Did a Magic player airball a shot because of his own hair?

Table Of Content

• Detroit Pistons Land Player With Michael Porter Jr. Comp in Mock Draft
• Ranking every NFL team's 2024 draft class from the Panthers (ugh) to surging Bears (hellllo, Caleb Williams)
• Elfrid Payton cuts his hair. See what he looks like now
• Nick Saban casually admitted to transfer portal tampering at Alabama during the NFL Draft and college fans lost it
• Elfrid Payton cut his signature hairstyle and now looks completely different
• LeBron James sounded so defeated trying to explain the Lakers’ playoff woes

He struggled in his NBA debut on Saturday with four turnovers and he opened Monday’s game with three quick miscues. But he steadied himself with two drive-and-dish alley-oop passes that resulted in Dewayne Dedmon dunks. Later, Payton finished at the rim with his left hand in traffic and he had a blow-by dunk to bring his Magic teammates out of their seats on the bench.

Detroit Pistons Land Player With Michael Porter Jr. Comp in Mock Draft

Most of Payton’s teammates got their hair cut. The biggest tragedy in all of this is that Payton doesn’t look like Jean-Michel Basquiat anymore. But his new haircut does look good, so good for him. From beach blonde and balayage to raven black and "uh oh, make it go back!" Short hairstyles and low-maintenance haircuts to barbered fades and covering grays. Payton’s own hair went in front of his eyes as he squared up for the shot, blocking his vision.

Ranking every NFL team's 2024 draft class from the Panthers (ugh) to surging Bears (hellllo, Caleb Williams)

Payton was an under-recruited, sub-6-foot math whiz who only chose hoops as his solo sports focus because his New Orleans-area youth football team disbanded after Hurricane Katrina. This upcoming NBA season may show us whether his hair was actually a problem. But regardless of how you felt about the appearance of his hair, or its effect on his game, there’s no denying that it was unique. Payton’s hair made him a recognizable player even though he isn’t a superstar.

Elfrid Payton cuts his hair. See what he looks like now

For the game, Payton made all five of his shots, scored the 12 points, handed out nine assists and corralled eight rebounds. Payton said another defining moment in his basketball evolution came in November of 2012 when he almost single-handedly led Louisiana-Lafayette to an upset win over Michigan State. Payton remarkably recorded seven steals to go with his 20 points and six rebounds as he outplayed the more heralded Keith Appling (four of 11 shooting, four turnovers). That moment opened Payton’s eyes to the possibilities that basketball presented to him. Now, three years later, Payton is a top-10 NBA draft pick and a rising star with the Orlando Magic.

Elfrid Payton and Mario Hezonja take their friendship to All-Star Weekend - Orlando Sentinel

Elfrid Payton and Mario Hezonja take their friendship to All-Star Weekend.

Posted: Thu, 11 Feb 2016 08:00:00 GMT [source]

He found that Payton’s free throws mostly missed by hitting either the front or back of the rim. Little did he know it at the time, but Payton’s performance against Michigan State – combined with a 23-point, seven-assist, four-steal effort against FIU – opened several more doors for him. His coach at ULL, Bob Marlin, sent those tapes to University of Florida coach Billy Donovan to get Payton a tryout for the Team USA’s Under-19 squad. Even though that team already featured Oklahoma State’s Marcus Smart and Duke’s Rasheed Sulaimon, Payton made the squad and became the standout starter at the point. Check back next season for freshAI-powered projections.

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The hair might not have been the sole reason for the airball, but it couldn’t have helped. It’s tough to make a shot without seeing the basket. That being said, he might want to consider getting a haircut.

Still, maybe it’s time to consider a new hairstyle if the current one actually hurts your ability to see the basket. The change should please the 22 people who signed a petition at Change.org asking Peyton to cut his hair. Now that Kelly Olynyk cut his hair, Spencer Hawes is out of the league and Jeremy Lin got rid of whatever he was doing with the Charlotte Hornets, the All-NBA First Team Bad Hair is getting thin.

Elfrid Payton Jr. (born February 22, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Mad Ants of the NBA G League. He played college basketball at University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where in 2014 he won the Lefty Driesell Award as the National College Defensive Player of the Year. Payton was drafted with the 10th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, but was then traded to the Orlando Magic.

Maybe someone throws a few extra million his way on the off chance he can see the court and the rim better. Even if he doesn’t improve, though, he should still win Most Improved, just on aesthetics alone. Payton showed on Monday in Orlando Pro Summer League action that he is right where he is supposed to be.

People want to express themselves with their haircuts. The game presents you with shots, and you've got to take those shots. Certain things are supposed to happen at certain times. I actually had to play in a game without contacts.

Magic guard Elfrid Payton has one of the more unique hairstyles in the NBA. It goes in all sorts of directions — his hair really is something else. I’m all for self expression, and I even like Payton’s hair! And I think it may be finally time for him to try something new. Either answer is bad and, to be honest, the hair appears to be an all-around distraction of some manner. It’s hitting him in the face while he shoots.

As notable as his new haircut, he appears to be wearing Orlando Magic warmups in the picture. Payton’s rise to the NBA is seemingly the stuff of some Hollywood playwright, but he has made it come true by believing in himself when few others did. Payton’s hair actually holds quite a bit of significance to him.

(Shoutout to Carlos Boozer’s “shoe polish hair.”) Speaking of thin hair, I feel you, LeBron James. The NBA’s most recognizable hair (beards excluded, James Harden) is no more. The Phoenix Suns’ Elfrid Payton has eliminated one of the biggest talking points of whatever basketball game he was playing in by cutting his signature hair. To hear Payton tell it, he paid zero attention to the early doubts and indifference from scouts and is right where he always expected to be in the NBA. One of the worst nights of Payton’s basketball life actually served as notice that the steadily blossoming point guard would no longer fly under as a college prospect.