Blazers: De’Anthony Melton might be best guard available in NBA Draft
By Nate Mann
De’Anthony Melton gives the Blazers a defensive-minded shooting guard to replace Shabazz Napier and Pat Connaughton if they leave in free agency.
The Portland Trail Blazers appear to be gearing up for drafting a combo guard with pick No. 24.
Portland interviewed primarily guards at the combine and let the one perfect-fitting forward make a promise with another team.
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While a forward immediately helps the Blazers, perhaps a combo guard can fill the holes left by free agency. Shabazz Napier most likely leaves for a bigger contract, and Pat Connaughton might be let go in order to save money for another free agent.
If that’s the case, Portland should draft a reserve guard to join Wade Baldwin IV. Selecting one who excels at defense helps Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum in the staggered lineup. They can put more energy into offense and let Baldwin or the rookie to step up defensively.
We’ve already analyzed a few potential guard prospects. USC’s De’Anthony Melton is another option for the Blazers at No. 24.
De’Anthony Melton
De’Anthony Melton played one college season at USC in 2016-2017. The university held him out of the 2017-2018 season because of a connection to the FBI investigation of college basketball bribery. He later decided to withdraw from USC and focus on the NBA.
Melton handled it all professionally, even after discovering a family friend accepted $5,000 to push him towards agent Christian Dawkins and a specific financial advisor.
He reportedly spoke about it with every NBA team who approached him at the combine.
FBI drama aside, Melton is an NBA-ready guard. In his solo season at USC, he averaged 8.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.0 blocks in 27.0 minutes per game.
He’s one of those Marcus Smart-esque players. The stat sheet may not be pretty, but they noticeably impact each and every game.
Offense
De’Anthony Melton plays smart basketball. He makes accurate passes and puts his teammates in positions to score. Most importantly, he can run the floor off a rebound and facilitate effective transition offense.
Melton’s best asset is his athleticism. He runs the floor well and has impressive lateral quickness. The lateral quickness contributed to nearly 2 steals per game in his freshman season at USC.
Unfortunately, the guard doesn’t shoot the three-pointer – he made 0.6 per game at a 28% success rate.
Thanks to a speedy first step, his offense instead comes from penetration. Melton isn’t afraid of drawing fouls; he attempted 3 free throws per contest. However, only 71% of those free throws fell, a fairly low percentage for a guard.
Defense
De’Anthony Melton averaged 1.9 steals and 1.0 blocks per game because of his impressive athleticism. With an entire season off to study the intricacies of the game, Melton demonstrated an ability to read the opponent’s offense at the combine as well.
Despite only being 6’3″, the guard has a 6’8″ wingspan. Against other players his size, a lengthy wingspan enables Melton to recover quickly and record lots of steals and blocks.
The combination of quick hands and ability to run the transition makes him a solid pairing with Lillard or McCollum.
Next: Jacob Evans one of few forwards Blazers are looking at
The Blazers must lose Shabazz Napier and Pat Connaughton to justify drafting another guard. However, if that happens, De’Anthony Melton could be the best option because of his defensive abilities.
We’ll find out soon if Portland has a scheduled workout with him.