But it’s nothing to worry about.
For the second year in a row, the Golden State Warriors made a splash in free agency by signing highly-respected veteran guard De’Anthony Melton. And for the second year in a row, Melton is going to miss some time at the beginning of the season.
It’s better this time around, though. Last year, Melton started the season healthy, but that quickly changed. He was on the court for the season opener, but in the team’s 11th game of the year — and his sixth time suiting up — he suffered a catastrophic ACL tear that would end his season just as it was getting started.
Now he’ll hope to reverse that story, by missing the start of the season, and then getting healthy for the rest of it. It’s been less than a year since Melton had his ACL reconstruction surgery, and he’s not yet healthy enough to play. On Wednesday, as he got acclimated in his second training camp with the team, Melton was limited to individual work on the court, but couldn’t partake in team drills and scrimmages. The Warriors announced that his ACL will be re-evaluated in four weeks, which means he’s been ruled out for the season opener on October 21.
According to ESPN’s Anthony Slater, the Warriors are happy with where Melton is in his rehab, but are, justifiably, taking a cautious approach. You can expect that to be the theme of the season for a team that is very much on the older side.
None of this should be worrisome. This is the standard timeline for ACL surgeries, so it’s not like Melton is behind schedule, and the Warriors certainly knew where his health was when they opted to sign him to help fill out their roster. It does mean, however, that the Dubs will be lacking in guard health when the season begins. Not only will Melton be unavailable, but Seth Curry will be, too, as the team’s financial situation dictates that they’ll have to waive the younger Curry before the season begins, and re-sign him in mid-November. But with Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Moses Moody, and Gary Payton II, to make no mention of rookie Will Richard and two-way contract Pat Spencer, the Warriors are certainly built to withstand a few absences in the backcourt.
Category: General Sports
