A couple of days back, Diamond Leung wrote a very good piece on Adreian Payne which described some of his background and different obstacles he has had to overcome. I always welcome the chance to know a little more about a given Spartan player, and Leung’s work is first-rate. In addition to that article I dug up the YouTube video on Payne produced by CoachIzzo.com for your viewing pleasure:
Why my sudden interest in Adreian Payne, you ask? Although I am sure many of you have noticed, he has been playing very well thus far and I wanted to throw a post up about him for any people who hadn’t. Payne has shown consistent energy and an aggressive attitude this year; two things everyone has been waiting for out of him. Last year the guy showed flashes, like when he went toe to toe with Sully and basically kicked Sully’s butt. Good times. Too often though, he would disappear when he went out on the floor or would make Izzo pop veins in his neck with careless fouls. So far this year things have been much better. More minutes, better production within said minutes, and quickly becoming a real bright spot on the team.
Season averages:
| Season | Minutes | Field Goal % | Free Throw % | Rebounds | Points |
| 2012-2013 | 20.2 | 62.7 | 89.5 | 7.5 | 8.1 |
| 2011-2012 | 17.9 | 56.6 | 69.7 | 4.2 | 7 |
| 2010-2011 | 9 | 47.2 | 48.6 | 2.4 | 2.5 |
It’s easy to see where Payne has made impressive gains in a number of important areas. If he is able to continue along this tack it will be a huge lift for the Spartans going into conference play since the B1G season always ends up being a bruising grind. There are several quality teams to contend with this year and no shortage of talented bigs in the conference. If Adreian Payne has indeed taken that “next step” he couldn’t have picked a better time.
Go Green!
EXTRA: Completely unrelated, yet profusely funny and perhaps sadly accurate, this post from Shaw Lane Spartans on the 2012 MSU football offense.