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By Cameron Kiszla
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It might surprise some to hear that Gary Payton, perhaps the best perimeter defender in NBA history, doesn't have his jersey retired.
But as he explained on the "Knuckleheads" podcast hosted by former NBA players Quentin Richardson and Darius Miles, it's not because of a lack of opportunity.
Instead, it's a matter of loyalty.
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'I'll never do that ever in life'
Payton, known as "the Glove," certainly had a career worth honoring.
He's in the Hall of Fame, won an NBA title in 2006 with the Miami Heat, was the Defensive Player of the Year in 1995-96 and was an All-NBA player and on the All-Defensive team nine times apiece.
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He's best known, though, as a Seattle SuperSonic, a franchise that moved halfway across the country and rebranded as the Oklahoma City Thunder.
That, he says, is the problem.
“I'm just gonna put it like this: Oklahoma City fans never watched me play a game in Oklahoma City," he said. "Who watched me play all the time? Seattle fans. Why would I disrespect the Seattle fans by going up there, getting in a celebration on a [Thunder] court, and let [the Thunder] get that when I've disrespected [Seattle]? I'll never do that ever in life."
Payton clarified that he has no animus toward the fans in Oklahoma City, which makes sense.
After all, Thunder fans weren't the ones who made the decision to uproot the team from the Pacific Northwest.
That said, celebrating with them just wouldn't be the same as celebrating with those same fans who'd been in KeyArena — now known as Climate Pledge Arena — to cheer on the SuperSonics.
"The fans in Seattle are the ones who supported me and got me to where I wanted to be," he said. "It's nothing against Oklahoma City. Nothing against it. I never played one day in Oklahoma City, so I'm not doing that. It's only right for me to respect the people in Seattle for that, and I won't do it. It is what it is, and they just have to understand it, and that's the way I'm going to be."
It's possible that if Seattle gets another NBA team as part of the expected upcoming expansion, Payton might reconsider.
But that's a big if, and there are a lot factors at play.
So for now, that No. 20 remains available for the Thunder, and it's likely to stay that way.
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