Payton waited 920 days before he finally got to step on an NBA floor again. Just five days after that, he turned a box score crooked, handing out 21 assists in the New Orleans Pelicans’ loss in Indiana on Monday. He added 14 points, seven rebounds and two steals.

Pop quiz: who has the most assists in an NBA game so far during the 2024-25 season? Surely, it's an MVP playmaker like Nikola Jokic or LeBron James, right? No? How about an All-Star in a heliocentric system.

The lone bright spot in this game was the emergence of New Orleans-area native Elfrid Payton, who finished Monday's game with a career-high 21 assists. He became just the fourth player in franchise history to record 20+ assists in a game.

In Monday’s game against the Indiana Pacers, Payton nearly racked up his seventh triple-double. His 14 points, seven rebounds and 21 assists helped New Orleans dig out of an early double-digit point deficit and make the game competitive.

Willie Green and the injury-riddled Pelicans had room on the roster to give Elfrid Payton a shot at NBA redemption.

Point guard Elfrid Payton has signed with the New Orleans Pelicans, the team announced Wednesday. Payton, the No. 10 pick in the 2014 draft, went to training camp with the Pelicans and rejoins the team after recent injuries to starting guards Dejounte Murray (fractured hand) and CJ McCollum (right adductor soreness).

Tyrese Haliburton had 34 points and 13 assists and the Indiana Pacers held off the New Orleans Pelicans 114-110 on Monday night in Indianapolis.