Murray State fans gathered at the CFSB Center, in Murray, Kentucky, Thursday night to watch former Racer Cameron Payne become the program’s first first-round selection in the NBA Draft.
The Cam Payne NBA Draft party featured food and fun as Murray State fans streamed in to watch the draft on the big screens, have a slice of pizza and even take a photo with a life-sized Payne cut out.
The big moment came at 8:14 p.m. CT when Payne’s name was announced by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. The Oklahoma City Thunder selected the former Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year as the 14th pick.
The reaction from the throng gathered in the CFSB Center was akin to what has been seen when the Racers are called on NCAA Selection Sunday, which they’ve experienced 15 times.
“This was one of the best events that I’ve been a part of at Murray State,” MSU Head Coach Matt McMahon said. “To see all of these fans come out in support of Cam and his family was just really special. You don’t get to experience this every June, so this was special tonight.”
“It just gave me chills,” Racer senior Justin Seymour said. “You know working with Cam every day for the last two years, being his teammate and then seeing him up there on the stage with his dream coming true. It just makes me very happy for him.”
The event also gave new Racers Coach Matt McMahon and the team a chance to mingle with the fans. As the scene of Payne’s selection unfolded, it was equally impressive to the current players.
“The best thing about this, (Payne going to Oklahoma City) is it’s a perfect fit for Cam,” McMahon said. “He’s with two superstar players (Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook). What Cameron does is make people better and he impacts winning. It’s a great fit for him because he’s not going to a team that’s rebuilding. I couldn’t be happier for him.”
Payne is Murray State’s 22nd overall NBA pick in program history and the first since Bennie Purcell in 1952 to Baltimore. The Racers’ last NBA pick was in 2013 when Isaiah Canaan was the 34th pick to the Houston Rockets. Canaan is now with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Now that MSU has produced two draft picks in the last three seasons and a first round pick, what does it say about the Racers’ program?
“It speaks volumes about our program,” Seymour added. “It says we have talent here and players that are worthy of being in the NBA. It says if you come to Murray State and put in the hard work that maybe someday you can follow in the footsteps of Isaiah and Cam.”
Previously, the Racers had produced four players taken in the second round including: Isaiah Canaan (2013-Rockets), Marcus Brown (1996-Trailblazers), Popeye Jones (1992-Rockets) and Dick Cunningham (1968-Suns).
Payne will go down as one of the top players to suit up for the Racers and he did all of his heroics in only two seasons. As a sophomore in the 2014-15 season, he was the leading scorer in the OVC at 20.2 points per game and 13th in NCAA D-I. His 6.0 assists per game ranked 13th. He scored 707 points to become the second player at Murray State to reach 700. Payne’s 209 assists made him the second to reach 200 and he was only three off the record. According to KenPom.com, Payne was third ranked nationally in efficiency behind only Frank Kaminsky of Wisconsin and Tyler Haws of BYU.
