Should the Nets Consider Bringing Back De'Anthony Melton?

De'Anthony Melton's contract with the Nets is up at the end of the season, should they re-sign him?

Apr 9, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard De'Anthony Melton practices before a game against the Detroit Pistons at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The offseason will be a time in which the Brooklyn Nets' front office will look to do its best to improve the roster ahead of the upcoming season, which will include mulling over plenty of expiring contracts, including that of De'Anthony Melton.

Melton's contract with the Nets was originally signed with the Golden State Warriors last year, putting to ink an agreement on a one-year deal worth $12.8 million.

Despite moving over to the Barclays Center in mid-December, the former USC guard has yet to take to the court as a member of the Nets, given the season-ending ACL injury he suffered back in November prior to the trade.

Before his injury, Melton was averaging ten points per game on an efficient 40 percent from the field, which falls in line with his career averages in the respective categories.

But those who are familiar with his game know that offense isn't his strong suit, rather his work on the other side of the court.

Using his last season with the Philadelphia 76ers as a point of reference, given the greater sample size, Melton recorded a block percentage of 0.8, as well as a steal percentage of 2.5, according to Cleaning the Glass.

His steal percentage placed him in the 97th percentile of players, seeing him sit with the likes of defensive specialists Alex Caruso and Matisse Thybulle.

When you take this work on the defensive end, it seems that Melton could be a worthy solution to Brooklyn's defensive woes, something that has been an issue for them all season, recording the second-lowest defensive rebounds per game, as well as falling in the latter half of the league for team defensive rating.

These struggles come despite a noticeable upswing in their defensive work in February, when they'd record the sixth highest defensive rating in the league, going toe-to-toe with teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, and Oklahoma City Thunder.

While it doesn't tell the story of their efforts throughout the season, it goes to show that somewhere within Brooklyn's squad and Jordi Fernandez's game plans, there lies a solid defense.

This budding defensive structure is something that the Nets' front office may take into account when deciding on what they want do in regards to re-signing Melton.

It's also worth pointing out that there aren't too many other defensive specialists hitting the free agency market this offseason, with former Net Dorian Finney-Smith and the aforementioned Thybulle both having player options in their contracts for the upcoming season.

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