While the Golden State Warriors have stuck with a fairly consistent starting lineup in recent times, it seems like head coach Steve Kerr is going to make an obvious change soon.
De’Anthony Melton has been playing well ever since returning from his injury, and he arguably just had his best game for the team on Tuesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Melton seems destined for Warriors lineup after recent play
Melton had a team-high 23 points in 18 minutes played. He made 9 of his 14 field goal attempts and made four of his six three-point attempts. He was a +20 on the night and is slowly but surely proving that he deserves to be part of the starting rotation.
Kerr has had him on a minutes count so far this season as he returns from an ACL injury. Obviously, the Warriors do not want him to re-injure himself so they have been understandably cautious.
Yet they're also likely to get to the point where they can stretch him out a bit more and get closer to 30 minutes per game out of him. Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area took to social media to say that Melton is just a few weeks away from joining the starting lineup.
We will see what the team looks like in a couple of weeks because there may be some roster shake up. Jonathan Kuminga seems very likely to be moved and the Warriors might decide to trade some of their other pieces as well ahead of the mid-season deadline.
However, Melton seems to be a key piece of the puzzle for the Warriors this season. In 16 games he has made 42.3% of his field goal attempts and is averaging over 10 points per game.
He’d most likely take the spot of Moses Moody in the starting lineup. The fifth-year wing has had some solid games, but he has not had the consistency to warrant a spot in the starting unit.
Melton is a veteran who has proven he can provide solid play consistently, and that is exactly what the Warriors need as they try to escape the mediocrity they have been trapped in for much of the year.
There is some uncertainty right now with the Warriors since the trade deadline is looming, but one thing that is not uncertain is Melton’s eventual place in the starting lineup if he continues to produce at this level going forward.