When the Philadelphia 76ers’ traded Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder on February 4th, one of their biggest strengths became a flaw. Philadelphia’s guard depth was narrowed to Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Quentin Grimes and Kyle Lowry. The 76ers found a solution with a familiar face 12 days later.
Philadelphia is signing Cameron Payne to a rest-of-the-season contract, Marc Stein reported on Monday morning. The guard is poised to step into the role that McCain had with the 76ers this season as someone who plays pinch minutes when the team needs an offensive spark. While Payne isn’t a long-term option, he’ll provide Philadelphia relief with the postseason on the horizon.
He established himself as a floor-spacing guard who can initiate offense in doses throughout his 10-year NBA career. Payne last played in the league with the New York Knicks during the 2024-25 season, where he averaged 6.9 points on 36.3% from three-point range and 2.8 assists. While McCain’s ceiling is higher than Payne’s, the sophomore is posting the same number of points this year.
The guards have similar repertoires, which suggests Payne could play a similar role to McCain, who averaged 16.8 minutes with the 76ers this season. Payne likely won’t be a mainstay in Philadelphia’s rotation, as Nick Nurse relies on Quentin Grimes and Trendon Watford to generate the second unit’s offense.
But, if Grimes, Tyrese Maxey or VJ Edgecombe suffer an injury, the 76ers will have Payne to fall back on. Philadelphia recently encountered this issue as Grimes missed Philadelphia’s last two games with an illness. Without an additional guard, the 76ers had to play Kyle Lowry, who is 39 years old; they lost both contests.
Payne is also familiar with Nurse’s system as the guard played 31 games for Philadelphia in the 2023-24 campaign. The team acquired Payne and a 2027 second-round pick from the Milwaukee Bucks for Patrick Beverley on February 8th, 2024. Nurse seemingly values more experienced players and his familiarity with Payne could have been a reason for the reunion.
The guard played for Partizan Belgrade – a Serbian basketball club – this season where he registered 12.4 points and 3.9 assists. Stein reported that it could take “some time” for Payne to officially join the 76ers as all parties navigate his buyout.
Payne scored 11 points in Game 3 of Philadelphia’s Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series against the Knicks where after he said, “energy costs nothing.” The 76ers, who sit in sixth place in the conference during the All-Star Break, will need that intensity as they strive to secure a playoff berth.