Suns guard Cameron Payne out at least a week with hamstring strain

Suns point guard Cameron Payne, who missed Saturday’s game in Portland due to a right hamstring strain, has been ruled out for Wednesday’s game vs. Sacramento and will be re-evaluated in a week, according to Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic.

Barring an unexpectedly early return, that means Payne will also miss Saturday’s game vs. Cleveland, with his status for next Tuesday’s contest vs. New Orleans up in the air.

Payne, 27, averaged 8.4 PPG and 3.6 APG on .484/.440/.893 shooting in 60 games (18.0 MPG) for the Suns last season. He parlayed that strong 2020-21 performance into a new three-year, $19M contract this offseason and entered the fall as Chris Paul‘s primary backup at the point.

With Payne sidelined, the Suns figure to lean more heavily on third-string point guard Elfrid Payton for minutes off the bench. Payton had a solid game on Saturday, with 14 points, six assists, and four rebounds in 25 minutes.