Game Day: Hornets (16-15) @ Suns (23-5), Sunday 12/19/21

[Split T]

Payton not exactly recording a portfolio game.
O pts, 1 assist, 4 turnovers, 3 fouls.

Played mostly garbage minutes and didn’t look interested at all…we kinda need a garbage time pg…but I can live with that being Payton haha

[Split T]

Broadcast said suns are 21-0 when we hold our opponent under 110. So that makes us 3-5 when we don’t.

Also 9 guys in double figures and none with 20…that’s some pretty great balance.

[LazarusLong]

Payton had more TOs (6) than the Suns' starters combined (5).

That's a plus for the starters, though...

[Split T]

Team had 35 assists tonight! Love to see it

[JeremyG]

I guess Monty is letting Payton have the Nader minutes. That travel wasn't great.

So far a good start to this game.

I wish there was some way we could've gotten Miles Bridges without giving up our core pieces. Pipe dream. But he's almost perfect for our team needs.

I mean they let him become a restricted free agent so...sign-and-trade for Cam Johnson?

[Split T]

I think the days of being able to get Bridges are over. He’s breaking out and is going to get paid next year. Him and LaMelo are the future in Charlotte. But yes, a wing that can get to the rim would be nice!

[Flagrant Fowl]

It's difficult to have a worse box score than the one Elfrid Payton put out there tonight, and especially considering the pathetic defensive effort the Hornets put forth.

[3rdside]

My thoughts also .. the only numbers greater than zero in his box score were for TO’s and PF’s.

And there’s quite a lot of those at 6 and 4 respectively.

[Split T]

Payton might have had a bad box score, but check the rest out…it’s crazy to see this many guys in double figures

[LazarusLong]

Nine rotation players all played well ... that was good to see.

[specialsauce]

Probably our most enjoyable game to watch so far

[Shabazz]

Great win. Probably the most dominating from start to finish, although the Hornets looked like they didn't care from the jump.

I was also going to post about a certain PG, but not looking to Elfrid in everyone's cheerios. I'd honestly rather see Ish or Stix get those minutes in jumbo lineups.

[SunsRIt]

That was a good old fashioned ass whoopin. Very fun to watch.

[Flagrant Fowl]

I'm sure 137 points with everyone under 20 individual points has to be some kind of record.

[Superbone]

Payton still in the rotation with Book back, we’ll see how he does.

He had his worst game of the season. Everything he touched went to s#!7. And this among a sea of greatness from the rest of the Suns.

[Nodack]

That was definitely a horrible game by Payton. I went to check his numbers and noticed he was a +7. Not sure how they score those + or - things.

The Suns are kicking ASS! That’s allI have to say about that.

[bajanguy008]

Yes, first night back out to work....
This is the kinda game to come home to

Jae is such a character lol

[ShelC]

[Superbone]

That was definitely a horrible game by Payton. I went to check his numbers and noticed he was a +7. Not sure how they score those + or - things.

The Suns are kicking ASS! That’s allI have to say about that.

I can answer that. It’s very simple. When he was on the floor, the Suns outscored the Hornets by 7 net points. But that doesn’t mean he contributed to that. He actually brought it down from a higher number because almost every time he touched the ball, he turned it over. If you look at the Suns roster, every player had a positive +/- except for those who played in garbage time. The opposite is true for the Hornets roster. Every player has a net negative except the one guy at the end of the bench. This is all true because the Suns dominated from start to finish other than a few garbage time minutes.

So Payton had a +7 because of his teammates on the floor at the time and in spite of his horrible play. It would have been a higher number if he had contributed anything during his time. But he had a reverse Midas touch last night.

[Mori Chu]

This was a great game, one of our true blowouts where we could rest the important players a lot in the 4th. Loved to see the balanced scoring with 9 (!) guys in double-figures. I'm concerned about Elfrid Payton, though. As others have mentioned, he was horrible. And this was a game where everybody was getting open looks and easy shots. If we lose even one rotation guard such as Book or CP3, suddenly we're in a position where we need to give Payton real minutes. And he's been completely terrible for us this year. I do think Coach is doing the right thing by giving him minutes, because when you need him you don't want him to be completely cold and out of practice. But I hope it is building a comfort that will make him play better later in the season, because right now he's a disaster.