Growing up in the South Seattle suburb of Kent, WA, I can vividly remember going to watch the Supersonics at Key Arena. I grew up as a huge Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis fan, and my father worked hard in order for us to go to a bunch of games. I was lucky to attend my fair share of games throughout high school, but I never got to see Hall of Fame Point Guard and former Seattle Supersonic, Gary “The Glove” Payton do his thing live in action.
You see, around Washington State, Gary Payton is a legend. Him and Shawn Kemp are arguably the two people who really put Seattle on the map. Battling Michael Jordan and the Bulls in the NBA Finals, the entire Pacific Northwest rallied behind the two young superstars. What impresses me most is that they didn’t do it by themselves, they did it as a team. They didn’t make it big with any gimmicks, hit singles, trends, or with the help of social media, they busted their ass and made magic happen time and time again over the course of a decade.
Washington State is home to Bill Gates, Macklemore, Sir Mix A Lot, Pearl Jam, and legendary musicians like Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain, but people don’t think of Seattle or WA when they hear those names. Nevertheless, the 90s was a great time for Seattle and it was mostly because of the sports culture that Payton helped cultivate. His confidence, swagger, and performance on the court helped inspire generations of young people for decades to come.
Gary’s newest endeavor, CannaSports, is a multi-faceted cannabis brand that saw its debut at Payton’s July 27th birthday and launch party in Hollywood. Hosted at LA Liason, this launch party kicked off a historic infusion of sports and cannabis. I got to spend about five minutes or so talking with Mr. Payton about why he got into the cannabis industry.
Gary Payton Exclusive Interview
He shared that although he doesn’t use cannabis that often, his mother was a major inspiration for him getting into the legal weed game. He aims to help all kinds of people who are struggling with chronic health issues and he also plans on leveraging his platform to reach more people than just the usual stoners.
“It’s not all about getting to the higher levels. It’s about helping people relax using something natural.” – GP
Gary’s CannaSports products are a great alternative to opiates and other pain killers known to reduce the quality of life and increase the likelihood of addiction. Seeing his mom have to live with aches and pains was just one of the reasons why CannaSports was created. His desire was to help get his mom off of the various drugs she was prescribed and encourage others to do the same.
The goal for Gary and his team is all about helping people who are ailing from different illnesses and chronic health issues. Addiction, PTSD, and chronic health problems can all benefit from the consistent use of cannabis. For example, his vapes provide a method for consumption that is a healthier alternative than smoking, giving users a cleaner experience that can improve short and longterm health and wellness.
CannaSports Cartridges by Gary Payton
Starting off with cartridges because of the collectible branded vapes batteries, Payton also shared that he has bath bombs and infused patches hitting the market soon too. He said that the strains and flavors that were chosen because of their eye-opening capabilities in appearance, flavor, and strain. The “Grape of All Time” was included because grape is his favorite flavor and color and then Alley Oop Scoop is a tasty vanilla blend.
One of my favorite moments from our conversation was when he shared the story about his first time smoking. He disclosed that it was a long time ago back when cannabis was illegal and he was in high school. “We were sneakin’ it. Trying to be bigger than we were supposed to be.”
Although he didn’t share details as to how exactly he first smoked cannabis, the final question from our interview was all about Washington and the Pacific Northwest. I asked him if he anticipated expanding CannaSports to the Washington market.
“Absolutely! Absolutely! You know Portland and Washington, Vegas and Oakland, that’s where I gotta go.
Seattle and Oakland is where I’m from Portland is the same thing as when I went to Oregon State.
So we gotta go that route. We gonna go that route!”
– Gary Payton
