The Suns have signed Dionte Christmas, the team has announced on its website. The 6'5" guard averaged double figures in points for Phoenix's summer league team this year, and a report shortly thereafter indicated the Suns had interest in bringing the former Temple Owl aboard. It's a multi-year deal with a "small" guarantee for this season, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
Christmas has yet to play in a regular season NBA game after going to camp with the Sixers in 2009 and the Celtics last year. He had a two-year contract that was 50% guaranteed for the first season with the C's, and with former Boston executive Ryan McDonough on board as the new Phoenix GM, Christmas is again getting more than the standard non-guaranteed training camp deal.
The move furthers a roster logjam for the Suns, who already had 16 players on fully guaranteed contracts. Still, it's the first free agent deal of the offseason for McDonough and company, who've instead concentrated on swinging three trades since July 1st.
Christmas notched 10.1 points in 20.8 minutes per game for the summer league Suns after splitting the 2012/13 regular season between Montepaschi Siena of Italy and CSKA Moscow in Russia. He put up just 5.5 PPG for his overseas teams last year after he was his league's leading scorer for Rethymno of Greece in 2011/12.