Now that the Sacramento Kings 2024-25 NBA Season is behind us, it is time to take stock of the players we have on the roster heading into next season. To do this, we need to discuss how they looked this year and how they can build on it in the future. So, over the next couple of days, we are going to go over each key returning player for next year and assign them a grade for their production in 2024-25.
Now, without further ado, let the grading begin.
Malik Monk 2024-25 Season
Malik Monk shocked the basketball world last offseason by taking a four-year, 78-million (per Spotrac) weeks before he had to in order to stay with the Kings.
Many speculated that Monk could have gotten a bigger payday from another team, especially after having a career year in 2023-24, yet he chose to stay in Sacramento. One reason for this could be that he was promised an increased role.
Monk spent the first month and a half of the season in the same sixth man role he had been in throughout his time with the Kings. Then, on December 1, he got his first start of the season. From there, Monk started his next 45 games before ultimately getting moved back to the bench at the end of March. He finished the season in this role until a lower body injury cut his campaign short for the second straight year.
When Monk first joined the starting lineup (and De'Aaron Fox was in and out of the rotation with an injury), he seemed ready for the promotion. In January, he averaged 22.5 PPG and 7.8 APG on 58% true shooting. The Kings had a plus-minus of +11.7 with Monk on the floor in that span.
It got to the point where many people (myself included) believed that Monk could seamlessly replace Fox at point guard once the franchise icon was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in early February. Unfortunately, that did not end up being the case, as Monk struggled with the increased responsibility – averaging just 16.9 PPG and 6.1 APG on 49.4% TS in February.
As a result, the coaching staff decided to move him back to the bench in order to put more defense on the floor by way of Keon Ellis. However, before Monk really had the chance to re-assimilate to his old role, he suffered the calf strain that ultimately ended his season.
Monk remains one of the best bench players in the league, making his contract extension from last offseason a solid deal. But this year showed the Kings that he isn't equipped to be their starting point guard of the future. Plus, there are concerns over his availability after suffering two semi-serious lower-body injuries in back-to-back seasons.