Golden State Warriors guard De’Anthony Melton will need season-ending knee surgery.
The team announced Wednesday that Melton will soon undergo surgery to repair a torn left spinal cord that Steve Kerr said was partially torn. Melton, who missed the last two games, thought about it in the past few days according to Kerr.
Tests showed that surgery was the best option, the Warriors said. Melton, who has also faced tough backs, was the starting backcourt alongside Stephen Curry in Klay Thompson’s move to Dallas.
“Obviously it’s sad news, I feel bad for De’Anthony, he’s a great fit for us and we’ve been really excited to have him and obviously he’s going to be our starter next to Steph,” Kerr said. “The good news is he’s a young guy and surgery is common these days, so he should be able to come back and continue his career well, but I feel bad for him and bad for us.”
Melton played in six games with two starts, averaging 10.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 20.2 minutes. He sat out five back-to-back struggles.
Now, Lindy Waters III – who like Melton is a solid defender despite his scoring talent – will be the regular starter for now and was among the starting five for Wednesday’s home game against the Atlanta Hawks.
The Warriors will test different combinations going forward to find what works.
“Fortunately we have a deep team and guys will be ready to step up,” said Kerr, who noted that he has been talking to Melton about his job and the guard’s upcoming free agency. “There’s been a lot of discussion behind the scenes. He’s disappointed but he knows it’s the right decision. He told me he really spent a few days trying to wrap his head around it and think about what makes sense. It’s the right decision, I’m not going to worry about a torn ACL and think everything will be fine if he just plays with it. .”
It is reported by the Associated Press.
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