The Golden State Warriors received a boost when Gary Payton II returned to the rotation for Game 2 of the 2022 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics. Payton played 25 minutes off the bench and had seven points, three rebounds and three assists while providing stellar defense. The Warriors outscored the Celtics by 15 points in his time on the floor in a dominant victory.

It was Payton's first action back since he fractured his elbow in the second round against the Memphis Grizzlies. The Warriors guard took a hard hit from Dillon Brooks, which many labeled as dirty. However, Payton has been adamant that it wasn't, and his Hall of Fame father, Gary Payton, agrees.

Payton spoke to Prince J. Grimes of For The Win before Game 2 about the injury:

“It’s just basketball. I know people that take it as different because they seen [Dillon Brooks] jump a little later. And then he hit him across his head. My son would just tell you he landed wrong. He didn’t brace himself the right way. But when his hand came down, it locked instead of bending. And that’s what caused the injury. It’s basketball.”

Payton had more to say about happened to the Warriors guard:

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Warriors guard Gary Payton II with medical kit next to him

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On left, Mavericks' Luka Doncic and Mavericks' Kyrie Irving both shooting basketballs. On right, need Rockets' Dillon Brooks breathing fire at Luka and Kyrie. Also place Rockets' Ime Udoka next to Brooks.

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“Everybody’s got to understand, man, that it’s a contact sport. It is what it is. If you push him out of the air in the stands or something like that, then I would’ve been kind of upset. But it was a basketball play. The kid Brooks is, you know, he’s just a competitor. He jumped too late. It was something that shouldn’t have been done, jumping late, but he’s not thinking that way. I don’t think he thought at that moment, let me hurt him. It wasn’t like that. And I just think it was unfortunate.”

Payton is happy with what his son has done for the Warriors this season, and he's hoping “they can get a championship and he can get some benefit out of it.” Based on what happened in Game 2, it sure looks like GP2 will be playing a key role the rest of this series. If he can keep making an impact, the Dubs will have a better chance of winning another title, and Gary Payton will be a proud papa.