The Index · Legend
Gary PaytonSeattle SuperSonics · #20
Gary Payton is a retired guard and Hall of Famer who starred for the Seattle SuperSonics. The Glove — the only point guard to win DPOY. Career averages: 16.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game.
Balladex Impact · 75
G
⬢ Rare
Seattle SuperSonics · #20 · Guard
Gary Payton
Season avg5.3 pts · 1.9 reb · 3.0 ast · .393 fg
Career avg16.3 pts · 4.0 reb · 6.7 ast · .462 fg
IMPACTBalladex Impact 75 — Star starter tierINDEXGary Payton · Seattle SuperSonicsIMPACTBalladex Impact 75 — Star starter tierINDEXGary Payton · Seattle SuperSonics
Scouting report
Gary Payton — the report card
Read his whole game at a glance, then dive into any skill. Grades from the DNA model + real production.
B-
Hall of Fame guard · Impact 75
Gary Payton is a retired guard and Hall of Famer who starred for the Seattle SuperSonics. The Glove — the only point guard to win DPOY. Career average
C+
OffenseC-
DefenseC
Feel / IQC+
Playmaking
Average creator
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B-
Scoring
Strong scorer
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D
Rebounding
Below average on the glass
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C
3PT / spacing
Average spacing
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C
Perimeter D
Average on the perimeter
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F
Paint / rim D
Below average at the rim
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C
Clutch
Average late
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C+
Athleticism
Strong tools
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C
Basketball IQ
Reads the game
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A
Durability
Availability
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Act II
Where Gary Payton stands
Live ladders from the Balladex models, and what he's chasing. Rankings recompute nightly from real production, accolades, and search demand.
The laddersmodel · recomputes nightly
✦ Balladex Consensus: Star starter tier — a blend of Impact, production and résumé.
Futures & chases
—MVP odds
75Impact index
472Star score
Career scoring average16.3 ppg
Seasons in the index17
Accolades on file4
1× NBA Champion · 1× Defensive Player of the Year
Stat explorer
Gary Payton — every number, three levels deep
Headline → metric → the raw history behind it. Real career data; tracking-only metrics labeled.
B-
Scoring
5.3 PPG
drill in ↓
C+
Playmaking
3.0 APG
drill in ↓
D
Rebounding
1.9 RPG
drill in ↓
C
Shooting
.260 3P%
drill in ↓
The engine
How the model sees Gary Payton
Projection = per-minute rate × projected minutes. Rates are recency- and health-weighted, aged along a per-stat curve, and adjusted for live usage/role. No black box — every number shows its work.
Projected 2007-08 74% confidence
4.4
pts
2.8–6.0
1.7
reb
1.0–2.4
2.7
ast
2.0–3.4
20.2
min
proj
74
gp
health
.424
fg%
~base
.289
3p%
~base
Bands widen as confidence drops. Derived live from the real 17-season history below.
What moves the points line vs last season
Last season 5.3 → projected 4.4 PPG
Minutes / role
-0.5
Development (his trend)
-0.5
Age curve
+0.0
Live context
+0.1
Net vs last season-0.9 PPG
Everything it reads
📊
17 seasons of per-minute rates
every box line, minutes-normalized
real
⚖
Recency × games-played weight
recent, healthy seasons anchor the baseline
auto
📈
Weighted least-squares trend
his own trajectory, read season over season
+dev
🕰
Per-stat aging curves
age — — applied per stat
curve
🔌
Live role context
usage & role shifts fold in when the feed is present
+ctx
🏥
Durability signal
GP last 3: 77 / 81 / 68 → games & confidence
health
The real history it trains onsource: Basketball-Reference · verified
Gary Payton career stats, season by season
| Season | GP | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-91 | 82 | 27.4 | 7.2 | 3.0 | 6.4 | .450 | |
| 1991-92 | 81 | 31.5 | 9.4 | 3.6 | 6.2 | .451 | .130 |
| 1992-93 | 82 | 31.1 | 13.5 | 3.4 | 4.9 | .494 | .206 |
