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.

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.

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.