NBA free agent guard Cameron Payne was arrested early Friday morning in Scottsdale, Arizona, for allegedly giving police officers a false report and refusing to give his name. Payne’s arrest was first reported by TMZ Sports.
According to the Scottsdale Police Department, officers were called to investigate a disturbance at approximately 2:44 a.m. and found two people on the scene, one of them Payne. The police did not provide details regarding what disturbance they responded to. But Payne was arrested and booked at Scottsdale City Jail. He was released from custody a short time later.
Payne, 29, played four seasons for the Phoenix Suns from 2019-23. He was the Oklahoma City Thunder’s first-round pick (No. 14 overall) in the 2015 NBA Draft out of Murray State. During his nine-year NBA career, Payne has played for the Thunder, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers.
The Bucks traded Payne to the Sixers with a second-round pick in February for Patrick Beverley. In 31 regular season games with Philadelphia, he averaged 9.3 points and 3.1 assists per game while shooting 38% on 3-pointers. During the playoffs, Payne appeared in five games, averaging 5.3 points and shooting 44% on 3s.
Payne is set to be a free agent, though the Sixers would reportedly like to re-sign him as a backup to point guard Tyrese Maxey.
