ranks third on both the league's all-time regular season scoring and all-time postseason scoring lists. After beginning his 20th season with the Lakers in 2015–16, which set an NBA record for the most seasons with the same team, Bryant announced that he would retire after the season.
The son of former NBA player Joe Bryant, Kobe Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania, where he was recognized as the top high school basketball player in the country. He declared for the NBA draft upon graduation, and was selected with the 13th overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the Charlotte Hornets, who traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers. As a rookie, Bryant earned himself a reputation as a high-flyer and a fan favorite by winning the 1997 Slam Dunk Contest, and he was named an All-Star by his second season. Despite a feud between them, Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal led the Lakers to three consecutive championships from 2000 to 2002.
Gary Payton's Top 10 Plays of his Career
[HD] Gary Payton - ULTIMATE MIX Ⓒ 2016
Gary Payton - "Looking Back At"
Most Underrated Player in College Basketball || Oregon State PG Gary Payton II 2015-16 Highlights ᴴᴰ
Gary Payton Roasts Kenny Smith
Gary Payton II has Made a Name for Himself at Oregon State
Gary Payton's Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Speech
Gary Payton - Sonic Pride
Gary Payton : Lockdown Defense Breakdown
Kobe Bryant "Age 19" Almost Fights Gary Payton, Blocks His Shot
How could something that means so much to me mean so little to you?
I can't believe you could walk away, leave this so easily
Blinded by the stars in your fucking eyes
I'll tear them out and replace them with something real
Teach you to feel how I fucking feel
So tell me how does it feel to fuck yourself up?
So follow, please follow me through this just take my hand