Welcome to the NBA 75, The Athletic’s countdown of the 75 best players in NBA history, in honor of the league’s diamond anniversary. From Nov. 1 through Feb. 18, we’ll unveil a new player on the list every weekday except for Dec. 27-31, culminating with the man picked by a panel of The Athletic NBA staff members as the greatest of all time.
Gary Payton was rarely quiet on the basketball court during his Hall of Fame career. He was big loud — both with this game and with his mouth. His bellowing and his cackling echoed throughout the arenas around the NBA. Didn’t matter if you had just scored on him, or if he shut you down from even thinking about trying to score.
That’s why on Feb. 17, 1999, it was so shocking to see Payton momentarily silenced by a rookie. “GP” was on his way to a sixth consecutive NBA All-Defensive First Team selection when Jason Williams and the Sacramento Kings came to town. Williams hit Payton with a moment that just left the Oakland product with a big grin on his face.
The Jason Williams experience in Sacramento was in full swing. Williams, a rookie, was part of a Kings revival that hadn’t happened since Oscar Robertson was laying the cobblestones in Cincinnati for Russell Westbrook to traverse. The Kings were fun because of Chris Webber and Vlade Divac, but they were electrifying because of Williams.
