Gary Payton Makes his Christmas Day NBA Picks
by Charles Jay
BetFlix, the great new video channel by BetUS.com, is proud to have veteran NBA guard Gary Payton as an advisor and expert for its pro basketball coverage. This week, Payton makes his selections for the high-profile NBA games on Christmas Day, as the Boston Celtics take on the Orlando Magic, while LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers visit the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, marking a return of Shaquille O'Neal to the Staples Center.
You need to listen, because this man knows whereof he speaks. The 41-year-old Payton is a future Hall of Fame player, having spent 17 years in the NBA, and he has left a legacy behind that few can match.
Payton's stock in trade was his defense, for which he was first recognized for his extraordinary ability. In fact, he was the first and only point guard ever to win the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year. Known as "The Glove," he was a valuable component of any team's defensive setup, a she made life difficult for the opposing point guard or top backcourt scorer.
Drafted second overall by the Seattle SuperSonics in 1990, it took a while for Payton to get his footing, but he eventually developed into a star at both ends of the court, and really blossomed in the 1993-94 season, when he averaged 16.5 points and six assists and made the first of his nine All-Star appearances, and also his first of nine selections to the league's All-Defensive team, and was the highest vote-getter for the defensive team in 1999 and 2000. Payton averaged more than 20 points a game in seven different seasons, and actually had a high of 6.5 rebounds per game with Seattle in the 1999-2000 season.
He spent the first twelve seasons of his career, and part of a thirteenth, with the Sonics, then moved on to Milwaukee, the Lakers, Boston and the Miami Heat before calling it a career in 2007. He was part of the Miami team that won the NBA title in 2006, and has won not one, but two Olympic medals - 1996 in Atlanta and 2000 in Sydney.
He has led the NBA at least once in such diverse categories of assists, steals and three-pointers. He is among the top ten all-time in assists, steals, games and minutes played. He holds all major records for the SuperSonics franchise, which has since relocated to Oklahoma City, but his loyalty is to the city of Seattle, where he wants his retired jersey number to stay. He is very active in community and charity efforts through his Gary Payton Foundation.
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