Struggles of former point guard prove Suns were right to ditch him

If there is one area the Phoenix Suns seriously upgraded this offseason, it was at the point guard position. It only took new recruit Tyus Jones a single game to start breaking records, while Monte Morris has come off the bench when called upon and been largely reliable in a small role.

This is a far cry from a season ago, when Devin Booker and Bradley Beal each tried to do their best Chris Paul impression on any given night. Injuries to Beal curtailed his ability to do this - and although Booker did have a career high in assists per game - it took away from the incredible scoring ability he has.

Yet the Suns were still right to ditch Cameron Payne when they did.

There's no doubt the Suns could have brought Payne back this summer, and a small section of the fanbase in The Valley actively wanted the organization to do so. The reason for this was as a result of a couple of nice playoff moments for the team in the past, which can never be taken away from Payne.

Like him or not he did stand up and be counted in the postseason for the Suns, with the same not able to be said for many other role players during their time in Phoenix. But when you consider the prospect of having Payne return was the most likely outcome here as recently as March of this year, the fact the Suns now have Jones and Morris is frankly incredible.

Payne split last season between the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers, with neither feeling great about keeping him around long term. He managed 10 starts between both franchises, and it is perhaps no surprise that neither had the kind of season that they had hoped for.

Payne alone is obviously not the reason for that - it would be unfair to place that level of blame on him alone - but his start with the New York Knicks hasn't been brilliant either. There's a notable drop-off when Jalen Brunson heads to the bench - which you would obviously expect - but Payne is bringing little to the table when he's out there. Outside of perhaps some defensive intensity/IQ plays.

So far he's mustered up six points and three assists in just over 16 minutes per night. Slightly down on the amount of time he averaged between Milwaukee and Philadelphia last year, and further proof that the 30-year-old continues to trend in the wrong direction in the league. He's a not very good defender with a streaky shot, although he's always been a willing passer.

If the Knicks had Jones in his place right now, they truly would have one of the best rosters in the entire league. As it is they're still in great shape, and yet the introduction of Payne makes them worse noticeably worse. It is no surprise that Karl-Anthony Towns tends to stay out there with him, so as to give Payne and outlet to give the ball to and get out of the way.

This might sound like an unnecessary dig at Payne, who again was a loyal servant to the Suns. But this is his seventh team in 10 seasons - approaching Ish Smith numbers - and he is absolutely not missed in Phoenix. While they're trending in the right direction with their own improved floor generals, it will be telling to see if Payne lasts the full season in New York. We think we already know the answer.