De'Anthony Melton has had a strong bounce-back year for the Golden State Warriors after playing just 44 games in the previous two seasons, but that also puts into question his future with the franchise ahead of free agency this summer.
Speaking to 95.7 The Game's Steiny and Guru on Thursday, Melton all but confirmed that he'll opt out of his $3.5 million player option for next season and test unrestricted free agency for the third time is an many years.
De'Anthony Melton is headed for free agency again
No one could begrudge Melton for choosing to opt out and searching for a bigger deal, particularly after his myriad of injury issues in recent years. As the 27-year-old himself put, he just wants to be rewarded for the work he's put in and the impact he can consistently have on games.
"I’ve been in this league a decent amount of time now. So 8 years is a lot of time. I’ve put in a lot of time and effort and work into this, you know what I mean? So I think that should be rewarded and I think, for anybody, you put in that much time, effort, work and you know you’ve seen the results and you’ve seen how much impactful you are and what you have done, like I said, you want to be rewarded for that," Melton said.
It's crystal clear that Melton will opt out of his player option, and therefore there's a distinct chance that we're now in the final weeks of his time with the Warriors. It started last season before a torn ACL ruined his campaign after just six games, and led to a trade to the Brooklyn Nets only to return in free agency.
Following his return from injury at the start of December, Melton has averaged a career-high 13.0 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He's shooting only 41.5% from the floor and 28.8% from 3-point range, but those percentages (and his scoring average) have been impacted by greater usage without Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler in recent months.
De'Anthony Melton's future may not rest solely on he and the Warriors
Melton is clearly an excellent fit for Golden State and vice-versa, but the franchise's ability to re-sign the 6'2" guard may not be solely up to them. Draymond Green's $27.7 million player option looms over all their decisions this offseason, and could prove the difference on whether Melton remains with the franchise or not.
If Green does opt into his player option, it will likely prove incredibly difficult for the Warriors to re-sign both Melton and Kristaps Porzingis. Given their need for a starting quality big man, the front office may prioritize Porzingis despite his even greater injury and health concerns.
Perhaps there's still a way in which the Warriors can re-sign both Porzingis and Melton, but there's little doubt now that the latter will be opting out of his player option and testing free agency.