Hawks sign Adreian Payne to rookie contract
Following a solid Las Vegas Summer League campaign where he averaged 12.5 points and seven rebounds in six starts, rookie Adreian Payne is now officially a member of the Atlanta Hawks' roster.
ROSTER UPDATE: We have signed first-round draft pick Adreian Payne! pic.twitter.com/IdVKDLlMqb
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) July 25, 2014
Terms of Payne's contract were not disclosed, but based on Basketball Insiders' NBA Rookie Salary Scale, the 15th overall selection in this year's draft stands to earn $1,546,100 this season, $1,615,700 next season, and $1,685,200 in the final guaranteed season.
Payne played four years of college ball at Michigan State under Tom Izzo, averaging 16.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in his senior year. He also finished his time at the school as the Spartans' all-time leader in blocked shots (141) while becoming one of nine players in Michigan State's history to score 1,200 career points.
A 6-foot-10 power forward with excellent range, Payne will help the Hawks space the floor by stretching big men out towards the key.
To read theScore's 1-on-1 pre-draft interview with Payne, click here.