Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Signs with Olimpia Milano
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Melli inked a three-year deal with the Italian club team Olimpia Milano on Friday, Sam Amico of FortyEightMinutes.com reports.
After a disappointing second season in the NBA with the Pelicans and Mavericks, Melli has decided to play basketball overseas in Italy. The 30-year-old forward notched season averages of 3.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 12.6 minutes in 2020-21.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Contributes 13 points in rout
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Melli totaled 13 points (5-8 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 2-3 FT), two rebounds and one assist across 12 minutes in a 133-103 victory over the Warriors on Tuesday.
Melli was one of six players to finish with double-digit scoring for Dallas, and he impressively tallied his 13 points in only 12 minutes. The second-year forward finished with his highest point total of the season. The output was certainly a surprise, as Melli came into the contest averaging only 2.3 points over 12.5 minutes through 35 games.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Back to bench
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Melli will come off the bench for Monday's game against the 76ers.
Melli had started in four of the last five games, but he's returning to a bench role as Jalen Brunson was inserted into the starting lineup. Melli will likely see a slight drop-off in his workload as a result of the move to the bench.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Back in starting five
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Melli will start Sunday's game against the Spurs, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News reports.
Melli will start for the fourth time in the last five games -- this time in place of Maxi Kleber, who's dealing with soreness in his lower leg. Over his three previous starts, Melli averaged 4.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.7 blocks in 28.0 minutes.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Barley contributes in spot start
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Melli totaled zero points (0-7 FG, 0-5 3Pt), seven rebounds, two blocks, one assist and one steal in 32 minutes during Monday's 111-103 victory over the Jazz.
Melli remained in the starting lineup for a second straight game in place of Kristaps Porzingis (wrist), but he failed to produce outside of three combined defensive stats. His run of elevated minutes is almost certainly going to come to an end in the near future, at which time fantasy managers won't need to pay much attention to him.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Starting again Monday
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Melli will start Monday's game Utah, Mavericks radio play-by-play broadcaster Chuck Cooperstein reports.
Melli will receive his second start in a row while Kristaps Porzingis (knee) remains on the sidelines. In his last start on Friday, he went for 10 points, eight rebounds and three assists across 28 minutes.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Getting first start as Mav
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Melli will start Saturday's game against the Wizards.
With Kristaps Porzingis (knee) and Maxi Kleber (leg) sidelined, Melli will get his first start as a member of the Mavericks and his first start of the season. In eight games this season where he's played more than 15 minutes, Melli has averaged 3.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 18.5 minutes.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Logs 11 minutes with new team
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Melli scored six points (3-4 FG, 0-1 3Pt), three rebounds and a steal across 11 minutes in Monday's 127-106 win over the Thunder.
Melli was used at the four in Monday's game, which is not where the former Pelican usually plays. It appears that the Mavericks acquired him to provide support at the position alongside Maxi Kleber as opposed to working under center when Kristaps Porzingis is off the floor. His numbers should increase slightly once he fully acclimates to the Mavericks' game plan, but a frontcourt injury will probably be the only way Melli sees more than 15 minutes per game.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Available Saturday
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Melli (recently traded) is available Saturday against the Pelicans.
After being dealt from the Pelicans to the Mavericks on Thursday, Melli will possibly debut for Dallas against his former team Saturday. With Kristaps Porzingis (rest) unlikely to play, Melli could end up seeing significant run.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Won't debut Friday
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Melli (recently traded) will not play Friday against the Pacers.
Traded to the Mavericks on Thursday, Melli isn't yet with the Mavericks. He may be available Saturday. However, he's not guaranteed to be a regular part of the rotation.
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Mavericks' Nicolo Melli: Headed to Dallas
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Melli was traded along with JJ Redick to Dallas on Thursday for James Johnson, Wes Iwundu and a second round pick, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports.
Melli played a total of 82 games for New Orleans over the last two seasons, averaging 5.3 points per game on 39.5 percent shooting overall. The 30-year-old power forward likely won't factor in too heavily into the Dallas rotation, but he could take on some backup minutes here and there.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Inefficient in win
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Melli tallied three points (1-7 FG, 1-7 3Pt), three rebounds and two steals over 17 minutes in Sunday's 120-115 win over the Celtics.
Melli played 17 minutes off the bench Sunday, his highest mark in more than a month. He saw plenty of looks from beyond the arc against Boston, but he only converted on one shot during the win. If Steven Adams (ankle) returns Wednesday against Detroit, Melli could see his playing time decrease once again.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Scores five against Milwaukee
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Melli finished with five points (2-4 FG, 1-3 3Pt), two boards, two assists, and one steal in 16 minutes of a 131-126 win against Milwaukee on Friday.
The first-year man matched a career high in points in the contest as he continues to adjust to the NBA game. He's had an inconsistent role thus far for his team, but he was one of just three players to come off the bench in the contest. He'll play the Rockets on Saturday.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Available Friday
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Melli (personal) is available for Friday's game at Charlotte.
The 29-year-old was originally considered questionable due to personal reasons, but he'll be available for Friday's contest. However, Melli didn't see the court in either of the past two games as a coach's decision, so he may not see much playing time regardless.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Questionable for Friday
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Melli (personal) is questionable for Friday's game against the Hornets.
The nature of the personal matter is unclear, but Melli may not be available as the Pelicans finish up a four-game homestand. Melli was a DNP-CD in each of the last two games.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Scores five in win
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Melli totaled five points (1-2 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 2-2 FT), three assists, two rebounds and one steal over 17 minutes in Thursday's 113-80 win over the Thunder.
Melli has come off the bench in every game this year, and he's seen consistent playing time over the past two contests. Through his first four appearances this season, the second-year player is averaging 2.8 points and 3.0 rebounds over 13.8 minutes per game.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Solid off bench
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Melli posted 11 points (5-8 FG, 1-3 3Pt), six rebounds, two assists and a block in 27 minutes during the Pelicans' 118-109 loss to the Lakers.
After recording a career-high 20 points on Sunday, Melli reached double-digit scoring again. He was the only Pelican to score more than three points off the bench. It seems as if Melli will be in line for a 20-30 minute role depending on game tempo, as his floor-spacing status represents a valuable contrast from Derrick Favors and Zion Williamson.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Hits six triples in victory
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Melli amassed 20 points (7-8 FG, 6-7 3Pt), five rebounds, one assist and one block in 23 minutes during Sunday's 115-101 victory over the Warriors.
Melli had the hot hand Sunday, pouring in a game-high six 3-pointers in another impressive shooting display. Melli is unlikely to shoot this well on a nightly basis; however, he clearly has the green light when he's on the floor and could be a sneaky source of perimeter scoring now that he's regularly seeing 20-plus minutes.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Flirts with double-double off bench
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Melli finished with 10 points (4-10 FG, 2-8 3Pt), nine rebounds, three assists and one block across 28 minutes Tuesday in the Pelicans' 138-117 win over the Trail Blazers.
Melli lost his spot in the starting five with Zion Williamson (ankle) back from a one-game absence, but the former was still able to deliver a credible performance off the bench. The 29-year-old rookie has been much improved of late after a rough start to the season, converting 41.7 percent of his three-point attempts while grabbing 5.0 boards per game through five February contests.
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Pelicans' Nicolo Melli: Returns to bench
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Melli isn't starting Tuesday's game against the Trail Blazers, Andrew Lopez of ESPN.com reports.
The 29-year-old made the start Saturday against the Pacers and had nine points, six rebounds, one assist and one block in 24 minutes, but he'll return to the bench with Zion Williamson (ankle) back in action Tuesday. Melli figures to see closer to his 15.8-minute average versus Portland.
