Cam Payne gives Bucks backup point guard to Damian Lillard

It has been a weird few months for new Milwaukee Bucks point guard Cam Payne.

The 29-year-old had a productive season with the Phoenix Suns last season, averaging 10.3 points and 4.5 assists in 48 games, but he was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in July.

The Spurs waived Payne in September, paving the way for him to sign with a contending team. But, first, the NBA landscape needed to be sorted out with the Portland Trail Blazers looking to trade Damian Lillard.

Payne was working out in San Diego and Phoenix while trying to figure out where he would play.

“I’ve just been in the wind,” Payne said on Tuesday. “Just floating around. Kind of just staying locked in. Keep working out.

“Honestly just been waiting for these trades to go through. Literally as soon as the trade went through I found a spot. It’s been kind of wild. The hard part is trying to stay in shape, stay playing. Because I wanted to be healthy wherever I went to. Basically it was a pretty long summer for me.”

The blockbuster trade was the Bucks acquiring Lillard, but a key transaction was also signing Payne a few days later because Milwaukee’s roster needed a veteran backup point guard.

Initially there was another swirl of emotions when Payne heard that Lillard landed with the Bucks. Payne thought Milwaukee was a good spot for himself, but now maybe that option was off the table.

“My parents were with me,” Payne said. “We’ve done had a whirlwind of things that’s been happening for me during my career. So literally, head went down like, ah, man, we’re not going to make it to Milwaukee, I guess.”

Details of the trade started to emerge, and Payne realized that the Bucks had an open roster spot because Grayson Allen was also included in the deal.

“We got a call 10 minutes later and we’re still sitting in the parking lot,” Payne said. “And it goes from down to up, like, man, we’re in Milwaukee, we’re going to Milwaukee. They got a spot.”

Cam Payne likes his fit with the Bucks

New Bucks coach Adrian Griffin was an enthusiastic supporter of the decision to add Payne. Griffin’s stint as an assistant coach with the Oklahoma City Thunder overlapped with Payne’s time there. Payne has also played for the Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers.

“He’s just a great, fun guy to be around,” Griffin said. “Always the same every day, always in a good mood. Not only is he a great point guard, but he’s a hell of a dancer. We’ll win any dancing competitions, for sure.

“But he’s older now, he’s a lot more mature. He just gives us another veteran guy off the bench that had to pay his dues. There’s something to be said about guys that had to fight and claw and he’s not scared of the moment.”

Payne has plenty of playoff experience. He scored 29 points against the Denver Nuggets in Game 6 of last season’s Western Conference semifinals. With Chris Paul out for the Suns in the 2021 Western Conference finals, Payne filled in as a starter for two games and averaged 20 points and…