Cameron Payne is going from Murray State to the NBA. (USATSI)
Cameron Payne is going from Murray State to the NBA. (USATSI)

Cameron Payne didn’t know what to think. His parents attended all his home games and his mother, LeShawn, sometimes brought pom-poms. From a distance, though, he couldn’t tell what was going on with her colorful shirt.

Then he saw her up close. Yes, surrounding the big “CAM 1” in the center, those were indeed various action shots of him playing for Murray State.

“I was just shocked,” Payne said. “I was like, no, I know these are not all my faces on this t-shirt. And then she was like, ‘Yeah, for my baby, for my baby.’ I was really shocked when I seen it, but I mean, that’s my mama. That’s what she do.”

LeShawn had every reason to display her pride. Payne brought scores of scouts to Murray, KY, and now the ebullient point guard is headed to the pros. His scoring ability, basketball IQ and length have him in a position nobody expected, himself included. He’s been climbing up draft boards for a while, and worked out for the Indiana Pacers, owners of the No. 11 pick, earlier this month. He couldn’t be happier about this attention. 

Around this time of year, there’s usually a where-the-heck-did-he-come from guy. Often, he’s been unheralded for years and went to a small school. Twelve months ago, this was Elfrid Payton, who went to Louisiana-Lafayette. In 2012, it was Weber State’s Damian Lillard. Payne wants to follow their paths, saying that the success of those players — and MVP Stephen Curry, once a Davidson phenomenon — is the reason why he has a chance. Until recently, he only dreamed about taking meetings with NBA teams.

Payne has monitored mock drafts and watched his name rise from the second round to where it is now in a matter of months. At the beginning of May, Murray State head coach Steve Prohm met him in Chicago at the NBA draft combine. Prohm saw a young man who was aware he’d only get to go through this process once. To Payne, being overlooked is at once the biggest thing he’s overcome and the best thing that’s ever happened to him.

“Man, it’s been crazy,” Payne said. “I go from not being talked about to being one of the most talked about in the draft. It’s definitely crazy, but I mean it’s great at the same time. I’m just stuck in the moment. I’m just living it.”

At the combine, Payne noticed that some of the players around him also played in the EYBL (Elite Youth Basketball League) and were ranked in the top 100 when he was in high school. Back then he came off the bench for his AAU team, the Memphis War Eagles. His father, Tony Payne Sr., was an assistant coach. Some of his teammates wound up at Memphis, Missouri and Marquette, and Payne Sr. took calls from those high-major colleges about them, but not his son. 

“When I went to college, I was just like, man, I want to fit in, I want to get my degree and see what happens after,” Payne said. “Become a coach, probably. I was definitely going to try basketball overseas or something, but it was never I’m going to the NBA.”

Despite all that, Prohm remembers Payne being confident he could contribute to the team when he got out of his father’s van for visits. When watching him at Lausanne Collegiate School in Memphis, Prohm was impressed despite Payne being “a buck-oh-five back then.” He loved his feel for the game and his ability to play at different speeds, traits that shouldn’t be surprising from a coach’s son who had been playing since he was three years old. 

Murray State assistant coach William Small, who recruited Payne, told Prohm that his skill set meant he’d take off once he got bigger and stronger. Small couldn’t have known how right he was.

Payne arrived in Murray in 2013 after point guard Isaiah Canaan had left for the pros. Zay Jackson was expected to start at point guard, but he tore his ACL before the season started. Initially, Prohm thought Payne had a chance to be an All-Conference player in the Ohio Valley Conference. He scored 21 points in his first game. About halfway through the year, Prohm realized he had a chance to make it to the NBA.

The coach knew Payne was a pro after his freshman season, but thought he’d stick around for at least his junior year. Last December, after Payne recorded 32 points on 10-for-19 shooting, eight assists and five rebounds and stole the ball with one second on the clock to seal a win over Evansville, Prohm again had to recalibrate. 

“I was like, hey, we need to really be looking at some junior college point guards,” Prohm said. “Because I think we’re going to lose this guy.”

In late January, Payne was quiet for most of the Racers’ game against Eastern Kentucky. Then, with seven minutes and change left and Murray State trailing by six points, he intercepted a pass, went the other way and converted a layup. He was fouled, too, and the free throw gave him nine points on the night. Then came a midrange jumper, a nice dish to big man Jarvis Williams for an and-1, a floater in traffic and a 3-pointer in transition, all in succession. 

Down by three points with less than a minute left, Payne drove and kicked it to swingman Justin Seymour for a wide-open 3 in the corner. When it swished through the net, Payne yelled and screamed to no one in particular. He then hit himself in the head with both hands and beat his chest. 

Payne finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and six steals, plus a seven-point overtime victory. If you watched with an eye for translatable skills, you'd have noticed his smooth lefty stroke and his patience as he probed the defense. What Prohm appreciates the most is the way he rises to occasion, as well as his passion and his ability to make others better. 

“For the last eight minutes of that game and into overtime, there was no question who the best player on the floor was,” Prohm said. “That just, to me, exemplifies what he’s really about is just winning.”

In two years, Payne became the face of Murray State basketball. Discussing the subject of his relationship with the town, he wasn’t comfortable with being called a rock star. “Nah, nah,” he said. “I was just a point guard for the basketball team.” Eventually, though, he admitted the obvious.

“I go to a ton of birthday parties for kids and they’re very happy to see me there,” Payne said. “I do a lot of things in the community. A lot of people like me. A lot of people love me. And, I mean, a lot of people looked up to me. 

“From the outside looking in, I was the man, but I’m not going to ever say that ‘cause I’m humble,” he continued. “We just had a really, really, really great team. And I couldn’t have done anything without them.”

Prohm noticed Payne becoming a part of the community, taking photos with fans and signing autographs. When you’re the big man on campus, that goes a long way.

“He is a rock star here,” Prohm said. “This is a small college town that thrives on the success of their basketball program and Cam was our driving force this year as the leader.”

Prohm has no doubts about whether or not Payne will be successful as a pro, and added that he could also go into coaching right now if he wanted to. What he’s not sure about is what to do with his eye-catching shirt bearing the likeness of a certain soon-to-be NBA guard. LeShawn, who delivered a rousing speech at the end of Murray State’s basketball athletic banquet in April, gave one to every member of the coaching staff.

“I’m trying to figure out if I want to wear it or just get it framed and put it in my basketball room that I have at home,” Prohm said. “I haven’t decided yet. I’m leaning toward getting it framed ‘cause it’s a little wild for me. 

“The first time I saw it, to be honest, everybody was jealous of it,” Prohm said. “Everybody wanted one. I told her at the banquet, ‘You know what you really need to do is get a patent on this jersey ‘cause in a couple years when your son’s really good in the NBA, everybody’s gonna want one. So I’d get a patent on it right away.’”