Gary Payton II is a professional basketball player from the United States of America. In 2016, he went undrafted in the 2016 NBA Draft but later signed with the NBA G-League development team, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
As of the 2023-2024 season, he plays for the Golden State Warriors in the National Basketball Association. In 2022, he became an NBA Championship alongside the rest of the Warriors team.
Player Profile and Personal Life
Gary Dwayne Payton II was born on December 1, 1992, in Seattle, Washington in the United States of America. He stands 188 cm tall and his weight was last listed at 88 kg. Payton is left-handed and he has played shooting guard, point guard, and small forward.
| Team |
Golden State Warriors
|
| Position | Point Guard |
| Height / weight | 1.88 m / 88 kg |
| Born | 1 Dec 1992 |
| Nationality |
United States
|
| Playing Style | Left Handed |
| Nickname | Young Glove |
| Team History | |
|
Golden State
|
2023 - present |
Portland
|
2022 - 2023 |
|
Golden State
|
2021 - 2022 |
| Raptors 905 | 2021 |
Washington
|
2019 - 2020 |
|
Washington
|
2019 |
| Rio Grande Valley Vipers | 2018 - 2019 |
| Capital City Go-Go | 2019 |
| Rio Grande Valley Vipers | 2019 |
| South Bay Lakers | 2019 |
Los Angeles
|
2017 - 2018 |
| South Bay Lakers | 2018 |
Milwaukee
|
2017 |
|
Los Angeles
|
2017 |
| Wisconsin Herd | 2017 |
He is the son of Gary Payton who was a professional basketball player as well and played in the NBA for the Seattle SuperSonics.
High School and College Career
Payton attended Spring Valley High School in Las Vegas, Nevada before transferring to Westwind Prep in Phoenix, Arizona.
He started his college career with the Salt Lake Community College and was there from 2012 to 2014 before eventually committing to play for Oregon State University from 2014 to 2016.
Professional Career
He started his professional career in 2016, signing with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers after he went undrafted in the 2016 NBA Draft. In 2017, he played for the Milwaukee Bucks and their G League team, the Wisconsin Herd.
In 2018, he signed a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Lakers and the South Bay Lakers. From 2018 to 2019, he returned to the Vipers. That year, he won his first NBA G League Championship.
In 2019, he signed another two-way contract, this time with the Washington Wizards and the Capital City Go-Go. That year, he also played for the Vipers again and the South Bay Lakers.
From 2019 to 2020, he was a mainstay with the Washington Wizards. In 2021, he returned to the G League to play for the Raptors 905. That year, he was named the NBA G League Defensive Player of the Year. Also in 2021, he was named to the NBA G League All-Defensive Team.
That same year, he joined the Golden State Warriors for the first time and he helped them win the 2022 NBA Championships. For the 2022-2023 season, he played for the Portland Trail Blazers before returning to Golden State.
Career Highlights
- 2022 - NBA champion
- 2019 - NBA G League champion
- 2021 - NBA G League Defensive Player of the Year
- 2021 - NBA G League All-Defensive Team
- 2021 - NBA G League steals leader
- 2016 - AP Honorable Mention All-American
- 2015, 2016 - First-team All-Pac-12
- 2015, 2016 - Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year
- 2015, 2016 - Pac-12 All-Defensive Team
