Late in the third quarter against the Rockets, head coach Doug Christie finally put Malik Monk in the game for the Sacramento Kings. It only ended up being for a few minutes, but Monk immediately scored. Once again, it raised questions about benching him and what's really going on with Monk.
This whole thing with Malik Monk and Doug Christie started during the Kings' back-to-back games against the Portland Trail Blazers. The Kings ultimately lost both matches, though by incredibly narrow margins. Both games could and should have been wins for Sacramento.
The strange thing about those games was the fact that Monk, one of the best Sixth Men in the business and a key Sacramento player, was benched for both of them. He is generally a reliable scorer, not to mention an important source of energy. It was an odd choice, to be sure.
Not surprisingly, Christie was questioned about this move. He chalked it up to the logjam in the guard positions and basically left it there. Giving the devil his due, Christie isn't wrong. There is a logjam issue at the guard, but that doesn't mean there isn't something else going on.
Malik Monk finally gets in the game
After being benched for two and a half games, Monk got minutes late in the third quarter. He immediately got on the court and scored, which is exactly what he brings to the table. Borderline instant scoring right off the bench, and hopefully changing the flow of the game.
Ultimately, that was his biggest contribution as he played less than five minutes and didn't return in the fourth quarter. There wasn't much of a push to get him the ball while he was on the court. It didn't seem like Christie so much wanted Monk on the court as he was bowing to pressure from fans.
The roar from the Sactown faithful when Monk stepped on the court was hard to miss. They know what Monk means to this team and this franchise. Unfortunately, it's looking more and more like he isn't part of Christie's plan and likely won't survive the rebuild process.
Sacramento is basically having a fire sale of its talent in an attempt to jumpstart its rebuild. And plans to trade Monk go back to last summer. Even though he's a difference maker on the court, it's really starting to seem like Christie isn't interested in putting Monk to good use.