One of the biggest surprise moves of the 2023 NBA trade deadline was when the Golden State Warriors announced they were bringing back fan-favorite Gary Payton II. In order to facilitate the blockbuster trade, the Warriors sent Kevin Knox along with five second-round picks to the Portland Trail Blazers, in a multi-team deal that also sent youngster James Wiseman to the Detroit Pistons.
Funnily enough, Golden State just played against Payton and the Trail Blazers for the first time since he left the Warriors on Wednesday, February 8, losing 125-122. After the game, Warriors guard Jordan Poole swapped jerseys with the 30-year-old veteran, a moment that went viral on Twitter after Payton’s trade was announced.
Jordan Poole and former teammate Gary Payton II swapped jerseys last night in Portland
GP2 got traded back to the Warriors today 💀
(via @warriors, h/t @JDumasReports)
Bleacher Report’s Jason Dumas shared picture of the exchange and tweeted, “😂 this was a waste of damn time lol,” while a fan replied, “Not for Poole! He gets a Payton Blazers jersey out of this. A rarity now!”
One fan tweeted, “Poole won that trade. The Payton one is limited edition,” while another person joked, “When you say bye to your friend but you leave in the same direction.”
Poole Also Reacted to the Jersey Swap Following the Payton Trade
Poole also shared a photo of the jersey swap on his Instagram Stories and wrote, “Right on cue @garydwayne.”
Jordan Poole reacts to the Gary Payton II news
Following the Warriors’ loss to Trail Blazers on Wednesday night, Poole, who lead the team with 38 points, said that he’ll always have a love for GP2, even as an opponent. “Yeah, we’re gonna talk all the time,” Poole said, per NBC Sports. “We did in practice, we did in the game. He’s a competitor, a really good defender, a really good player. When you get to go against your brother and guys of that caliber, it’s always exciting.”
Poole also credited Payton as a mentor. “A lot of battles in practice,” Poole said. “You get to learn a player’s tendencies, especially when you’re on the same team. What they like to do, what they don’t want to do. There was definitely questions last year that came and I was able to apply tonight. It’s all a part of the game.”
Draymond Green Didn’t Expect the Warriors to Make Any ‘Big Moves’
GettyWarriors’ Draymond Green reacts after Jalen Williams #8 of the Oklahoma City Thunder missed a foul shot at Chase Center on February 06, 2023.
Payton’s return came as a huge surprise for Dub Nation as the team wasn’t expected to make any big moves before the deadline. Warriors star Draymond Green told the Athletic on February 7, “If I’m being honest, it feels like one of those deadlines where everyone is expecting everything to go haywire and not much is going to happen (across the league).
“That’s what I think is going to happen. For me, I’m in this locker room with these guys I play with. We’ve never been a team that moves much at the trade deadline. So I’m not going into this deadline expecting some big moves or something. I don’t know. If it happens, it does. But I’ve been here 11 years and I think we’ve made moves two or three times. We haven’t done much.”
However, after the multi-team deal went through, Green, whose love for Payton runs deep, gave his nod of approval, especially when it came to sending Wiseman to the Pistons.
Insightful stuff in Draymond Green’s response to James Wiseman being traded
“Number one, I want to say, to James Wiseman, man, Jimmy Wise, not an ideal start to your NBA career,” Green said. “I mean, not ideal at all. Being moved to the Detroit Pistons gives James an opportunity to restart that. And I think that’s such a beautiful thing. I feel like in this trade, James Wiseman gets what he needs, the Warriors got what they need. James Wiseman needs to go somewhere where he can play, where he can get minutes and reps, and he’s not expected to compete at a championship level. And he did that. Or, they did that – it’s happening for him in going to Detroit, where you’re with a bunch of other young guys who [are] going to make a ton of mistakes. And you just get to play through those mistakes and learn through those mistakes, because as we know, in life, experience is life’s greatest teacher. So for James Wiseman to go to a situation where he will have the opportunity to play and play through mistakes. It’s great for him, because he’s super talented, super skilled, but just [hasn’t] had the reps.”
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Photo of Warriors Star & Gary Payton Goes Viral After Blockbuster Trade