8 free agents the Phoenix Suns should avoid at all costs

7. Cameron Payne

Continuing the theme of not making the same mistake twice, and the Suns shouldn't get involved with point guard Cameron Payne again. He had a couple of playoff moments for the team - and he should be fondly remembered as a result - but he's just not good enough as the full-time backup if you're serious about winning a championship.

Payne has split time between the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers this season, and there are times when he can look like exactly what a contender needs off the bench. He's capable of coming in and putting up seven points and dishing out two assists in a short space of time, before disappearing to the bench again.

If you look beyond that though, what happens more often than not is Payne takes ill-advised shots and gets picked on defensively, which you can't have in a close playoff series. The Bucks don't look like they miss him all that much, and he's playing nearly 20 minutes a night for the 76ers at a time when their season has come off the rails as a result of injury to Joel Embiid.

Payne is another player who will be sitting there this summer, and he knows the organization well. But if the Suns go back down this road, it will be because they really were out of options to shore up their backcourt rotation. Isaiah Thomas isn't the solution either - but the fact it would be a conversation between himself and Payne to see who is better for the Suns - should answer this question for you.