DAVIS, Calif. - In his first season with current French club team, Champagne Châlons-Reims Basket, League Nationale de Basket officials selected the former Aggie as one of 24 players worthy of competing in the league's All-Star Game.

An all-star team of foreign players, one that includes Payne on its roster, will square off against another squad comprised entirely of native French basketball players on Jan. 3, 2015, at the Zenith de Paris.

As Champagne Châlons-Reims Basket's starting shooting guard, Payne is averaging 14.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.

Payne joined Châlons-Reims after enjoying his most successful season abroad. Last year, the 6-foot-8 swingman averaged 10.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game for Greek club PAOK Thessaloniki.

PAOK Thessaloniki was the second Greek club in as many years to add Payne to its roster as the Stockton, California, native donned Panionios BC Athens' jersey for the 2012-13 season. 

The No. 6 all-time leading scorer in UC Davis' history (1,382 pts.) drew Châlons-Reims' attention after posting impressive numbers across the board with PAOK. Once he signed a contract with his new team, Paine, dubbed the "Swiss Army Knife" by his new team, and his wife were ready to continue their European basketball adventure in another country. 

"I decided to move to France, from Greece, as a nice progression in my career. I performed well last year and had a few offers to choose from. I decided to take the French offer because the league is competitive from top to bottom compared to the Greek league," added Payne.