Why Did De’Anthony Melton See Limited Playing Time vs. Grizzlies?

What happened to De'Anthony Melton in the second half of Thursday's game?

De’Anthony Melton had the opportunity to face his former team, the Memphis Grizzlies, for the second time since getting traded over the summer. In his first outing against the Grizzlies on the road, Melton checked in for 34 minutes, scoring 13 points while coming down with six rebounds and producing four assists in the eight-point loss.

When Melton faced his former team for the second and final time this season on Thursday at home, his playing time was cut down by 21 minutes, despite drawing the start.

On the eve of the return from the All-Star break, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers mentioned that Melton’s been dealing with a lingering back issue throughout the year. Although he missed just three of 58 games this season, Rivers made it known that Melton could see some more rest during the final stretch of the regular season.

“He’s learning how to manage it a little bit better,” Rivers said on Wednesday. “I think we’ve done a better job at in games where we can rest him more, we have. I don’t know if that’s been better for him as a player. There’s two things going on at the same time. That’s something we talked about at the break. There is a fine line with too much rest and guys losing their rhythm. We got to walk that line, especially during these games.”

Was Thursday’s game somewhat of a rest night for Melton? Not exactly.

After the Sixers wrapped up their matchup with a five-point win over the Grizzlies, Rivers was asked about Melton’s lack of playing time, considering it was a single-game season-low of minutes played by a notable margin. Was it injury-related?

“No,” Rivers responded.

“We just stayed… We thought the other guys were playing better,” the head coach explained. “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 dialed up a heavy dose of Tyrese Maxey in the second half as he checked in for nearly 20 minutes alongside James Harden. Meanwhile, Melton saw the court for just four minutes in the second half. 

It’s a positive sign that Melton’s not dealing with any setbacks coming out of the break. While he had a tough night on Thursday, it seems Rivers and the Sixers are far from concerned. And Melton will likely be back in the starting five when the Sixers take on the Boston Celtics on Saturday night.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.