76ers’ De’Anthony Melton on How He’s Feeling After All-Star Break
Coming back from the NBA All-Star break, Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers noted certain players needed the time off more than others as they’ve been banged up and dealing with minor setbacks.
Rivers mentioned De’Anthony Melton as one of the players that needed the time off, as he’s had lingering back concerns throughout the entire season.
“De’Anthony just needed the break to reset himself,” Rivers said last week. “He said he did that, and he’s ready, so that’s good.”
Melton’s missed just three games this season. Since the Sixers have been back on the floor, he appeared in both games. Following Saturday night’s game against the Boston Celtics, Melton addressed the state of his health since returning from the break.
“My body's feeling actually way better than before,” said the veteran guard. “So I think that's the most important thing and just managing it understanding when I gotta get treatment and stuff like that. So I think I'm doing a good job at it right now. Just got to stay on it. No pain, minimum. So, I'm solid with that. You know, just got to attack everything else.”
Although Melton did see limited action in the Sixers’ first game back when they faced the Memphis Grizzlies, Doc Rivers noted that it didn’t have anything to do with Melton’s health.
“We thought the other guys were playing better,” Rivers said last Thursday after the Sixers defeated the Grizzlies. “Sometimes, when you’re playing against your former team, it can go one way or the other. It was going the other, so we just went the other direction.”
The Sixers are back on the floor Monday night to take on the Miami Heat. As Melton checked into Saturday’s game for over 24 minutes without dealing with any setbacks, he shouldn’t see limited playing time against the Heat.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
