Gary Payton II has long been a beloved member of the Golden State Warriors, and that was one of the main motivating factors for the team to reacquire him during the 2022-23 season after initially watching him leave for the Portland Trail Blazers in free agency. Some of the best seasons of his career have been with the Warriors, and Payton won a championship with the team in 2022.
The 33-year-old swingman impacts winning, and he does so with a smile on his face that creates a positive attitude throughout the organization. That is why Payton is so valuable to the Warriors, and it's also why there is a chance he remains with Golden State through the end of his career.
However, the idea of NBA expansion, specifically to Seattle in order to bring back the SuperSonics, could change that for Payton.
Aside from being from Seattle and attending Oregon State in college, Payton's father, Gary Payton Sr., was a Hall of Famer and one of the best players in SuperSonics history. Should a Seattle franchise return, the Warriors' veteran seems serious about his joke-like trade response.
“Request a trade to Seattle,” Payton II told The Athletic when asked about his reaction to Seattle possibly getting the SuperSonics back. “Probably… I love it here so much. But if we do (have a Seattle team) when I’m still here, I definitely want to go back and play there.”
Payton spent two seasons with the Warriors from 2020 to 2022 before signing a three-year, $26 million contract with the Blazers in 2022 after Golden State's championship run. Before the trade deadline during the 2022-23 season, Payton was traded back to the Warriors, where he has played since, holding a key role on Steve Kerr's bench.
He signed a one-year minimum contract worth $3.3 million with the Warriors this past offseason.
As much as he loves playing alongside Stephen Curry and for the Warriors, Payton's roots will forever be tied to the Seattle area. That is why returning home and representing the SuperSonics, should they return, would be a dream come true for him.
“Hopefully they can do it here in a few years so I can possibly go back and put on a Seattle SuperSonics jersey,” Payton continued. “But other than that, it’s for the basketball culture. Even if I do play for them or not, it will be good for the city of Seattle and good for the NBA.”
