Kings’ Malik Monk Continues to Make His Impact Felt
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With the game headed to overtime, the Sacramento Kings turned to one man to deliver a win: Malik Monk. The NBA Sixth Man of the Year favorite turned on the afterburners in clutch time to give the Kings a victory against a shorthanded Memphis Grizzlies squad that gave a strong fight until the end.
Notching a game-high 28 points on the night, Monk took his game to the next level in overtime as he dropped 12 of his 28 in the final period. While it wasn't his best shooting performance from beyond the arc, Monk's jumper was butter from midrange in the last five minutes, shooting a perfect 100% from the field in overtime.
Monk has now dropped 20+ points in 24 games so far this season, giving an instant impact off the bench for the starting rotation. When he's on the floor without De'Aaron Fox, Monk has been the primary ball-handler for a majority of the time. When Fox and Monk are on the court together, it doesn't matter who has the ball because highlight plays are made no matter what.
From alley-oop dunks to solo slams, Monk was throwing the ball down in any way possible in a late game takeover for the former Kentucky Wildcat. After his remarkable performance on the court, Monk was asked if he had ever played with this much confidence before (via @DeuceMason | X):
Always man, always man. Sometimes I wasn't playing as much so you didn't see it as much. I'm just thankful Mike gave me the opportunity, Monte called me here, Wes called me here, Vivek called me here, man. I'm just thankful they gave me this opportunity.
Since arriving in Sacramento, Monk has been a sixth-man for his entire stay. The guard has never started a game for the Kings, but still comes in to make his presence felt on the court every night. Head coach Mike Brown talked about what Monk's takeover ability means for this team (via @SeanCunningham | X):
Having a guy like Malik close the way he did, was a lot of fun to watch. We just put the ball in his hands and put them in pick'n'roll and he was able to create a little bit of separation and get to his medium game. He was really on point with it tonight.
Monk's X-Factor ability off the bench is something that's difficult for teams to stop, and something that the Kings are lucky to have.
Sacramento will head north to Canada to face off against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night, a team that Monk averages 15+ points against since joining the Kings.
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