“You Got Kevin Johnson Like a Baseball in a Glove”: Gary Payton Relayed the Origin Story of His Iconic Nickname to Kevin Garnett

Ever wondered how Gary Payton got the nickname “The Glove”? During his January 2023 appearance on Showtime Basketball’s ‘KG Certified with Kevin Garnett’, the former Super Sonics guard revealed that it was in the 1993 Playoffs when he got this enticing moniker. The #2 pick during the 1990 Draft was in his third season of pro career and had already turned heads with his defense. A curious Garnett asked the 2006 champion how he got “The Glove” nickname.

The 9x All-Star opened the history vault and took him back to the 1993 Playoffs. It was the year when the Phoenix Suns reached the NBA Finals but had to fight through pesky Supersonics in the Western Conference Finals. Kevin Johnson and Charles Barkley were a formidable duo for the Suns but the Sonics held their own against the team with the best record in the league. Payton was one of the reasons why the series went to seven games.

“At that time, Kevin Johnson was a premier Point Guard. Remember he was averaging 27[points]. He had just got First Team All-League. I’m holding him to 14-12 points. My cousin called me after the game, ‘Glove Glove Glove!’ I’m like, ‘who the heck is this man?’ but he dropped the phone,” revealed Gary Payton.

The guard was confused about who randomly spoke “Glove” on his phone. It was his cousin Glenn who had given him the nickname. Payton then revealed that Glenn and his friends called him “Glove” because he had “Kevin Johnson like a baseball in a glove so tight around him that he can’t even move.”

 

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This made a lot of sense to the 1996 steals leader who acknowledged that he indeed plays defense like a glove. He added, “We started putting gear. We started doing this[grabs his right hand from wrist for Glove symbol]. Nate Macmillan came up with this and then all of a sudden we started selling everything in the NBA. The NBA took off with that nickname.”

The Glove indeed took care of business against Kevin Johnson. He held him to 15.7 points a game in the 1993 WCF. During Game 4, Johnson shot just 2/11 which was a rarity considering how he was one of those guards who shot over 50% regularly. This is why Payton’s cousin was in awe of his defense and could sense the start of something special.

During the 1993-94 season, Payton made his first All-Defensive Team which followed eight more selections in a row. He also displayed his defensive heroics against Michael Jordan during the 1996 Finals. He left significant imprints in the league and won the Defensive Player of the Year Award in 1996. 

The Glove changed the defensive landscape of the league

The Glove didn’t merely earn plaudits from family and fans, his influence was closely felt by his peers. That’s why Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett picked his brain early on in their careers. KG once revealed how Payton taught them some nuances of the craft. KG conveyed,

“He[Payton] went through a 30-minute joint with both of us with defense. Keeping us between the leg and reaching and how to reach up. Just little tricks of the trade. Next time I saw Kobe after the break, he was using ‘em. Became first-team[All-Defensive First Team] that year.”

In his 2018 book The Mamba Mentality: How I Play, The Black Mamba also acknowledged the contributions of Payton in becoming a “great defensive player”. He discussed approaching the Glove during the 2000 All-Star Game.

The then 22-year-old Bryant asked the 1996 steals leader how to fight through screens and Payton advised him to “move your[his] puppies”, imploring him to move his feet quickly. The former Lakers guard credits this advice as a huge reason why he made nine All-Defensive First Teams.