The Phoenix Suns made a blockbuster move at last season's traded deadline when they acquired Kevin Durant from the Brooklyn Nets. The move decimated the Suns depth but it was a move they needed to make. Then on draft day, the Suns made another big trade to acquire Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards. That move wiped away what little depth the Suns had left leaving new head coach Frank Vogel contemplating potential lineups. After some uncertainty, it appears as if the Suns will have Deandre Ayton back in the fold. In a recent press conference to introduce Beal, Vogel hinted that Cameron Payne might be in the mix next season.
“We want to play with pace so we're going to have a multiple ball-handler attack in most possessions,” Frank Vogel said. “But I love the fact that both Bradley and Devin have played the point in phases of their career and can initiate offense as can KD. We also want to see how the rest of the roster shakes out, to see if we add a point guard. Cam Payne will be in the mix. All those decisions will play out in camp.”
Cameron Payne has revived his NBA career with the Suns. After finding himself on the verge of being out of the NBA, he joined the Suns in the 2020 bubble and parlayed that performance into long term security contract-wise.
Payne dealt with injury issues when the 2023 playoffs rolled around, but during the season he averaged 10.3 points per game, 2.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists with splits of 41.5 percent shooting from the field, 36.8 percent shooting from the three-point line and 76.6 percent shooting from the free-throw line.