| 1993-94 | 82 | 35.1 | 16.5 | 3.3 | 6.0 | .504 | .278 |
| 1994-95 | 82 | 36.8 | 20.6 | 3.4 | 7.1 | .509 | .302 |
| 1995-96 | 81 | 39.0 | 19.3 | 4.2 | 7.5 | .484 | .328 |
| 1996-97 | 82 | 39.2 | 21.8 | 4.6 | 7.1 | .476 | .313 |
| 1997-98 | 82 | 38.4 | 19.2 | 4.6 | 8.3 | .453 | .338 |
| 1998-99 | 50 | 40.2 | 21.7 | 4.9 | 8.7 | .434 | .295 |
| 1999-00 | 82 | 41.8 | 24.2 | 6.5 | 8.9 | .448 | .340 |
| 2000-01 | 79 | 41.1 | 23.1 | 4.6 | 8.1 | .456 | .375 |
| 2001-02 | 82 | 40.3 | 22.1 | 4.8 | 9.0 | .467 | .314 |
| 2002-03 | 80 | 40.1 | 20.4 | 4.2 | 8.3 | .454 | .297 |
| 2003-04 | 82 | 34.5 | 14.6 | 4.2 | 5.5 | .471 | .333 |
| 2004-05 | 77 | 33.0 | 11.3 | 3.1 | 6.1 | .468 | .326 |
| 2005-06 CHIP | 81 | 28.5 | 7.7 | 2.9 | 3.2 | .420 | .287 |
| 2006-07 | 68 | 22.1 | 5.3 | 1.9 | 3.0 | .393 | .260 |
| Career | 1335 | 35.3 | 16.3 | 4.0 | 6.7 |
Source: Basketball-Reference. Backtested against completed player-seasons in the index. The same engine powers Tonight's projection, EraLab, and the role simulator — one model, asked different questions. Illustrative.
Act III
The Lab
Every number, live and interactive. Real career data; models labeled.
Gold = MVP / Championship season · hover any bar. Real per-game data; per-36 & totals derived.
EraLab · the stat time machinenovel
Re-express a season in today's pace-and-space.
—raw PPG
→
—in 2026 pace
why
Player DNA + compssimilarity model
Scoring map · clickable zonesShotChart
Team-tinted. Modeled where tracking data is absent.
Role simulatorpowered by GM engine
Change the roster around him — his projection updates live.
Projected line shifts to — usage , assists rise as primary initiator. Title odds . Illustrative.
Context
Are the Seattle SuperSonics built to win?
Team projection rolled up from the roster + last-season baselines — and what it means for his role.
41–41proj record
+0.0net index
50off index
50def index
94pace
Aggressive hedge & helpscheme
Roster delta · what changed
Aggressive hedge & help — Hedges hard on ball screens and rotates aggressive help from the weak side. Defensive anchors: —.
How his role moves
Primary guard role on a team grading 50 offense / 50 defense. No calibrated baseline for this team yet — record is modeled.
Balladex Impact
75 of 99
Star starter tier.
Rarity
◆ Rare
Rank #78 of 715 in NBA.
Résumé
4 accolades
1× NBA Champion · 1× Defensive Player of the Year · 9× NBA All-Star
Act IV
The Ballad of Gary Payton
Birth to now — the making of a legend, narrated and scored.
Seattle SuperSonics
Turning pro
Drafted 1990 as a Guard.
true
Gary Payton is one of the NBA's all-time greats. The Glove — the only point guard to win DPOY.
Chapter
Over a Hall of Fame career he averaged 16.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 6.7 assists and won 1 championship.
Where things stand
A Hall of Fame guard and Seattle SuperSonics legend.
▶
▶
Payton's story
The documentary, narrated
Highlights
▶
Walk-up: The Glove
Tap to play his entrance
Off the court
Measurables ESPN
- Height
- 6' 4"
- Weight
- 190 lbs
- College
- Oregon State
- NBA debut
- 1990
- Draft
- 1990
- Jersey
- #20
Legacy
The Glove — the only point guard to win DPOY.
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The person
A Hall of Fame guard and Seattle SuperSonics legend.
Hall of Fame
Seattle SuperSonics
Champion
Verified profiles & sources
FAQ
Gary Payton — frequently asked
The questions people ask most about Gary Payton, answered.
What were Gary Payton's career averages?
Gary Payton averaged 16.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game over his career.
Is Gary Payton in the Hall of Fame?
Yes — Gary Payton is enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and won 1 NBA championship.
Gary Payton career stats & accolades are real, and team projections and recent-game home/away splits are computed from real production. DNA ratings, grades, tonight's projection, ladders, live win probability and simulator outputs are Balladex model output. Not affiliated with the NBA.
