The Golden State Warriors are reuniting with guard De’Anthony Melton. According to a report from ESPN’s Shams Charania, Melton has verbally committed to sign with the Warriors. Melton, like Al Horford, has been tied to the Warriors all offseason but had delayed finalizing a deal to allow the Dubs to settle negotiations with Jonathan Kuminga. He has now officially committed to the team, but will still have to wait until Kuminga’s deal is finalized to put pen to paper.
Melton, who signed a one-year, $14.1 million deal with the Warriors last offseason, looked like a perfect complimentary piece for Golden State early in the season. The Dubs started the season 10-2 with Melton averaging 10.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in 20.2 minutes per game across six contests. However, Melton soon tore his ACL and was sidelined for the season.
With Melton unable to help the team, the Warriors traded Melton to the Nets for point guard Dennis Schröder, who would later be traded again as part of the multi-team deal that brought Jimmy Butler to Golden State. Even at the time, it was clear that the front office and coaching staff were disappointed that bad injury luck had cut Melton’s tenure with the team short. It seems that Melton felt the same way.
While Brandin Podziemski is the early favorite to start in the Warriors backcourt alongside Steph Curry, with Buddy Hield presumably the first guard off the bench, Melton would seem to be favored over the remaining guards (Will Richard and Seth Curry) on the roster. Moreover, if Melton is able to stay healthy (a big if given his history), he is in position to secure a larger and larger role over the course of the season as arguably the best defensive guard on the roster.