“He’s a two-way player, which I love the ability to connect multiple lineups.” Steve Kerr’s assessment of De’Anthony Melton has surely raised Dub Nation’s expectations. Shooting. Defense. Playmaking. The veteran guard can do it all. He is expected to play a key role in the team’s post-Klay Thompson era. Sure enough, Kerr displayed his trust right away and bumped him to the starting lineup for the Warriors’ preseason opener against the Clippers. And the guard did not disappoint, helping his new team get their first win.

Surely, De’Anthony Melton’s impressive debut would have made many of you curious about his hoops journey and how he earned his stay in the Bay Area. Well, here’s the answer and the timeline.

De’Anthony Melton: From a dual sport athlete to a rising star at USC

Born and raised in North Hollywood, California, De’Anthony Melton was destined to be a pro athlete from the get-go. That’s because both his mother, Monique Young, and father, Anthony Melton, were former college athletes. While Monique was a hooper in college, Anthony was a football star. And their son took the best of both worlds and grew up as a dual sport athlete! During his High School days, his coaches told him that he might have a legitimate shot at a career in the NBA.

Sure enough, De’Anthony Melton shifted his focus to basketball and even led Crespi Carmelite High School to back-to-back two state titles. He had a game-winning block to in the State Championship game against Capital High School in 2015!

After averaging 20 points and almost 10 boards in his sophomore year, the 3-star recruit, was among the Top 10 prospects in Cal after he became his school’s all-time leading scorer. While he had offers from multiple colleges because of his impressive resume, the young hooper decided to join the University of Southern California so that he could stay closer to his mother and five siblings.

During his first year in college, De’Anthony Melton averaged over 8 points and nearly 5 rebounds. The hooper’s passing skills were also on full display, with nearly 4 assists per game. But what stood out was his defense, as he was great at stripping the ball off opponents’ hands and averaged 1.9 steals. One year in college was enough to impress NBA scouts.

From a Second-Round pick to bagging a $12.8 million contract with the Warriors

After an impressive freshman season at USC, De’Anthony Melton entered his name in the NBA draft a year later. He was selected No. 46 by the Houston Rockets in the historic 2018 draft that starred Luka Doncic and Trae Young. However, he did not get the chance to play even a single NBA game for the Rockets, immediately getting traded to the Suns. As a rookie in the biggest league, the young hooper averaged 5 points and proved to be a decent all-around player.

But he was forced to switch teams once again and joined the Grizzlies in his second season. Although coming off the bench, his game kept improving, and he spent three years with the franchise. During Melton’s final season with the team, he averaged his then-career-high 10.8 points and nearly 5 rebounds!

Then, Philly came knocking, where he would even be bumped up to a starter role for the majority of the season. This increased responsibility did not affect his performance as he averaged 10.1 points in his first year with the Sixers. Even last season, De’Anthony Melton had a decent showing as he increased his scoring average to 11.1 points.

But as fate would have it, the hooper’s season was cut short by a spine injury. And he was forced to switch teams once again, but this time, his potential was good enough to bag him a $12.8 million deal with the Golden State Warriors.

Once a die-hard Clippers fan turns into their nightmare in Warriors’ preseason debut

While most LA natives, including his parents, were Lakers fans, De’Anthony always had a liking toward Steve Ballmer’s franchise. “I was a Clippers fan. I promise you,” he said in an interview. Not only that, but he even had high ambitions for the team growing up, “I wanted the Clippers to win 4 or 5 championships when I was younger.” Unfortunately, Melton never got a chance to play for his favorite team. But he got the opportunity to make his Warriors’ debut against the LA side and, sure enough, he made it memorable.

With Klay no longer in the team, De’Anthony Melton was his replacement. While he played just a little over 12 minutes, he added 8 points on the board and even grabbed 2 rebounds. Moreover, he drained 2 of his 5 three-point attempts, sticking to Steve Kerr’s vision of making the Warriors a high-volume shooting team like they have always been.

Kerr has previously praised Melton’s shooting ability, “He’s a catch-and-shoot guy, so just watching him scrimmage this past week at Chase, our guys are playing pickup ball as they get ready for camp. I watched him knock down four straight threes in a scrimmage. But they were catch-and-shoot. No catch-and-hold. The game keeps going when he’s out there.”

With a career 36.9% efficiency from deep range, Melton would be a huge asset in the Warriors’ title aspirations this season. Thoughts?

Before you go, remember to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr.