Having already lost his starting role to rookie guard Will Richard this season, things appear to be going from bad to worse for Brandin Podziemski whose role could become even more limited based on the excellent return of De'Anthony Melton on Thursday against the Philadelphia 76ers.
In fact, if Melton can build on a performance that saw him produce legitimate two-way impact, he'll quickly move into the starting lineup and make Podziemski even more expendable when it comes to a mid-season trade.
De'Anthony Melton could make Brandin Podziemski more expendable
Having not played for nearly 13 months after tearing his ACL in November last year, Melton looked lively on both ends of the floor and was a major reason behind Golden State's comeback in the second-half and specifically during the fourth-quarter.
The 27-year-old finished with 14 points, three assists and two steals in 21 minutes off the bench, shooting 5-of-11 from the floor. Melton's ability to run the offense in the absence of Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green was notable in the second-half, showcasing an ability to be another pick-and-roll ball handler which could be a nice foil once the veteran stars return.
Perhaps more importantly though, Melton's movement and lateral quickness defensively was surprisingly good for someone coming off a long-term leg injury. His defensive ability was evident on Philadelphia's final possession where he forced star guard Tyrese Maxey into an air-balled jump-shot, only for the ball to land favorably for VJ Edgecombe who made the game-winning layup.
Melton played five minutes in the fourth-quarter, but likely would have played more if he wasn't on a minutes restriction. In contrast, Podziemski was benched completely in the final period and played less than 20 minutes in another underwhelming performance from the third-year guard.
Podziemski finished with six points and six rebounds on 2-of-8 shooting from the floor, while also committing three turnovers without a single assist. Not only did Steve Kerr prefer Melton over Podziemski in the fourth, but he also went to Pat Spencer who continues to push his case for more minutes with another impressive performance.
Podziemski has usually been the best and most utilized Warrior guard outside of Curry over the last 12 months, yet that doesn't look the case currently and particularly after Melton's performance on Thursday.
If Melton takes a starting role and Podziemski is relegated to nothing more than a seventh or eighth guy in the rotation, the Warriors should absolutely be exploring how they could use him in a trade to upgrade the roster by February.