Gary Payton Quotes

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Gary Payton

Profession : Athlete

Birth : July 23, 1968

Kobe Bryant, to me, is still the best basketball player in my mind. He played with me and he was in my era. I still love him to death. He's a little brother to me.

Gary Payton

I became real good friends with John Stockton and Karl Malone and am still good friends with them to this day. It was always good to go see them and then play with them in the 1996 Olympics as well. I idolized John Stockton at the time, I tried to model my game after him.

Gary Payton

Xavier McDaniel made me respect him. I thought I could do anything I wanted to. He grabbed me one time and almost choked me out. He said, 'You're going to do this. You're going to go get coffee. You're going to go get doughnuts.' It's a game of respect.

Gary Payton

I want to be the black Dick Vitale.

Gary Payton

You make sacrifices. You sacrifice yourself. Do you want to possibly win a championship? Or do you want to be the same person you were when you were 20 and get those same numbers?

Gary Payton

When you talk back to me and say something to me it made my game go to another level.

Gary Payton

Don't hate, just play better, and then get that money.

Gary Payton

I would never have wanted to play with Magic Johnson, I would never have wanted to play with Michael Jordan, I would never have wanted to play with Karl Malone or John Stockton in my prime. We wanted to play against the Shaqs, the Kobes.

Gary Payton

You don't hear about me being at parties, going out and gettin' drunk.

Gary Payton

I haven't gotten in any trouble off the floor.

Gary Payton

I've always liked Deron Williams because has the same mentality as me.

Gary Payton

Wilt Chamberlain, by far, is my best basketball player. Best athlete ever.

Gary Payton

Tim Hardaway was a guy who had his crossover and then he could shoot a jump shot and he could get to the bucket.

Gary Payton

I'm not a jealous guy.

Gary Payton

You can't regret anything - it's over with.

Gary Payton

George Gervin was my childhood idol since I was little. In Oakland I had all his posters on my wall.

Gary Payton

I want to finish my career in Seattle but it's rocky.

Gary Payton

Money and all that stuff doesn't equal a ring, because you'll always be in the books as winning a championship and being on one of the best teams ever to play the game.

Gary Payton

I've already gotten the big paychecks. I'll be fine.

Gary Payton

People always talk about first-ballot Hall of Famer and all that stuff, but it doesn't really make a difference. Once you get in there, you're a Hall of Famer. It doesn't matter if you get in on the first, second or third ballot. It's the same thing.

Gary Payton