The Sixers will fully guarantee De’Anthony Melton’s $8 million for the 2023-24 season, HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto reported.
If they’d waived Melton on or before Monday, the Sixers would only have owed him $1.5 million for next year, per Spotrac.
Waiving Melton would’ve been a nonsensical move. The 25-year-old had a strong first season as a Sixer after landing with the team in a 2022 draft-night trade. He played a career-high 27.9 minutes per game, finished second in the NBA in total steals (126), and proved valuable for the Sixers in both full-strength and shorthanded situations.
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Though Melton replaced Tyrese Maxey in the Sixers’ starting lineup during the middle of the regular season, the two young guards always appeared to enjoy each other's company on and off the floor.
“People thought that we would be beefing or whatever, because of us being in and out of the (starting) lineups,” Maxey said during the playoffs. “But literally, on the team, we’re really good friends — best friends, if you want to say. We cheer each other on in any circumstances.
“I get on him for not being aggressive. He gets on me for not being aggressive. I think that’s just something that we have in common: We both want to win really bad, and we both want to see each other succeed.”
Melton’s outside shooting and excellent rebounding for his position also served the Sixers well. He took 9.3 three-pointers per 100 possessions and sunk 39.0 percent of his regular-season triples. Melton drained the first five long-distance jumpers he tried in the Sixers’ second-round playoff matchup against the Celtics but had a disappointing final four games of the series as a shooter, hitting just 1 of 11 three-point attempts.
NBA
The 2023-24 campaign will be the final season of the four-year deal Melton signed with the Grizzlies and his first under Nick Nurse. On paper, Melton’s turnover-creating, up-for-anything, nose-for-the-ball style should work nicely with how the Sixers’ new head coach likes his guards to defend.