De'Anthony Melton (SG, PHI) - Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 8

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues

ROSTERED IN: 30% of leagues

ANALYSIS: The Sixers keep riding the Milton & Melton wave while waiting for James Harden and Tyrese Maxey to return from injury. That should still be a few days away from happening, so it makes sense to keep adding and starting the former two players and oft-backup options now thrust into starting roles.

When it comes to the bigger of those two, De'Anthony Melton has now started nine games in a row averaging 34 MPG and never playing fewer than 28 minutes in any of those matches. Over the full season, Melton has started 14 games of the 21 he's played, averaging a still-healthy 29 MPG.

Of course, without (mainly) Harden around eating shots in bunches himself, Melton has been able to steadily hoist more than 10 FGA a pop without failing at it and for eight games running. He's hit at least 35.7% of the shots he's taken in seven of those eight matches averaging 14 PPG in his last nine games starting and hitting at least one 3-point shot in all of those.

In the last two weeks, Melton has averaged 2.7+ 3PM per game (more than half of his 14 PPG have come that way) to go with 4+ RPG, 4 APG, and 2.5+ SPG. He's basically an all-across-the-stat-line machine since becoming a starter and that should change for at least a few more days/weeks.

Just for context, and over the full season, just seven players are averaging that 14-4-4 line with 1.5 SPG on top of that: PG13, Haliburton, Dejounte, Jrue Holiday, Jimmy Butler, Shai, and Luka. The 2.5+ SPG Melton is averaging are ridiculous and unsustainable, but you have to hit when the iron is hot so you know what to do.

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