Philadelphia 76ers guard De’Anthony Melton will enter free agency after a tough season on the floor. He was limited to 38 games in the 2023-24 season due to a lingering back issue, but he averaged 11.1 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3 assists.
When he’s healthy, Melton is one of the more versatile players in the league. He has the length and IQ to be an elite perimeter defender, and he can knock down open looks from deep. That makes him a top 3-and-D player and his free agency should be interesting.
Bleacher Report predicts Melton will get somewhere around $60 million in the upcoming free agency:
A double-digit scorer in each of the least three seasons, the 25-year-old Melton brings a lot of the same plug-and-play qualities as Caldwell-Pope but won’t cost nearly as much. Considering he’s five years younger than KCP, you could make a case that a mere $60 million would be a bargain to lock down what should be Melton’s prime seasons.
It’s also convenient that a projected four-year deal at the mid-level exception, which starts at $12.4 million with annual raises, should come in right around the $54 million mark. Melton only needs to beat that by a few million bucks, which shouldn’t be hard to do.
The Sixers could bring him back on a smaller deal due to the lack of games he played and the back concerns. On the flip side, when Melton is healthy, he is one of the top players in the league. His free agency should be something to watch heading into the summer.
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