Former Spartan Adreian Payne killed in Orlando

EAST LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - Former Michigan State basketball star Adreian Payne has died in Orlando, Florida. He was 31.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) confirmed to News 10 just before noon that Payne was shot and killed. Former teammates took to Twitter to share the news.

More: Former Spartan star Adreian Payne remembered for his impact on and off the court

The department responded to a call regarding a shooting at 1:37 a.m. on Monday. They found a man later identified as Payne had been shot. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The OCSO later identified Lawrence Dority, 29, as the shooter. Dority remained at the scene and was transported to OCSO headquarters to be interviewed by homicide detectives. He has since been arrested on a warrant for First Degree Murder and transported to the Orange County Jail.

Update: ‘I shot him’ -- Orange County police say there’s cause for First Degree Murder charge in Payne death

Payne played four seasons for the Spartans and head coach Tom Izzo. He was a first-round pick for the Atlanta Hawks in the 2014 NBA Draft.

After the draft, Payne spent time playing in the NBA including stints with the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Orlando Magic, and the NBA’s G-League before heading overseas. He was a member of the Greek League Basketball’s Panthiakos, where he won the 2018 GBL championship and the 2019 Greek Basketball Cup. He also played in China during the 2018-19 season.

Payne was a member of the Spartan team who honored Lacey Holsworth, a big fan of the Michigan State basketball team who formed a special bond with Payne.

“Princess Lacey” as she was known to the team, died of cancer in April 2014 at 8-years-old.

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