The Memphis Grizzlies look likely to be without forward De’Anthony Melton for the start of the season after finding out that he’ll miss approximately four to eight weeks with a back injury.
According to the team, “(he) was diagnosed with a stress reaction in his back and is undergoing off-loading and treatment to resolve. A full recovery is expected with a return to basketball activities in 4-8 weeks.”
It is unknown how and when Melton suffered the injury, but the most probable explanation is that it was picked up at some point during offseason workouts.
Memphis acquired the 21-year-old small forward in a trade with the Phoenix Suns over the offseason in a trade that sent Jevon Carter and Kyle Korver away from the team.
Melton played in 50 games for the Suns last year after being drafted out of USC, averaging 5.0 points, 3.2 assists, and 2.7 rebounds per game in under 20 minutes per game of action. He stood out with his defensive prowess, averaging 1.4 steals per game in his limited minutes.
Memphis will hope that Melton makes a quick recovery and doesn’t miss too much of the regular season, as they hope that the versatile small forward will become a big part of their plans in the 2019-20 season.
