De'Anthony Melton is proving a game-changer for the Golden State Warriors in recent weeks, but there's still no hiding away from a lengthy injury history that would have the franchise nervous going forward.
That's exactly why the Warriors could put in place the perfect Melton insurance measure, with the franchise reportedly interested in Sacramento Kings guard Keon Ellis as a potential sweetener in a Jonathan Kuminga trade.
Keon Ellis could provide perfect De'Anthony Melton insurance measure
With the Kings remaining the lead suitor for Kuminga who officially requested a trade on Thursday, ESPN's Shams Charania and Anthony Slater report Golden State would be keen on Ellis in a returning package.
"The Warriors refuse to absorb the three years and $60.4 million remaining on Malik Monk's deal, though league sources said Keon Ellis (on a cheap expiring deal) is a potential sweetener of interest to them," Charania and Slater wrote.
Give he makes over $20 million less than Kuminga this season, Ellis may be considered a potential sweetener from a salary standpoint. However, he's also about the best player the Warriors could reasonably expect back in a deal right now that doesn't involve sending out first-round picks, such is Kuminga's diminishing value after being out of the rotation for 13-straight games.
With Melton solidifying himself as arguably Golden State's fourth-best player since returning from a long-term injury last month, the need for another guard like Ellis is seemingly less than what it was a few weeks ago.
Do the Warriors really want to bank on Melton's health for the rest of the season though? Even if he plays out the season strongly, that probably means you can't afford to retain him in free agency. If you have both he and Ellis on the roster, you might get two bites in free agency to try and bring back at least one onto the roster for next season.
Ellis is a poor man's Melton to some degree, possessing a three-and-D skillset that could be valuable in the Golden State system, but without the same ability to necessarily be a playmaker or get to the rim like Melton has displayed in recent games.
Ellis is only averaging 5.3 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 17.3 minutes per game this season, but there is a sense he's being under-utilized by head coach Doug Christie in a guard-heavy Kings rotation.
What the other part of the deal looks like will ultimately determine whether the Warriors make the trade or not, yet there's no doubt that Ellis is a player to monitor and someone that could become valuable particularly in guarding against Melton's injury history.