Houston Rockets: 2018 NBA Draft grades
By Jason Elbaum
No. 46: De’Anthony Melton, USC
The Rockets used their first selection in the draft to acquire De’Anthony Melton, a shooting guard out of USC. Melton grew up in California, where he attended Crespi Carmelite High School and picked USC over San Diego State in 2016.
In his first season with the Trojans, he was an immediate contributor. He started 25 games for Andy Enfield’s team and played 27 minutes per game for a team that made the NCAA Tournament and was knocked out by Providence in a one-point loss in the first round.
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His scoring numbers do not jump off the page, but Melton shows his value on the defensive end of the floor. He averaged 1.9 steals and 1.0 blocks per game in his freshman year at USC, which was a big reason why he was a key piece of the Trojans’ impressive regular season.
Prior to the 2017-18 season Melton was ruled ineligible by the university because of his alleged connection to the widespread college basketball bribery case. It was an unfortunate blow to his draft stock and even more of a blow for the Trojans, but the Rockets took a chance on a player who showed promise in his lone college season.
There is still a lot to be desired with Melton’s game, namely his jump shooting, but his length and athleticism could provide solid perimeter defense and more deflections to help the Rockets run the fast break the way they love to do. DraftExpress likes the fit for Houston and Melton because of his versatility.
There are still many moving parts that have to be put in place before we can really discuss Melton’s role with the Rockets because of the contract situations of key players such as Chris Paul, Clint Capela, and Trevor Ariza. As a second round pick and having not played in competitive games in over a year, there’s a good chance Melton spends some time in the G league.
Grade: B-