De’Anthony Melton, who recently entered the starting lineup for the Golden State Warriors, has suffered a sprained MCL in his left knee. He was listed on the Warriors’ injury report as out for Friday’s game with the Memphis Grizzlies.
The team has not yet announced a timetable for Melton’s recovery, pending further testing on his knee.
Warriors guard De’Anthony Melton has a sprained left ACL and will undergo further testing. He will not play in tomorrow night’s game against the Grizzlies and an update on his status will be provided as soon as it becomes available.
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) November 14, 2024
Melton, 26, suffered the injury during Tuesday’s 120-117 win over the Dallas Mavericks, although it is uncertain exactly when he was injured. The seven-year veteran finished the game with 14 points, four assists and four rebounds in 26 minutes of play.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr recently placed Melton in the starting lineup at Shooting Guard. In the two games he started, Melton averaged 16.5 points with seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. This season, he is Golden State’s fifth-leading scorer with 10.3 points per game, fourth on the team in assists (2.8) and second in steals (1.2). Melton is also shooting 37% on three-pointers in 35 attempts.
However, Melton has missed five of the Warriors’ 11 games this season due to lower back problems.
“He’s obviously a very important player for us and is a guy we envisioned as the starting 2-guard and has done a good job,” Kerr said, via Kendra Andrews of ESPN. “It’s definitely a concern. We will know more in the coming days.”
De’Anthony Melton’s 3 before Steph Curry scored the game’s final 12 points was so big
Got the Warriors within 4 with 3:51 left
Warriors had missed their last seven shots
Started with Melton diving to the ground for a loose ball pic.twitter.com/CVKNu2xT9U— Dalton Johnson (@DaltonJ_Johnson) November 13, 2024
Melton joined the Warriors on a one-year contract worth $12.8 million after spending the past two seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers. He also played for the Phoenix Suns and Memphis Grizzlies during his career.
While he is away, Melton’s minutes are expected to be split among Brandin Podziemski, Moses Moody and Gary Payton II as the team sits on guard.
