Nine-time NBA All-Star Gary Payton, Oregon State's all-time leader in points, assists and steals, was honored Saturday night by his alma mater before the Beavers took on the California Golden Bears.
The second overall pick in the 1990 draft by the Seattle SuperSonics spent the first 13 of his 17 seasons in Seattle, and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Sept. 8, 2013.
At his OSU media availability, Payton talked about his work with the league and as an analyst for Fox Sports 1. The two-time Olympic Gold medalist also disclosed why he's not going to coach in the NBA.
"People want me to go into coaching, but I don't like this basketball as it is right now in the NBA, so I don't want to coach. I want to do the things that make me happy," Payton said.
Happiness is broadcasting right now, he noted, but was was asked to elaborate on what he doesn't like about today's NBA (and boy, does he ever!):
"Basically everything. It's no defense, it's just run and gun. To me, there's only three point guards in the NBA that impress me; I got Chris Paul, Rondo, and another kid that I like a lot and I forgot his name right now. Oh, and Tony Parker. That's only three NBA players in there.
There's too much touch fouls. Every time you touch and they stay on the free throw line. That's no way to watch basketball. When we were playing, it was rough and tough. Even superstars like me fouled out a lot. That's because they let people play, and if you do something then you call it. But nowadays it's not like that and this is the era.
This is what kids want to see. You see these Playstations, they scoring 50 and 60 with one player, that's what they want to see on TV and I don't go with that. My era, give me one-on-one with somebody and stop him and right now you can't do that with a player because if you touch him he's going to the foul line and you're fouling out. Let him be rough. If he got an opportunity to go at you in the offensive end, let me go at him on the defensive end and rough him up. So that's the way I like basketball and I don't think it's like that.
Well, that certainly is a lengthy list. Asked whether he has addressed his feelings, Payton said he does it all the time:
"Even though I work for the NBA, I'm just a guy from the old school."
[h/t Sekou Smith at Hang Time]
