After a let-down loss in Game 1, the Phoenix Suns stormed back with a vengeance in Game 2 and evened their quarterfinals series against the Los Angeles Clippers at one game apiece. Now heading on the road to Crypto.com Arena, Monty Williams and company are looking to regain home-court advantage by clawing out a win in Game 3. Fortunately, they may be gearing up to do so with their trusty sixth man Cameron Payne back in the fold. With this, the question on every Suns fan's mind: Is Cameron Payne playing tonight vs. the Clippers?
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Cameron Payne injury status vs. Clippers
Cameron Payne has been held out of the Suns' rotation for their last three straight outings with a nagging back injury. Luckily, it appears that the veteran may be inching closer to making his return to action, as his status has been bumped up to “Questionable” for Thursday's Game 3, as per the league's official injury report.
While Phoenix is viewed as a legitimate contender to take home the Larry O'Brien Trophy come year's end, they are a club far from being viewed as flawless. Arguably their biggest weakness seems to be their backcourt depth, and not having Payne in the mix has certainly made their collection of talent in this area of the depth chart even more barren.
Despite being hobbled by injuries throughout the year, the eighth-year pro has still proven to be quite impactful when found on the floor. Through 48 games played, Cameron Payne has posted solid averages of 10.3 points, 4.5 assists, and 2.2 rebounds while shooting 36.8% from distance.
Should he be relegated to the sidelines for his fourth-straight game, however, Monty Williams will likely once again look to Landry Shamet to take on point guard duties behind star Chris Paul.
However, in the meantime, when it comes to the question of whether or not Cameron Payne will be playing tonight vs. the Clippers, the answer is still undetermined.