The New Orleans Pelicans’ disjointed offense needed a splint.
Pelicans Patch Up Point Guard Hole With Elfrid Payton Signing
On Wednesday, the Pelicans agreed to sign free agent point guard Elfrid Payton, per ESPN senior insider Shams Charania.
Free agent guard Elfrid Payton has agreed to a deal with the New Orleans Pelicans, his agent Darrell Comer of Tandem told ESPN. Payton attended training camp with the Pelicans and now rejoins the team amid a wave of injuries. pic.twitter.com/REROvFohX2
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 20, 2024
The 10th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, Payton is intimately familiar with both the organization and the locale. Born just outside of New Orleans, he was raised and attended college in Louisiana. In 2018-19, Payton played for his home state Pelicans after signing a one-year deal, averaging 10.6 points, 7.6 assists, and 1.0 steal per contest.
S.O.S.
As of this morning, the Pelicans rank 29th in points per game (103.7) and 27th in offensive rating (107.6).
This can’t be all attributed to their point guard play. For starters, two key scorers —Zion Williamson and CJ McCollum —have been available for less than half of the season. Trey Murphy III and Jordan Hawkins, who are also important to the offense, have been in and out of the lineup as well.
Yet, New Orleans is also 25th in assists per game (23.6) and 19th in turnovers per game (15.9).
With Dejounte Murray and now Jose Alvarado out, the Pelicans are forced to rely upon players who are less equipped to run an offense. While Boston’s in the midst of a breakout, he’s out of his wheelhouse when asked to constantly coordinate the offense. That’s also true of Brandon Ingram, who’s also having a strong season.
If McCollum or Williamson were to return before Murray, that would help matters. However, even then, the Pelicans would still be lacking a natural table-setter. Payton isn’t a player who can make some of the passes and reads but all of them. He won’t be the center of their system, but he’ll make his teammates better by getting them good looks.
At least that’s the case if they decide to take the elf off the shelf.
Taking Elf Off The Shelf
Payton’s last real NBA game was in May 2022.
He’s played competitively since then. In fact, he suited up for New Orleans in the 2024-25 preseason. In two contests, he averaged 3.0 points, 5.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.0 block in 10.3 minutes per game. While that’s not a lot of time to make an impression, Payton has the benefit of being Pelicans head coach Willie Green’s former teammate.
After New Orleans brought Payton in on a training camp deal, Green lauded his leadership and ability to run an offense.
That being said, Green’s words hold weight, but don’t shed light on Payton’s future role. Teams have a habit of signing players to the fringes of the roster and not giving them run.
In this case, there’s a clear need for Payton’s skillset, which helps his case for regular playing time. Frankly, New Orleans’ point guard situation is so pitiful they bay feel duty-bound to give Payton a chance. Nonetheless, the NBA is a ‘what have you done for me lately’ league. One way or another, he’ll have to earn his trust.
Maybe it’ll come after practices or in spot minutes. However, it’s unlikely to be based purely on what he did in the preseason or even his all-league season with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in 2023-24.
