On January 6th, Beijing time, the Kings defeated the Warriors 129-99 to secure their fourth consecutive victory. This marks the fourth win in five games since the Kings fired Mike Brown and appointed Christie as the new head coach, continuing their northern campaign. Notably, this game saw Fox resting, with Malik Monk stepping up as the team's main point guard, scoring 26 points and 12 assists, becoming the key contributor to the victory.
Monk, who was previously on a one-year, 2.2milliontop−tiercontractwiththeLakers,signedatwo−year,19 million mid-level contract with the Kings in the summer of 2022. He then renewed his contract with the Kings for four years at 77.97million,earning17.45 million this season. Monk's performance with the Kings has indeed been outstanding, justifying his multi-million dollar contract.
In the first quarter, Monk scored 7 points, 3 assists, and 1 steal with 4 shots made out of 3 attempts and 1 three-pointer made out of 2 attempts. By halftime, Monk had accumulated 16 points, 10 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block with 9 shots made out of 6 attempts and 4 three-pointers made out of 2 attempts, showcasing his versatility as a perfect point guard.
Monk also possesses an impressive drive, not inferior to Fox. In the third quarter, he completed a powerful dunk after driving to the basket, successfully dunking over Davis, who stands at 6 feet 9 inches. Monk scored 10 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals in just 11 minutes during that quarter.
After three quarters, Monk played for 29 minutes, making 9 out of 14 shots, 5 out of 8 three-pointers, and all 3 free throws, accumulating 26 points, 12 assists, 3 rebounds, 4 steals, and 1 block. His shooting percentage was 64.3%, three-point percentage was 62.5%, true shooting percentage was 84.9%, and his plus-minus value was a staggering +41.
Since Christie took office, Monk has averaged 22.2 points, 4 rebounds, 7.4 assists, and 1.4 steals in five games, with a shooting percentage of 52.6% and a three-point percentage of 38.4%. These statistics are comparable to those of Fox.
If Fox were to apply for a trade, the starting lineup for the next game could potentially be: Monk, Ellis, DeRozan, Murray, and Sabonis.
Written by Yan Xiaobai: Observations from the Kings
