76ers Sense De'Anthony Melton Breakthrough Approaching

After a promising showing against the Pacers, the 76ers are confident that De'Anthony Melton's patience will pay off.

The start to the 2023-2024 NBA season hasn’t been kind to Philadelphia 76ers guard De’Anthony Melton.

In an important year for the guard from a personal standpoint, as he plays through the final season of his current contract, Melton has underperformed by his standards on the offensive end of the floor.

Last season, Melton was one of the Sixers’ most reliable shooters from deep. In 77 games, he averaged 39 percent from three, producing ten points per game. With uncertainty in the backcourt due to James Harden’s trade request, Melton found himself promoted to the Sixers’ starting five to begin the year.

Now, with Harden out of the picture officially, Melton is likely to stick in the starting five. Despite his struggles from the field, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse made it clear that a slumping Melton wouldn’t result in a ticket to the bench, considering all that he does on the defensive end.

De'Anthony Melton attacking the Pacers' defense on Tuesday night.  / USA Today

Not only is it too early in the season for overreactions, but the Sixers’ key cast has been very vocal in supporting Melton through his battles with consistency in making baskets. Last week, Melton acknowledged the support from his teammates, showing appreciation for the messages they’d constantly send him. Telling him to keep firing, even when the shots aren’t falling in his favor, Melton was reminded that every shooter goes through a similar stretch.

Finally, Melton’s continued aggressiveness paid off in Tuesday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers.

“He had a good game,” Nurse said after the matchup. 

“Not much changed other than the shot started going in for him,” the head coach continued. “He was getting similar looks. I thought he made some aggressive plays, and obviously, he was feeling better and stepped into some more shots. Good to see. I figured it was coming. I thought he played really hard, too, on the defensive end. Good game for him.”

Melton learned early on in Tuesday’s matchup against Indiana that his deep ball could work. Although he went 2-5 in his first ten minutes of action, three of his attempts were from beyond the arc, which is where both of his makes were launched from.

“We always trust him — the last thing we wanted him to do was not shoot it,” Joel Embiid said after the game. “Make or miss, he has to keep shooting. Tonight, he made some, so that was good to see. He was in attack mode. I found him a few times to close out the third quarter, which was good to see. We just have to keep it going, but like I said, sometimes you make shots, sometimes you don’t. You just have to keep believing in him.”

Trailing 63-54 heading into the third quarter, the Sixers needed a wake-up call on offense. While Embiid unsurprisingly had a perfect shooting quarter, drilling all six of his shots and a lone free throw to account for 13 of Philly’s 40 third-quarter points, it was Melton who led the pack. Knocking down three of his shots and getting to the line for eight free throws, where he converted on every one, Melton accounted for 15 points in the third quarter. He was key in helping the Sixers climb back and make it a game after a tough showing in the first half.

“[I was] just constantly being aggressive,” Melton said after the game. “Jo did a great job of keeping all their bigs in foul trouble. By the time I got going in that quarter, I was just attacking the rim because I knew there wasn’t too much rim protection. Just staying aggressive, and Jo told me, just keep going, keep going.”

It’s not always easy for players to keep their confidence high when the results aren’t falling in their favor. Fortunately for Melton, he has the right mental balance to stay on course.

“You need somebody like that, that’s even-keeled, he’s Even-Steven all the time,” Tyrese Maxey said of Melton. “That’s really good for us. We know what we’re going to get from Melt. We just want him to shoot more threes. Shoot it if you’re open. That’s what you do. We know you can shoot.”

Melton concluded Tuesday’s game with a 30-point showing on an efficient 62 percent shooting from the field. The Sixers didn’t get the overall result they wanted, falling short to the Pacers with a 132-126 loss, but Melton’s performance was a promising sight.

“He’s been working, the ball bounced his way, honestly,” Maxey finished. “…He was great tonight. I mean, he hit shots, he played defense and did a lot of Melt stuff. He was good for us — really good.”

One game won’t change the narrative for Melton this season, but it’s a good step in the right direction. The Sixers had faith in Melton’s ability to bounce back, and he rewarded their patience on Tuesday. Now, he just needs to sustain it.