Malik Monk’s performance since starting the games for the Lakers is a knock on both Michael Jordan and LeBron James.
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The Los Angeles Lakers were able to sign some future Hall of Famers this past off-season. They even signed two of the NBA’s top-75 players of all time in Carmelo Anthony and Russell Westbrook.
But signing Malik Monk to a minimum contract is turning out to be the best business by the Lakers in the off-season. The shooting guard was a free agent after spending four years with the Charlotte Hornets, who drafted the Kentucky Alum back in 2017.
Monk was in total surprise when he found himself in the free agency at the end of last season, even after being an efficient player for Michael Jordan’s team. The 11th pick of the 2017 Draft said L.A. turned out to be the only side showing a serious interest in securing his services.
“It was crazy for me because … you never see that many lottery picks that get to be unrestricted [free agents],” Monk said recently.
Bench player for the Hornets, Malik Monk, is now a starter for the Lakers
From starting just one game for the Hornets in 4-years to now being the starting two-guard for the Purple and Gold. The 23-year-old has been averaging well above 20-points per game in the last six matches since he is in the starting line-up.
LeBron James addressed the fact in a funny tweet that Monk deserved to be in a better place than his prior situation, after the guard’s 24-point game in the win against the Kings. He went 6/11 from downtown and drilled 3 of them towards the end of the game.
📠📠📠📠📠📠📠📠. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤷🏾♂️ https://t.co/sZNpPylygN
— LeBron James (@KingJames) January 5, 2022
It is a big jump for Monk, from getting smacked by MJ after a game and later left stranded as a free agent to now putting up consistent performance since getting the starting role. It is a big knock on the Lakers and LeBron James as well.