Malik Monk shared his experiences in free agency, claiming that he was hurt that he drew little interest from other NBA teams after spending the early part of his career with the Charlotte Hornets. After not getting a qualifying offer from Charlotte, the Los Angeles Lakers were the only team that wanted Monk. Or maybe it was LeBron James?
Monk and James put on a show in the fourth quarter combining for 25 points to help the Lakers defeat the Sacramento Kings in the Crypto.com Arena Tuesday night, 122-114.
Malik and LeBron combined to drop 25 points in the fourth quarter alone 🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/iGz5GqlTAi
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) January 5, 2022
After the game, the King stated in the press conference that he wanted to play with Monk as far back as last year.
“It’s funny, just a little quick backstory, me and J-Kidd, we talk a lot last year,” James said per CBS Sports. “We wanted him last year. When Charlotte stopped playing him last year, or they would play him, and then sit him for five or six games, and then they would play him, and then you would see him have a game at Miami where he had like eight or nine 3s in Miami, and then they would sit him and not play him. Me and J-Kidd, we would talk all the time, like ‘Is there a way we can snatch this guy from their roster?'”
Monk is starting to come into his own in a Lakers uniform averaging 11.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting a career-high 47.7 percent from the field as well as 38.4 percent from beyond the arc in his 33 games.
After gaining a reputation as only a rotational player in Hornets after putting up 9.5 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in only one start, he’s started six games this season with gaining a reputation as one of the few players on the roster that doesn’t need James to get his shot off in the Lakers offense.
The two players will continue to build their chemistry when the Lakers play against the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night.
