Gary Payton II Waived By Rockets

It’s the day before the opening night in the NBA, which means teams had to cut their rosters down to the league maximum of 15 players. Many players in training camp were competing for end of the roster spots and a lot unfortunately saw their days with their teams cut short. One of those players was former Beaver star Gary Payton II, as he was waived by the Houston Rockets today.

Gary Payton II was signed to a three-year contract with the first year completely guaranteed by the Rockets minutes after the 2016 NBA Draft and looked to have a good chance to make the team. He had to battle Isaiah Taylor (who was waived last week), Bobby Brown and Kyle Wiltjer for the last two spots on the roster. Brown and Wiltjer secured those last two spots, leaving Payton II as the odd man out. People around the Rockets believe that Bobby Brown’s relationship with James Harden has had a lot to do with the Rockets keeping him around, and that may have ruined GP2’s chances to make the team.

There is a good chance that Payton II will head to the Rocket’s Developmental League team, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, if he is unable to land a spot on another NBA roster. Playing overseas may be an option for him as well.

During the preseason, Payton II averaged 1.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, 0.6 assists, and 0.6 steals per game.