Knicks, Cameron Payne Agree to One-Year, $3.1M Deal

The New York Knicks and free agent guard Cameron Payne agreed to a one-year, $3.1 million contract, sources informed TNT and Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes on Monday. This deal is reportedly for the veteran minimum.

New York Knicks guard Cameron Payne averaged 7.4 points, 1.5 rebounds while shooting 39% from deep last season

Payne, who turns 30 on Aug. 8, split the 2023-24 season between the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers. In 78 games (10 starts), he averaged 7.4 points, 1.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 16.7 minutes per game.

He averaged 9.3 points and 3.1 assists in 31 regular-season games with the Sixers. The Murray State product also put up 11 points in Game 3 of Philadelphia’s first-round playoff series against the Knicks.

“We were searching just a little bit there for some kind of spark off the bench. [I] certainly had that in [my] thoughts to maybe go with Cam first,” 76ers coach Nick Nurse said after the Game 3 victory.

“Not discouraged that he hadn’t hit the floor yet, very focused on the game plan, you know, like a pro, and he went out there and played like he was ready.”

Payne notched a season-high 24 points at the Toronto Raptors, recorded a double-double against the Oklahoma City Thunder

In Philadelphia’s 135-120 win over the Toronto Raptors on March 31, the guard recorded a season-high 24 points on 9-of-16 (56.3%) shooting from the field and 6-of-10 (60%) from 3-point range.

Additionally, Payne posted his first double-double of the season in the following game on April 2, when he tallied 10 points and a career-high 10 rebounds against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Knicks pursued Payne, OKC’s 14th overall draft pick in 2015, to add more depth to their backcourt after they lost guards Immanuel Quickley and Quentin Grimes in trades this past year.

Through 405 career games (66 starts), Payne has averaged 7.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 17.9 minutes per game while shooting 42.2% from the floor, 36.9% from beyond the arc, and 82.5% at the free throw line.

In addition to playing for the Bucks and Sixers, Payne has played for the Thunder (2015-17), Chicago Bulls (2017-19), Cleveland Cavaliers (2018-19 season), and Phoenix Suns (2020-23). New York will be his seventh NBA team.