Phoenix Suns v Denver Nuggets
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The Los Angeles Lakers need to move backwards to end up moving forwards. Rob Pelinka and the front office must sign De'Anthony Melton after losing out on the Bradley Beal sweepstakes.
Beal will be in Los Angeles for the 2025-26 season, just not with the Lakers. Shams Charania broke the news on Twitter/X on Wednesday afternoon. The former All-Star guard is signing a two-year, $11 million deal, with a player option, to join the Los Angeles Clippers.
Beal was one of the most talented names available on the free-agent market. Technically, the Phoenix Suns and their guard only just agreed to the buyout, but effectively, Beal was there.
With the Lakers still needing to address the guard and wing spots, turning back to Melton as the prime target should be an obvious move. Pelinka will need to hope it is not too late to pursue that path in free agency.
Lakers signing Melton will not come without obstacles
The good news for the Lakers is that Melton is still available to join their team. The bad news is previous reports indicating they had been supplanted by another team as the favorites to sign the two-way guard.
Melton started the 2024-25 NBA season with the Golden State Warriors. After an injury forced him to the status of an expiring contract in a trade for the Warriors last season, they have been rumored to want a second opportunity to make the partnership work.
Jovan Buha was originally the insider who suggested the buzz of Melton going back to Golden State was picking up. That claim was quickly supported by Marc Stein a day later. The NBA insider called the Warriors a 'strong conteder' to reacquire Melton.
The Jaxson Hayes signing brings the Lakers to 15 official roster players:
Luka/Vincent/Bronny
AR/DK/Goodwin/Milton
Rui/LaRavia/Thiero
LeBron/Vando
Ayton/Hayes/Kleber
Milton's $3M contract is non-guaranteed. The Lakers have until July 20 to decide on his deal.
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) July 3, 2025
Shake Milton quickly stuck out as a candidate to get waived after the Lakers brought back Jaxson Hayes. Dan Woike and Joe Vardon of The Athletic recently suggested that is the direction in which Los Angeles is likely headed with their next move of the offseason.
Improving the Lakers' point of attack defense was brought up by the pair as the major interest of the team with how that roster spot was going to be utilized. Melton certainly fits that desire.
The impressive wingspan of the 27-year-old allows him to be an effective option on the defensive end. That skill set is complimented by his ability to knock down triples on the offensive side of the court.
Melton has shot 36.9 percent from distance in his career, and 38.3 percent over the last five season. The two-way impact that can be obtained from signing the free agent easily makes him the best move the Lakers can make to recover from losing out in the Beal saga.