Gary Payton II is here to stay: How the Golden State Warriors found a gem and Little Gary finally found a home
CBSN
Anybody could have had Payton, who is locking down superstars, throwing down dunks and chasing a ring
Among Adam DeSautels' responsibilities as an assistant coach at Westwind Preparatory Academy in Phoenix was helping players find spots at the next level. In September 2011, that meant posting on Blogspot, where he published scouting reports, one of which included a proclamation: DeSautels would be surprised if this particular Westwind player was not named an all-league defensive player at least once in his collegiate career.
When he talked to college coaches about this player, a defense-first, jump-out-of-the-gym combo guard, he could sense their hesitation. "It was weird," he said, because the film spoke for itself, and, as the player's English teacher, he didn't understand how anybody could meet the kid and not like him. Convincing the coaches to make the trip was "like pulling teeth."
To this day, DeSautels cannot explain why there was such little interest in Gary Payton II. You'd think the son of a Hall of Famer would be overhyped, not underrecruited.
