Warriors' Melton to undergo ACL surgery, miss remainder of season

Golden State Warriors' De'Anthony Melton will undergo surgery and miss the remainder of the season after suffering a sprained ACL, the team announced Wednesday.

Melton sustained the injury in a win over the Dallas Mavericks on Nov. 12, with the Warriors announcing the following day that the 26-year-old would undergo further testing to determine his recovery timeline.

"It's obviously terrible news. I feel so bad for De'Anthony. He's such a perfect fit for us, and we were so excited to have him, and he was clearly going to be our starter next to Steph (Curry)," Warriors coach Steve Kerr told The Associated Press' Janie McCauley.

"The good news is he's a young guy, and the surgery is pretty routine these days, so he should be able to come back and resume his career really well, but I feel awful for him and bad for us, too."

The guard appeared in six games this season and missed time earlier in the campaign due to a back injury. Melton averaged 10.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in his limited action, starting in two contests.

Melton joined the Warriors this past offseason on a one-year, $12.8-million deal after spending the last two seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers. He averaged a career-high 11.1 points for the Sixers in 2023-24 despite missing 49 contests with a lumbar spine issue.

With Melton out, Lindy Waters III, Gary Payton II, and Brandin Podziemski can expect to see bigger roles in the backcourt. Golden State sits first in the Western Conference at 10-3 and will take on the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.