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Gary Payton unbothered by potential snags for NBA returning SuperSonics in expansion plan. “There’s a lot of talk. The government over there in Seattle is going to be fine. Seattle will be back with Las Vegas, so I’m not really worried about none of what they’re talking about. We’ll work it all out. There’s nothing that’s going to snag them. The ownership with Tod Leiweke and all them, we’re going to be fine. I’m just excited for them to get back. We should’ve never lost it but we’re gonna be back.”
Gary Payton on his difference between his and Knicks All-Star Jalen Brunson's skill set. “He’s a scorer. I was both ends of the floor, playing defense, doing other things. In this era of basketball, you can get so much as a scorer because you get a lot of calls. You get a lot of ability to do it. In our era (1990s-2000s). I think we were a little bit more rougher. We would’ve trapped him a bit more and made it harder for him to get the basketball in his hands, and then when he got the ball, we wouldn’t have let him go one-on-one and get all the way into the paint and bump you and hit you. He’s too good for that when he gets you in the paint, that he’s going to score. He dribbles 20 times and nobody comes to help, leaving one man on the island. That’s crazy to me. … If they’re going to let him keep doing it, keep doing it.”
Gary Payton: On retiring after joining Shaquille O’Neal, Miami Heat to win 2006 NBA title. “I said, ‘I got about three or four more years left. Where would be a good place for me to go?’ I was going to call it a day. Then Shaq called me and said, ‘Hey, we got something down here. We only need someone like you to come guide us and we’ll win.’ Pat Riley came in and the (Heat) owner Micky Arison were like, ‘We’ve been wanting you for years. Come on in and guide us.’ When I went in and guided them, we struggled from the beginning, then Pat took over (as coach) and we started playing the way we were supposed to play, and then won the championship. It’s joyful holding up that Larry O’Brien Trophy and kiss it with champagne all over you. It was a great feeling and then I said, ‘Now it’s time for me to move aside,' and this is my legacy.'”
NBA Courtside: Gary Payton on LeBrons future: “There’s a good shot if he leaves, he’s going to Golden State. I’m telling you he’s coming to Golden State if he leaves” (Via @NightcapShow_)
Gary Payton on LeBrons future:
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) May 12, 2026
“There’s a good shot if he leaves, he’s going to Golden State. I’m telling you he’s coming to Golden State if he leaves”
(Via @NightcapShow_) pic.twitter.com/CvkkoUw4LN
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Q: You spent time with Moses Malone before your first NBA game and, unlike other players who did not embrace you, he was always supportive. Were there any other players who supported you like that? LeBron James: The best guys that were in my corner when I first came out of the draft were J-Kidd, Moses Malone, Ken Griffey Jr., Gary Payton. Every time I saw them, it was just always love and support. There was no hating. Obviously I don't know what they did behind closed doors, but I can say that when I see them, still to this day -- except the late, great Moses -- it's been the same energy every single time. That meant a lot because I grew up watching Griff, wanting to be great like Griff in my respective sport. Watching GP and J-Kidd, watching those guys. Having respect for the legacy of the older guys, and Moses, of course I didn't watch him when I was a kid, but I knew what legends brought to the game. And it was probably a couple more guys, but I know those four guys were there if I needed to talk to them. If I needed to reach out to them, if I needed something, they were always respectful and were an open book. So that was pretty dope for me, being a kid from Akron.
“I think he’s going to do one more year,” said Payton in a one-on-one interview with R.org. “I think LeBron — because I know about his ego — he has to really feel that he can’t play in this league anymore. I don’t think he feels that way. I think he feels he can still dominate. But what the things that he does with his body is a lot different because what he does with his body is he takes care of it. Once he starts feeling it, I don’t think he’s going to let himself go down. I don’t think he’ll let himself be looking like a fool or anything.”
“I think he’s got about one or two more years left in his body,” said Payton of James. “I don’t think he wants to move anywhere. People talking about where he’s going to end up. That’s not what LeBron is about right now. I think it’s about comfortability, about how his daughter — which is the only one still left in the house — and how his wife wants to be. I don’t think they want to be in the cold. I think they think they’re very comfortable in Los Angeles and that’s where they’re going to be. I think he’s going to stay here and try to work something out with the Lakers.”
“The city is a city where people say it rains all the time, but it’s a family city,” said Payton. "It’s all good. If you looked at every player that played in Seattle during the time, they were always saying, ‘Man, it’s a great city.’ They always want to come back there. It’s a hell of a city. I think that everybody just doesn’t understand that. Especially when summers comes, we got all the boats, we got all the fishing. We got everything. “It’s a city where you can go and walk down the walk down the downtown and go shopping and do things like that,” Payton continued. “A good tourist situation, good food, good eats. They got a lot of good things going on around there. People have to understand, you got to see our city to understand what it is. I’s not just a city of rain, it's a city of love.”
“It was just one of the things that they wanted me to help out and get this team better, especially with Porter, who everybody knows had the trouble with with the NBA,” said Payton. "We’re just trying to revamp him and revamp this team, which is a good team. They’re a very good basketball team and especially with Porter – young kids make mistakes. I’m saying that everybody make mistakes. If we didn’t make mistakes, we’d be perfect, and then we can be in the Guinness Book of World Records. But we’re not, so that’s what it is. It's just that. “We’re just trying to help out here, and it’s a good thing for our city, especially with the Sonics coming back,” Payton continued. “This program is coming where it’s gonna be really great for us.”
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The Seattle SuperHawks are heading into their fourth season as a professional team that competes in a developmental league. Bringing more than 12 years of NBA assistant coaching experience and NBA playing experience is Robert Pack. Pack has been named head coach of the SuperHawks. The standout point guard delivered several memorable performances during his pro career as a player on several squads, including the Denver Nuggets and the Dallas Mavericks.
Pack and former Seattle SuperSonics star point guard Gary Payton stopped by the KING 5 studios on Saturday to talk about their new coaching roles. Payton has gotten the nod to serve as an assistant coach for the SuperHawks. Both Pack and Payton said they are thrilled to help young athletes get their shot and make their dreams a reality. "The guys are practicing hard. You're going to see guys who didn't have the opportunity to be drafted," Pack said. "We're looking forward to a good start to the season."
How many times have you watched Damian Lillard hit a defender with a dribble jab, create separation and hit a 3-pointer? That bar perfectly encapsulated his hip-hop and basketball skills. “Wasatch Front” was a defining moment for Lillard. “What’s Up Doc? (Can We Rock?)” was a defining moment for O’Neal. When we talk about hip-hop meshing with basketball players, those two provided the blueprint. The list is longer than some may assume. There was Cedric Ceballos in the early 1990s. Gary Payton, Chris Webber and Allen Iverson all dabbled in the genre. The late, great Kobe Bryant put out a memorable collaboration with R&B superstar Brian McKnight, “Hold Me,” in 1997.
The Heat at Tuesday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks at Kaseya Center will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the franchise’s first championship, won in 2006. Expected in attendance for the night, which will offer a halftime presentation and other game elements of commemoration, are 2006 Heat champions Earl Barron, Michael Doleac, Udonis Haslem, Jason Kapono, Alonzo Mourning, Shaquille O’Neal, Gary Payton, Wayne Simien, Dwyane Wade, Antoine Walker, and Dorell Wright. Fellow Heat 2006 champions Jason Williams, James Posey, Derek Anderson and Shandon Anderson will not be in attendance.