Elfrid Payton turned heads with his performance during the New Orleans Pelicans’ 114-110 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Even though the 30-year-old point guard couldn’t help his team win, his performance is notable for the circumstances in which it happened.

Payton, who had been out of the league since May 2022 before signing with the Pelicans earlier this month, produced 14 points (7-for-11 shooting), 21 assists, seven rebounds and two steals in 31 minutes. 

Payton dished out 21 dimes in this loss, which easily surpasses his previous career-high of 16 assists, established in back-to-back games in March 2019 when he was with the Pelicans. 

Payton’s last game in an NBA regular season came in 2021-22 when he was suiting up for the Phoenix Suns. He spent the next two years with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the NBA G League and even had a stint with Osos de Manatí, a team in Puerto Rico’s Baloncesto Superior Nacional, the country’s top-tier division, before returning to an NBA hardwood. 

The Pelicans signed Payton to add some much-needed backcourt depth following their rash of injuries, and the veteran responded by making history. Payton finished well short of matching Scott Skiles’ all-time NBA record of 30 assists in a game. However, this was the second-most assists a player has dished out in a Pelicans jersey. The record belongs to Rajon Rondo, who handed out 25 dimes in a 128-113 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Dec. 27, 2017.

Furthermore, this is a strong sign that Payton might still have something left in the tank. Through three starts, Payton is averaging 9.7 points, 11.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 1.7 steals in 26.3 minutes per game. Those numbers aren’t sustainable, and Payton should return to a bench role once Dejounte Murray, who’s nearing a return from a hand fracture, and Jose Alvarado, who’s dealing with a hamstring injury, are back. Murray is targeting his return for Wednesday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors.

If that’s the case, then Peyton’s short-lived spell in the starting lineup will end abruptly and right after the best game of his career. However, he should see steady minutes off the bench for the rest of the season, or at least until Alvarado returns to the rotation.

Less than a week after signing with the organization, Payton has proven to the Pelicans, and the rest of the NBA, that he still belongs.