The Golden State Warriors are displaying strong interest in LeBron James, but signing the superstar forward away from the Los Angeles Lakers would also require some very specific roster moves to try and get the best out of the duo of he and Stephen Curry.
The Warriors signing James might make it all the more important that De'Anthony Melton picks up his $3.5 million player option with the franchise, giving them a perfect complementary piece to Curry and James that could even start while Moses Moody and Jimmy Butler remain injured on the sidelines.
De'Anthony Melton would be perfect complement to superstar duo
Outside of Moody who is set to miss much of next season, Melton is the closest player the Warriors have to a 3-and-D type that the front office would have to prioritize if the Curry and James pairing was to form.
The problem for Melton is that the 3-point shooting wasn't there at all this past season, having shot just 29.4% from beyond the arc despite getting up five attempts per game. However, there are a couple of reasons to believe those numbers were an asterisk, and that Melton can get back to league average or above after shooting 36.9% for his career before this season.
Firstly, Melton will be further removed from his torn ACL, suggesting he should theoretically be in better physical shape entering next season. Second and perhaps more importantly, playing next to Curry and James would allow him to shift back into a more complementary role, rather than the high usage opportunity he received this season due to Golden State's injury woes.
Only 33.6% of Melton's field-goal attempts this season were catch-and-shoot threes, down from the 46.4% and 41.8% from his two years with the Philadelphia 76ers where he shot a combined 37.9% from 3-point range.
De'Anthony Melton has a big decision to make this summer
Melton's averages may actually go down in a role next to Curry and James, but he'd likely be far more effective and therefore potentially more appealing to rivals in free agency next year, rather than opt out and chase the money this offseason.
It will be interesting to see how Golden State's interest in James truly impacts veterans with player options like Melton and Al Horford, particularly if the franchise signals to them a confidence that they'll actually land the 4x MVP.
Either way, Melton does have reasons to opt into his deal and remain with the Warriors, something that could prove incredibly important to the franchise and especially if James arrives in the Bay Area.
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