OKLAHOMA CITY – Through 10 games, the Golden State Warriors have already added six players to the shooting guard spot: Andrew Wiggins in a jumbo package to open the season; Buddy Hield, Lindy Waters III and Moses Moody in the three games Steph Curry missed; Gary Payton II in a few recent matchups; and finally De’Anthony Melton on Sunday night at the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Melton opened the Warriors’ 127-116 road victory with a pocket bounce pass to Trayce Jackson-Davis for a layup. Later in the first quarter, he hit the first of his five threes. He had 10 rebounds from the guard position, 19 points, two assists and three steals, sliding between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams as his primary assignment.

These were 27 big minutes from Melton. After the game, Steve Kerr essentially announced that Melton would be the starting shooting guard.

“I love this lineup with Melt,” Kerr said. “I expect to do it again on Tuesday (against the Dallas Mavericks). I think it gives us a really good two-way setup. You saw what he can do on both sides. … I would like the starting group that was there tonight to be our group for the future.”

Steve Kerr plans to keep De’Anthony Melton as starting shooting guard and wants the Curry, Melton, Wiggins, Draymond and TJD group to form the foundation for the future

Full explanation pic.twitter.com/6quMQuykve

— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) November 11, 2024

Kerr and the coaching staff discussed Melton as the favorite starting shooting guard in Hawaii. They signed him for his perceived fit next to Curry and were pleased with the early results, pairing the two together in the preseason opener against the LA Clippers.

But that first month was about lineup experimentation. Draymond Green preferred a center next to him to open games, and it became clear that the Warriors wanted to get Jonathan Kuminga into the starting lineup to open the season. That led to a big lineup of Curry, Wiggins, Kuminga, Green and Jackson-Davis, an experiment that lasted just three games.

Melton probably would have slid into this starting spot sooner, but his back flared up. Melton was limited to 38 games with the Philadelphia 76ers last season due to a bothersome back problem that wouldn’t go away. Because of that shaky health status, he was available on the mid-level exception this summer. He said he chose the Warriors in part because of Rick Celebrini’s recent work developing players like Green and Otto Porter Jr. through back injuries to productive seasons.

Celebrini kept a close eye on Melton during this trip, putting him through a series of individual and eventually group workouts to test his inflamed lower back before finally clearing him for the Cleveland Cavaliers game. He was solid against the Cavs and did enough to get the green light for the starting shooting guard spot and 27 minutes against the Thunder.

“We played Memphis in the playoffs (in 2022), and he was part of their seven-to-eight-man rotation because he can defend and knock down open shots,” Curry said. “Confident. Makes the right play. Sound guy who knows how to play. I just hope he’s healthy and can be available. He’s been working tirelessly on that. Tonight that role was on display, a two-way player and another guy who can handle the ball a little bit, which helps.”

In the first quarter, Wiggins blasted through Chet Holmgren on a drive attempt, knocking Holmgren horizontal with a hard crash to the ground. Holmgren injured his hip and missed the rest of the game, leaving the Thunder without an available center. As a result, Kerr changed his rotation and did not play Jackson-Davis or Kevon Looney for the rest of the evening.

“Last year, Steph and Steve were talking about lineups and we were running out of options for lineups we could go to,” Green said. “This year it’s the complete opposite.”

Kerr started the second half with Payton in place of Jackson-Davis, leaving Melton as the starting shooting guard and Kuminga in his bench role. It’s clear Kerr wants him to get comfortable as a high-usage second-unit leader. Kuminga was one of their lone bright spots in Cleveland, scoring 21, and backed that up with 20 points in 26 minutes against the Thunder, relentlessly attacking their lack of rim protection in a productive first half. Kuminga is averaging 17.4 points on 51.7 percent shooting in his seven straight games as a reserve.

“I think JK has shown how important he is off the bench,” Kerr said. “Twenty points tonight, some big plays. He seems to fit that role really well.”

The victory capped a winding but ultimately impressive 4-1 trip for the Warriors. They had a 31-point lead in the opener at the Houston Rockets, but steadied and survived in overtime. They took care of a bad Washington Wizards team, handled the Boston Celtics, suffered a blowout loss in Cleveland and responded with a double-digit win in Oklahoma City, fending off another nearly 30-point lead.

Holmgren’s unknown injury status puts the Thunder, considered the Western Conference regular-season favorites, in potential turmoil in November. The Phoenix Suns will miss Kevin Durant for at least two weeks and lost to the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night.

The Warriors are tied with Phoenix and Oklahoma City at the top of the conference with an 8-2 record. They return home for two tests this week, starting with the Mavericks and Klay Thompson on Tuesday night.

What will Klay Thompson’s return be like on Tuesday?

Steph Curry: “I don’t know. We’ve had homecomings before, but nothing like this.” pic.twitter.com/NT34K1kKyg

— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) November 11, 2024

(Photo: Alonzo Adams / Imagn Images)