[Yahoo] Gary Payton Reports to Celtic Traning Camp After All

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_y...aA--?slug=ap-celtics-payton&prov=ap&type=lgns


Payton reports as new leader of Boston's offense

By HOWARD ULMAN, AP Sports Writer
October 5, 2004

AP - Oct 4, 4:35 pm EDT
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WALTHAM, Mass. (AP) -- Gary Payton is running the show again after playing a supporting role in the Shaq and Kobe drama in Hollywood.

Any doubts that family concerns would keep the aggressive point guard from reporting to the Celtics vanished Monday when he showed up at training camp to prepare to lead Boston's new up-tempo game and teach his young teammates how to lead the offense.

``I know I'm going to have to take a couple of them under my wing to try to make them better basketball players,'' Payton said. ``Hopefully, they can catch on really quick and we can get wins.''

That's a change from his one season with the Los Angeles Lakers, where the offense revolved around Shaquille O'Neal, now with Miami, and Kobe Bryant, two stars with an uneasy relationship. So even when Payton did bring the ball up and pass it, he didn't get it back as much as he would have liked.

``Last year it was tough for him to get tired because of the way they were playing. He was standing in the corner by himself without the ball a lot,'' said Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who noted the Lakers got away from Payton pushing the ball upcourt as the season progressed. ``Gary's a guy that likes to run the show and that's why we brought him in here''

Despite Payton's frustration with the Lakers' style, he exercised a $5.4 million option with them for the coming season. He wasn't ecstatic about leaving the West Coast, where his daughter is a high school student.

``There's always a lot of uncertainty when it's flipped on you like that,'' the 36-year-old Payton said. ``I had a lot of family issues that I had to deal with, a lot of things that I had to work out first, and I don't know where everybody got that from because nobody heard me say that I wasn't coming.''

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Rivers said he always expected Payton to report, but Danny Ainge, Boston's executive director of basketball operations, said he had some doubts. Ainge said he talked to Payton on Sunday for the first time since the trade was made on Aug. 6.

``I've known Gary for a long time and I knew that it would be a difficult decision for him,'' Ainge said, ``So, yeah, there were some anxious moments.''

But now Ainge has the ``instigator'' he thinks the Celtics need -- a physical player who drives to the basket and plays scrappy defense. Payton also provides a third scoring option to go with Paul Pierce and Ricky Davis. Payton expressed no misgivings about joining a team that has won just three playoff series in 12 seasons and was swept by Indiana in the first round last season.

``This is a basketball type of city,'' he said.

Ainge, a pesky guard on Boston's championship teams in 1984 and 1986, thinks Payton will bring his own feistiness.

``We talk a lot about toughness. We talk a lot about instigators, and Gary fits that criteria,'' Ainge said. ``He's been there before. He knows how to win and I think he can be a good influence on our team.''

Marcus Banks, who had a disappointing rookie season after being drafted in the first round last year, isn't likely to play as much now that Payton is in town.

``I'm a team player and whatever it takes for us to win a game, I'm all for it, no matter if I play or not,'' Banks said.

Payton was in the All-Star game in nine of his 14 seasons and has career averages of 18 points, 7.2 assists and 36.8 minutes per game. But last season, he averaged 14.6 points, 5.5 assists and 34.5 minutes. All were the lowest in 11 seasons.

He said he wasn't accustomed to the Lakers' offensive system after playing 12 full seasons in Seattle and 52 games there in his 13th before finishing the 2002-03 season with Milwaukee. He played all 82 Lakers games last season.

``I didn't get the chance to play the type of basketball I wanted to play,'' he said. ``Now that's over with. I feel comfortable coming here. I know it's going to be different, so it'll be back to my days when I (had) free reins to do the thing that I can do.''


Updated on Tuesday, Oct 5, 2004 12:38 am EDT

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After all his crying and b****ing he reported to training camp after all. Hey there is over $5 mill at steak... & the funniest part of the story is the part i bolded!