Warriors injuries: De’Anthony Melton’s contract situation and the Disabled Player Exception explained

The Golden State Warriors were hit with some awful news on Wednesday, a few hours before their blowout win over the Atlanta Hawks: starting shooting guard De’Anthony Melton would undergo season-ending surgery to repair his sprained ACL.

Perhaps no team was as prepared to lose a starter as the Warriors, who started the season with a 12-player rotation and were actively trying to find ways to get a 13th player, Lindy Waters III, into the rotation. But even so, it’s a massive loss, as Melton was clearly one of the team’s best players, and a perfect backcourt fit alongside Steph Curry. And even with that depth, Mike Dunleavy Jr., Steve Kerr, and the rest of the Warriors braintrust will surely be…