Melton and Goodwin share the early 2026-27 single-game steals high at 6

LAS VEGAS — Oct. 15, 2026 — De’Anthony Melton needed only 21 minutes to collect six steals in Golden State’s 101–89 preseason win over the Los Angeles Lakers on October 13. That total now shares the top of WhyNBA’s 2026-27 single-game steals board with Jordan Goodwin’s six from Phoenix’s game at Chicago on October 7.

The same night produced Austin Reaves’ 28-point scoring high for the Lakers. Melton’s line is the defensive mirror: six takeaways, eight points, three assists and one turnover while the Warriors erased a 13-point halftime deficit and won the second half 51–26.

The early steals board

WhyNBA’s league-leaders page, built from licensed box scores through October 14, ranks single-game steals among 45 finished exhibitions with a box so far:

• 6 — Jordan Goodwin, Suns at Bulls, Oct. 7
• 6 — De’Anthony Melton, Warriors at Lakers, Oct. 13
• 5 — Ron Holland, Pistons vs. Suns, Oct. 5
• 5 — Paul George, Celtics vs. 76ers, Oct. 10
• 5 — Baylor Scheierman, Celtics vs. 76ers, Oct. 10

No player has cleared six yet. Melton’s night ties the early ceiling rather than setting a new one, but it arrived in a game that already owned the scoring high and a full Warriors second-half flip.

How Melton got to six

NBA’s Starting 5 roundup flagged Melton’s one-handed snag as the emblem of Golden State’s sticky fingers in Las Vegas. Box-score context matches the clip reel: the Warriors finished with 20 steals as a team, and the Lakers turned the ball over 29 times. Melton’s six were the loudest individual share of that pressure.

Play-by-play accounts of the game list Melton takeaways across both halves, including strips of Quentin Grimes and Austin Reaves in the second quarter and Bronny James and Dalton Knecht in the fourth. Gary Payton II and Will Richard each added two steals, so Melton was the lead edge of a deeper defensive night rather than a one-man blitz.

Thin sample, clear ceiling

Preseason per-game steal averages remain tiny. Early leaderboards put Paul George at 5.0 steals per game on a one-game sample and Ausar Thompson among the multi-game names still climbing. Single-game highs carve a cleaner early picture: two nights at six, three at five, and a board that will move again once Wednesday’s seven-game slate posts full boxes.

Regular-season context still sits one week away. Opening night is October 20. Until then, Melton and Goodwin hold the early takeaway mark on WhyNBA’s own card set — the defensive twin to Reaves’ 28 on the scoring side from the same Las Vegas box.