Michael Jordan is widely known as one of the greatest trash talkers of all time, but even he couldn’t match this $50 million worth NBA legend.
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Who is this legend? You might know him as ‘The Glove.’ That’s right, Gary Payton wasn’t just a defensive wizard, he was also one of the best trash talkers in the game. Payton’s current net worth is $50 million.
Payton went at it against some of the greatest guards in the 1990s, including matching up with Michael Jordan several times. The two even played in the Finals in 1996.
Gary Payton always looked forward to matching up against the game’s greatest, and the 1996 Finals gave him the perfect opportunity to go against his favorite matchup.
Things didn’t go well for Payton and the SuperSonics as the Bulls completed the greatest NBA season in history, adding a ring to their then record 72 win season.
However, Payton’s reputation as a defensive wizard can’t go unnoticed. He finished his career ranked fourth in steals all-time, and he was the first point guard to win Defensive Player of the Year.
Gary Payton knew how to trash talk better than Michael Jordan
We’ve all heard the stories of how Jordan could get into the heads of his opponents at will. After all, those ‘And I took it personally’ memes didn’t come out of nowhere.
However, he may have had a thing or two to learn from Gary Payton. Payton was a master at it. Everyone who’s gone against Payton has had great things to say about his trash talking game.
Shaq said, “The craziest thing about GP on the court, he was like that off the court. If he saw you in the mall…”remember that time I crossed you up big fella and I gave you that thang and you almost pulled your arm out of the socket…you can’t guard me boy, I’m a Hall of Famer, I’m first ballot boy, I’m first ballot!”
Payton didn’t spare Michael Jordan either, even as a rookie. In his first preseason game, Payton went at it against the future NBA GOAT.
“It was an experience,” he said. “And I had to go against Michael Jordan and had a good game. When it came to the season Michael Jordan remembered and at the first tip ball he said, ‘hey, I got the young fella’. He said don’t forget I remembered about preseason and what you did and he had 35 on me.”
He wouldn’t hesitate to make things personal either. He would target player’s mothers, sisters, and if they had just had an incident drunk driving, he would go after that too.
