Malik Ahmad Monk (born February 4, 1998) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

(NBA). He played one season of

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...

, earning consensus second-team All-American honors in 2017. Monk was selected in the first round of the

2017 NBA draft The 2017 NBA draft was held on June 22, 2017, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. ...

by the Charlotte Hornets with the 11th overall pick. He has also played for the Los Angeles Lakers.

High school career

Monk attended

East Poinsett County High School East Poinsett County High School (EPC) is a nationally recognized and accredited comprehensive public high school serving students in grades six through twelve in Lepanto, Arkansas, United States located in eastern Poinsett County. Academics ...

Lepanto, Arkansas Lepanto is a city in Poinsett County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 1,893 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Jonesboro, Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area. Lepanto was named for the Greek seaport of Lepanto, site of a gr ...

for his freshman year. As a freshman, he averaged 22.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.7 assist per game while leading them to a (25-8) overall record and an appearance in the Class 2A state championship game. After his freshman season, Monk transferred to

Bentonville High School Bentonville High School (BHS) is a public high school in Bentonville, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1910, the school provides education for students in grades nine through twelve. It is one of two high schools of the Bentonville School Dist ...

Bentonville, Arkansas Bentonville is the tenth-largest city in Arkansas, United States and the county seat of Benton County. The city is centrally located in the county with Rogers adjacent to the east. The city is the birthplace of and world headquarters locatio ...

. In his junior year, he averaged 26.6 points per game. In the spring and summer of 2015, Monk competed for the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

(AAU) team, Arkansas Wings Elite, on the Nike Elite Youth Basketball Circuit (EYBL) where he averaged 19.7 points per game. He then competed on the 2015 Nike Global Challenge for the East team, where he averaged 22 points, 12 rebounds, and four assist in addition to earning Tournament MVP honors. On November 18, 2015 Monk committed to

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, choosing UK over

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

. As a senior, he averaged 28.6 points per game, 4.4 assist per game and 7.6 rebounds per game. In 2016, Monk played in the 2016 McDonald's All-American Game and

Jordan Brand Classic The Jordan Brand Classic is a high school All-Star basketball game played annually in April. The game's rosters feature the best and most highly recruited high school boys in the senior class including alumns like Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Bl ...

where he earned Co-MVP honors alongside Kentucky teammate

De'Aaron Fox De'Aaron Martez Fox (born December 20, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball, Kentucky W ...

. On March 11, 2016, Monk played his final high school game, scoring 19 points in a 59–49 loss in the 7A state championship to

Cabot High School Cabot High School (CHS) is a public high school located in Cabot, Arkansas. The school serves students in grades ten through twelve and is administered by Cabot Public Schools, which serves the city and most of northern Lonoke County. Academi ...

. Monk was a consensus five-star prospect and ranked as one of the best players in the 2016 class by the four main recruiting services:

Rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...

, Scout, and 247 Sports. Monk was ranked as the No.9 overall player and No.1 shooting guard in the 2016 high school class.

Recruiting

College career

On November 18, 2015, Monk tweeted that he would be attending the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

. On December 17, 2016, Monk set a University of Kentucky freshman scoring record with 47 points in a win over the University of North Carolina. Twelve days later, he scored 34 points on five-for-seven three point shooting in a 99–76 win over Ole Miss. On January 21, 2017, Monk scored 27 points in a 85–69 win over

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. On January 31, 2017, he scored 37 points against Georgia Bulldogs. On February 25, 2017, Monk tallied 33 points in a 76–66 victory over

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. On February 28, 2017, Monk scored 27 points in a 73–67 win over Vanderbilt. At the end of his freshman season, Monk was named SEC Player and Freshman of the Year, while also being named to both First-team All-SEC and the SEC All-Freshman team. At the conclusion of his freshman season, Monk announced that he would forgo his final three years of collegiate eligibility and enter the

where he was projected as a first round selection.

Professional career

Charlotte Hornets (2017–2021)

On June 22, 2017, Monk was selected with the eleventh overall pick in the

by the Charlotte Hornets. On July 2, 2017, Monk signed his rookie scale contract with the Hornets worth $15,726,047. Monk would miss the entire

2017 NBA Summer League The 2017 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA): the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Eight teams participated in the wee ...

due to an ankle injury. In his fourth game on October 25, 2017, Monk recorded 17 points, two steals, and two assists in a 110–93 victory against the Denver Nuggets. On November 1, 2017, with Kentucky coach John Calipari on hand, Monk scored 25 points in a 126–121 victory against the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

. During his rookie season, Monk was assigned to the Hornets’

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA De ...

affiliate, the

Greensboro Swarm The Greensboro Swarm are an American basketball team of the NBA G League based in Greensboro, North Carolina, and are affiliated with the Charlotte Hornets. The Swarm play their home games at the Greensboro Coliseum Fieldhouse. The team became ...

, for one game. He scored 25 points, collected eight rebounds and recorded four assists in a December 26, 2017 game. On February 26, 2020, Monk was suspended indefinitely for violating the NBA's substance use policy. Before the suspension, Monk was averaging 10.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. He was reinstated on June 8, after it was determined he was in compliance with the anti-drug program. On February 1, 2021, Monk scored a then career-high 36 points in a 129–121 overtime win over the Heat.

Los Angeles Lakers (2021–2022)

On August 6, 2021, Monk signed with the Los Angeles Lakers on a trade exception salary deal. On April 10, 2022, Monk put up a career-high 41 points in a 146–141 win over the Denver Nuggets.

Sacramento Kings (2022–present)

On July 6, 2022, Monk signed a two-year, $19 million contract with the

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

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, 73 , , 0 , , 17.2 , , .387 , , .330 , , .882 , , 1.9 , , 1.6 , , .5 , , .3 , , 8.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 55 , , 1 , , 21.3 , , .434 , , .284 , , .820 , , 2.9 , , 2.1 , , .5 , , .3 , , 10.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 42 , , 0 , , 20.9 , , .434 , , .401 , , .819 , , 2.4 , , 2.1 , , .5 , , .1 , , 11.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

L.A. Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

, 76, , 37 , , 28.1, , .473 , , .391 , , .795 , , 3.4 , , 2.9 , , .8 , , .4 , , 13.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 309, , 38 , , 20.4 , , .424, , .355, , .827 , , 2.3, , 2.0, , .5, , .2 , , 10.3

College

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, 38 , , 37 , , 32.1 , , .450 , , .397 , , .822 , , 2.5 , , 2.3 , , .9 , , .5 , , 19.8

Personal life

Monk was born to Jackie Monk and Michael Scales and is the younger brother of former Arkansas All-SEC wide receiver Marcus Monk.

References

External links

Kentucky Wildcats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monk, Malik 1998 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Arkansas Bentonville High School alumni Charlotte Hornets draft picks Charlotte Hornets players Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball players Los Angeles Lakers players McDonald's High School All-Americans People from Bentonville, Arkansas People from Lepanto, Arkansas Sacramento Kings players Shooting guards