'It's crazy': Suns' Elfrid Payton details wild week in and out of NBA's COVID-19 protocols
NEW ORLEANS – Elfrid Payton had to hurry.
The Suns backup guard said he got a call an hour before last Thursday’s 11 a.m. flight to Boston to begin a three-game road trip and was told he’d once again been cleared of the NBA’s health and safety protocols after being unable to play the night before against Oklahoma City at Footprint Center in Phoenix.
“They waited for me,” Payton said. “They waited for me on the plane.”
That concluded a wacky week for Payton, 27, as he was in and out of the league’s protocols where more than 100 players landed last month alone during this worldwide surge of COVID-19 cases.
“It’s just out of control to be honest,” Payton said. “It’s crazy. It’s nothing I don’t think we can really do to be honest. You see people with the booster still getting it. You see people who got the regular vaccine get it. It’s almost inevitable. You’ve just got to deal with it.”
For an NBA player to return from protocols, he must have two negative tests taken 24 hours apart or two tests with a CT count of 30 or more taken on days four and five after infection.
A high CT count indicates the person is no longer contagious.
“It’s crazy, man,” Payton said before Phoenix’s 133-99 victory Sunday at Charlotte. “This whole situation is crazy. Just trying to navigate everything.”
Here’s Payton’s journey through it all that began the day after Phoenix’s Christmas loss to Golden State.
Sunday, Dec. 26 – Payton said he got a positive test and was placed in protocols.
This was after he’d been getting negative tests.
“I’ve got all these people texting and all this stuff,” Payton said. “And I’m like, I don’t feel nothing.”
Payton said he isn’t eligible for the booster as he received his vaccination right before training camp began in late September.
Monday, Dec. 27 – Payton got two negative tests within 24 hours that enabled him to play against Memphis at Footprint Center.
“I wasn’t supposed to play against Memphis,” Payton said. “They told me I couldn’t play. Then I got two negatives and I was allowed to play.”
Payton said he also did the PCR test that came back negative.
The Suns had announced Payton was out for the game before realizing he was on the court doing work during pregame.
Tuesday, Dec. 28 – Didn’t practice, but received negative tests as players have been testing every day since Dec. 26 and are scheduled to continue doing so through Saturday.
“Negative, negative, negative,” Payton said.
Wednesday, Dec. 29 – Payton said he received another negative test, but was told right before the Oklahoma City game at Footprint Center he received an inconclusive test.
“So now I’m back in protocol,” Payton said. “I leave the gym. I go home and they tell me I can’t go on the trip.”
Thursday, Dec. 30 – Payton still had to test in the morning.
That came back negative.
Then came the call.
“They were like, ‘Hurry up, pack your bags, you’re coming on the trip,’” Payton said as the Suns played last Friday afternoon in Boston on New Year's Eve.
“Man. Crazy.”
What’s crazier is Payton had previously been wearing a mask while getting up shots after practice in trying to keep himself and his teammates safe before this COVID surge of the Omicron variant.
“We’re all trying to be safe,” Payton said. “Trying to protect everybody.”
Payton is one of six Suns players who have been placed in protocols since Dec. 26 with Deandre Ayton, Jae Crowder, JaVale McGee, Abdel Nader (knee) and Landry Shamet the other five.
Suns head coach Monty Williams also entered protocols Dec. 27 while Shamet was the last as he was placed under protocols the morning of Tuesday’s win in New Orleans.
“This COVID thing is crazy,” Suns backup point guard Cameron Payne said before Sunday’s game.
Ayton, Crowder and McGee have since cleared protocols, but remain out of Thursday's home game against the Clippers for "return to competition reconditoning"
The NBA is having daily testing, which has in turn altered the team’s schedule.
“There’s so many protocols, honestly, I just listen to what the medical (staff) has to tell me and just say, ‘Can we do this, or can we not do this,” said Suns lead assistant Kevin Young before Sunday’s game, in which he was acting head coach for Williams.
“The thing about that is it’s not just about, OK, are we going to plan practice or are we not. The guys have such a routine, and this thing has really derailed a lot of routines. Give them credit for being able to adjust on the fly just as much as we all have.”
It appears the league will have to continue to “adjust on the fly” as its 75th anniversary season continues.
“It’s an ongoing conversation that I think we all just trying to figure out how we can finish this season and while we’re keeping everybody safe,” said Bismack Biyombo, a vice president in the player’s union who is on a 10-day hardship with the Suns. “The NBA has always been a safe environment and we’re trying to get that way as a union and a league, and the owners are trying to figure it out.”
The Suns (29-8) are 3-2 in their last five games with Williams missing four in protocols after testing positive for the virus. They’ve signed five players to 10-day hardship deals, but still manage to have the second-best record in the league.
“Over the last three years or so, we’ve really established a team culture, a team identity,” Suns forward Cam Johnson said after Sunday’s win.
“In these moments like that, that’s what you rely on. So that the next man up plays the same way as somebody who is not playing. The next coach up and we’ve still got guys. We’ve got players on our team. We’ve got a lot of talent and a lot of guys that enjoy playing basketball and enjoy playing together.”
Williams cleared protocols and coached Tuesday.
“He was so excited to be back, man,” Suns All-Star point guard Chris Paul said after Tuesday's game. “So excited.”
"Yeah, still holding me out with 4 fouls."
Devin Booker was kidding.
Chris Paul begs to differ.
"No you not."
One thing they agreed on.
Monty Williams was ready after missing 4 games under protocols.
"Very adamant."
"If he could've played tonight, he would have." #Suns pic.twitter.com/LmGZhYf1Ia— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) January 5, 2022
Williams said he experienced symptoms that wiped him out “for a few days” while staying home in Phoenix.
“That kind of surprised me,” Williams said. “When I have a bad flu, I’ve always been able to function and for about three or four days, man, I was just like, holy toast, this thing has really hit me in the head.”
Fortunately for Payton, he didn’t have to experience that.
The Suns guard is aware of the situation, but he’s also cleared his mind on how to deal with it.
“It’s just a part of life now,” he said. “I don’t even worry about it to be honest. Other than trying to protect my teammates, be safe for them, I really don’t worry about it.”
"I went through a few things. It wasn't like mild, but it wasn't so severe that I had to even think about going to the hospital, but it did knock me on my butt for a few days." Monty Williams on having COVID-19.
Said his thoughts were with those without "medical means." #Suns pic.twitter.com/o8QTWknpef— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) January 5, 2022
Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns guard Elfrid Payton details his time in NBA's health and safety protocols
