What De'Anthony Melton said about Memphis Grizzlies trading him ahead of return to FedExForum

De'Anthony Melton already knew what to expect back at Memphis. Plenty of chatter and trash talk from his former Grizzlies teammates.

"They're going to talk their mess either way. That's what I'm waiting on. I can't wait to go right back at them," Melton said at shootaround Friday.

Melton, now with the Philadelphia Sixers, will play his first game at FedExForum since being traded from the Grizzlies during last June's NBA Draft. The trade involved Memphis acquiring Danny Green and the draft rights to David Roddy.

The trade broke up a piece of the Grizzlies' young roster wherem over three seasons, Melton got close to everyone, especially star point guard Ja Morant. Melton's 3-point shooting and defense off the bench proved a viable asset despite him struggling in the last two postseasons.

Melton found out about the trade while at home in Los Angeles watching the draft. He wasn't surprised but he was ready just in case he'd be on the move.

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"I had my ears open and my phone by me in case anything happened. Once the trade went down and I found out where I was going, I was excited," Melton told The Commercial Appeal. "(Sixers general manager) Daryl (Morey) was the one that drafted me. I've had multiple conversations with (Sixers coach) Doc (Rivers) throughout the years, his praise for me and my game. I was excited for what was to come."

Melton was drafted in 2018 by the Houston Rockets, where Morey was general manager. He joined the Grizzlies in 2019 after being traded from the Phoenix Suns and signed a four-year extension in December 2020.

He didn't have hard feelings about the Sixers trade because Melton said he and Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman had constant conversations about where things stood with him on the team. He appreciated Kleiman for giving him a chance to spark his career after his rookie season with the Suns.

"Me and Zach will always be good. He's the first one that really gave me a chance and put me out there and believe in me the way he did. It's always all love," said Melton, who's averaging 10.9 points per game and is second in the NBA with 2.2 steals per game entering Friday.

It helps he's on a contending team in the Eastern Conference while starting 13 of 20 games this season with James Harden and Tyrese Maxey out with injuries. But he still misses the bonds he had in Memphis, especially the joyous postgame celebrations where players swarmed each other during interviews.

"We wanted to see everybody succeed. We didn't care who got out there and did their thing. We wanted one through 15 to score 40 if they could. We just all got along, we all hung out. We were a family," Melton said.

Now Melton has to deal with defending Morant instead of celebrating his dunks. But he also warned the Grizzlies have to deal with him as he joked about trying to score 40 points.

"I've been talking mess for a couple months now and I've been waiting to go out at them. They already know I'm coming," said Melton, whose career high is 25 points.