Elfrid Payton (basketball)

Elfrid Payton

Payton in 2014
No. 4 – Orlando Magic
Position Point guard
League NBA
Personal information
Born (1994-02-22) February 22, 1994
Gretna, Louisiana
Nationality American
Listed height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight 185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High school John Ehret
(Jefferson Parish, Louisiana)
College Louisiana–Lafayette (2011–2014)
NBA draft 2014 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10th overall
Selected by the Philadelphia 76ers
Playing career 2014–present
Career history
2014–present Orlando Magic
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  United States
FIBA World U19 Championship
2013 Czech Republic National team

Elfrid Payton Jr. (born February 22, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball at University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where in 2014 he won the Lefty Driesell Award as national college defensive player of the year. He is the son of former Canadian Football League player Elfrid Payton.[1] He was drafted with the 10th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft.

College career

Louisiana–Lafayette (2011–2014)

Payton was an unheralded recruit from John Ehret High School in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. The 6'2.5" point guard chose to attend Louisiana–Lafayette, and after a promising freshman season in 2011–12, Payton came into his own as a sophomore in 2012–13. He averaged 15.9 points, 5.5 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game[1] and was named first team All-Sun Belt Conference.[2]

After his breakout sophomore season, Payton was a late addition to Team USA's U19 World Championships Trials Roster to compete in the 2013 FIBA Under-19 World Championship. After making the team, Payton started in all nine games for Team USA, on a team loaded with talent including other players such as Marcus Smart, Aaron Gordon, Jahlil Okafor and Jarnell Stokes. The team ultimately defeated the Serbian team led by Vasilije Micić and won the gold medal, going 9–0 in the tournament.[3]

As a junior in 2013–14, Payton emerged as one of the top defensive players in college basketball. He raised his averages to 19.2 points, 5.9 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game and led the Ragin' Cajuns to the 2014 NCAA Tournament. He was again named first team All-Sun Belt and was the conference Defensive Player of the Year. At the end of the season, he earned national defensive player of the year by winning the Lefty Driesell Award.[4]

In April 2014, Payton declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final year of college eligibility.[5]

College statistics

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2011–12 Louisiana–Lafayette 32 10 22.7 .448 .000 .564 3.6 3.0 1.2 .3 7.2
2012–13 Louisiana–Lafayette 33 33 35.5 .475 .320 .643 5.6 5.5 2.4 .6 15.9
2013–14 Louisiana–Lafayette 35 35 35.9 .509 .259 .609 6.0 5.9 2.3 .6 19.2
Career 100 78 31.6 .485 .268 .611 5.1 4.9 2.0 .5 14.3

Professional career

Orlando Magic (2014–present)

On June 26, 2014, Payton was selected with the 10th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. He was traded to the Orlando Magic on draft night for Dario Šarić, a future first-round pick, and a future second-round pick.[6] On July 2, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Magic.[7] On January 16, 2015, Payton had a season-best game with 22 points and 12 assists in a loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. He was subsequently named the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for January and was named a Rising Stars Challenge participant.[8][9] On March 18, he recorded his first career triple-double with 15 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds in a loss to the Dallas Mavericks.[10] With a second straight triple-double recorded by Payton on March 20, he became the first Magic player to post consecutive triple-doubles and the first NBA rookie to do it since Antoine Walker, with the Boston Celtics in 1997. Payton's 22 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists helped the Magic claim a 111–104 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.[11]

On November 18, 2015, Payton scored a career-high 24 points in a 104–101 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.[12] Payton appeared in 116 straight games to begin his career before a left ankle injury forced him to sit out four games in early January 2016. He returned to action on January 14 in London to face the Toronto Raptors, coming off the bench for the first time in 2015–16 and recording four points and four rebounds in a 106–103 overtime loss.[13] On March 23, 2016, he recorded his third career triple-double with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a 118–102 loss to the Detroit Pistons.[14]

International career

In the summer of 2013, Payton was a surprise selection to the United States team for the 2013 FIBA Under-19 World Championship. He averaged 6.1 points and 3.3 rebounds per game in nine games.[3]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2014–15 Orlando 82 63 30.4 .425 .262 .551 4.3 6.5 1.7 .2 8.9
2015–16 Orlando 73 69 29.4 .436 .326 .589 3.6 6.4 1.2 .3 10.7
Career 155 132 29.9 .430 .306 .569 3.9 6.5 1.5 .3 9.7

References

External links

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