De'Anthony Melton Reportedly Linked to Warriors After Marcus Smart's Lakers Contract
Free-agent guard De'Anthony Melton is being linked to the Golden State Warriors after previous reports connected him to the Los Angeles Lakers, The Athletic's David Aldridge, Josh Robbins and Dan Woike reported on Saturday.
Aldridrge, Robbins and Woike's report comes shortly after the Lakers reportedly agreed to a two-year deal with Marcus Smart following his buyout with the Washington Wizards.
The Warriors' interest in bringing back Melton, in addition to signing former Boston Celtics center Al Horford, had previously been reported by NBA insider Marc Stein.
Stein said in a recent appearance on 95.7 The Game's "Willard & Dibs" (h/t NBC Sports Bay Area's Taylor Wirth) that his "expectation is that one way or another, the Warriors are going to end up with both Horford and Melton on their roster."
Whether the Warriors bring in either or both free agents could depend on the franchise's ongoing restricted free agency negotiations with Jonathan Kuminga, whom NBA insider Jake Fischer previously reported is seeking a deal in the range of $25 million per year.
Melton joined the Warriors last offseason on a one-year, $12.8 million contract, but ultimately played just six games for the franchise before undergoing season-ending surgery on a partially torn left ACL. His expiring deal was later traded to the Brooklyn Nets in December.
He averaged 10.3 points per game on 40.7 percent shooting from the field (37.1 from deep) in six games and two starts prior to his injury.
With the Lakers likely out on bidding for Melton and the Warriors reportedly talking to the Phoenix Suns about a potential sign-and-trade for Kuminga, per Fischer, Golden State could take another swing at adding three-point shooting and perimeter defense by signing Melton before training camp starts in September.
