Payton Agrees to Pact With the SuperSonics

Guard Gary Payton, the No. 2 overall pick in the NBA draft last spring, has reached a six-year contract agreement with the Seattle SuperSonics, the team announced.

The announcement came Tuesday night after a meeting between Sonics President Bob Whitsitt and Payton’s agent, Don DeJardin of San Gabriel.

Details of the agreement were not revealed.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer said in today’s editions that the Sonics are believed to have raised their initial offer of $1.7 million per season and that DeJardin apparently lowered his proposal of $2.67 million a year.

DeJardin wouldn’t discuss specifics.

“All we’ve wanted all along was a fair-market deal,” he told the News Tribune of Tacoma. “We know as well as anybody Gary belongs in camp. He wants to be there and needs to be there. We just have to do what’s right.”

“I’m glad this is over,” Payton told the News Tribune by telephone Tuesday night from his home in Oakland. “I had to learn about it being a business much faster than I thought I’d have to.”

Payton, a star 6-4 guard from Oregon State, was scheduled to fly to Seattle today to sign the contract, Sonics’ spokesman Bill Boehlke said.

Payton will be in uniform tonight for a Sonics intrasquad game at their training camp in Lacey, near Olympia, Boehlke said. Payton was a holdout when the team opened camp last Friday.

Payton finished as the all-time leading scorer in Oregon State history with 2,172 points, averaging 25.7 points as a senior. He finished second on the all-time NCAA assist list with 938 and second in steals with 321.

Sonics Coach K. C. Jones had said after drafting Payton that he would be the team’s starting point guard. But Whitsitt said last week that Payton will have to earn the job.

“He’s got to come into camp and become the starting point guard,” he said.

Nate McMillan has been the Sonics starting point guard for four seasons. Dana Barros, Sedale Threatt and Avery Johnson are other point guards on the roster.