New Orleans Pelicans point guard Elfrid Payton made franchise history during Friday's defeat to the Portland Trail Blazers.
While logging a season-high 41 minutes, Payton was able to record his third consecutive triple-double, becoming the first player in Pelicans history to do so.
When combined with his triple-double from opening night earlier this year, Payton joins Chris Paul as the only other member of the New Orleans franchise with four triple-doubles in a season.
Elfrid Payton has secured his third straight triple-double, becoming the first player in #Pelicans history to do so…Payton joins Chris Paul as the only other player with at least four career triple-doubles in a New Orleans uniform. #DoItBig
— Pelicans PR (@PelicansPR) March 16, 2019
Elfrid Payton was all over the floor Friday, collecting 14 points, 16 assists and 12 rebounds. The assists total comes as a new career high, helped immensely by the 45-point outing that teammate Julius Randle delivered.
Superstar Anthony Davis took the night off due to rest purposes, which could have given Payton another teammate to dish out dimes to throughout the evening.
Injuries slowed Payton's ascension to the starting point guard spot this year, having played in just 31 of his team's 71 contests. With essentially more than half of his season serving as a lost year, Payton has attempted to make up for lost time, especially down the stretch with Jrue Holiday on the shelf.
Payton has collected six double-digit assist games since the All-Star break, filling the role of distributor that can get a bucket when necessary that Holiday did for long stretches during the first half of the year.
With both New Orleans' pace and the lack of stout defensive tendencies from the Phoenix Suns, Payton will have a solid shot at making more history Saturday when he goes for his fourth consecutive triple-double.
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