Gary Payton II Named Chief Athletic Ambassador of Valor

NBA Champion and Golden State Warriors Guard Joins Valor to Help Bring Clinically Sound, Non-Addictive Injury Recovery and Pain Management Solutions to Professional Athletes

MEQUON, Wis., June 22, 2026 /CNW/ -- Vector Science & Therapeutics Corp. (TSXV: PAIN) today announced that Gary Payton II has joined the company as Chief Athletic Ambassador for Valor, the company's sports medicine division. The Valor division has been purpose-built to develop relationships in the professional athlete market to permit the company to incorporate learnings directly from elite professionals into its biomechanical and transdermal peptide delivery platforms.

Gary Payton II grew up inside the game. His father, Hall of Famer Gary Payton, gave him a front-row seat to what a professional basketball career demands physically. That perspective gave him the foresight to act while most active players are still looking the other way. In his role as Chief Athletic Ambassador, Payton II will serve as the face of Valor inside the NBA and across professional sports, bringing his network, credibility, and firsthand perspective to athletes seeking a healthier path to soft tissue repair, longevity, and pain management.

Soft tissue injuries remain one of the most persistent challenges in professional basketball. Research published in the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine found that lower-extremity injuries accounted for approximately 62% of all orthopedic injuries among NBA players, with guards showing the highest overall injury rates by playing position. A separate epidemiological analysis published in PLoS One confirmed that injury incidence across the NBA has trended upward in recent seasons. Data compiled by The Ringer in May 2026 documented that NBA calf injuries climbed from 18 in the 2010-11 season to 86 this season, with 13 different players suffering multiple calf injuries this year alone, a trajectory that far exceeded any prior season on record. As a guard who has competed at the highest level of the league, Payton II brings a firsthand understanding of these risks to Valor's mission.

"Injury and pain are part of the game. What you use to manage injury and pain doesn't have to come with consequences you'll spend the rest of your life dealing with. I want the players I compete with…and the ones coming up behind us…to have something better. That's Valor. That's why I'm here."

-- Gary Payton II, Chief Athletic Ambassador, Valor

"Gary is still competing every night, living this firsthand. And when he's not on the court, he's giving back. That combination of talent, character, and genuine heart is exactly who Valor needed carrying this mission."

-- Darryl Drake Jr., President, Valor

About Gary Payton II

Gary Payton II is a professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors and a 2022 NBA Champion. Known as one of the league's elite defenders and most beloved teammates, Payton II is also the founder of the GPII Foundation. The GPII Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to supporting children with dyslexia, a challenge Payton faced personally, through early screening, certified assessments, and educational resources. The Foundation's leadership includes Executive Directors Monique Payton and Raquel Payton-Childs. To learn more about the GPII Foundation and its mission to support children with dyslexia, visit www.gpiifoundation.org.

About Vector Science & Therapeutics Corp.

Vector Science & Therapeutics, Inc., headquartered in Mequon, Wisconsin, develops novel biomechanical devices and active localized drug delivery platforms to equip clinicians with site-directed interventions where precision matters and systemic risks are unacceptable. The Company's shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol PAIN. For more information, visit www.vectorscience.co.

SOURCE Vector Sciences & Therapeutics

Media Contact Valor, Vector Science & Therapeutics Corp., [email protected], www.vectorscience.co