Free agent Malik Monk says he ‘absolutely’ wants to stay with Sacramento.
Malik Monk just had his finest NBA season, scoring 15.4 points and 5.1 assists per game. He was the team’s third-leading scorer, a game-closer who contributed significantly to Sacramento’s success this season. And he believes he should have been the sixth Man of the Year.
Monk is a free agent this summer. The Kings would prefer to keep Monk, who has told Sean Cunningham of Fox40 that he wants to stay in Sacramento.
However, Monk’s future will depend on money, and the Kings may be outbid.
The Kings have Monk’s Early Bird Rights, but because they are an over-tax team, the maximum they can offer him under the CBA is four years and $77.9 million ($19.5 million per year average, beginning at $17.4 million next season). Teams with cap flexibility and searching for playmaking depth at guard, like as Detroit, Orlando, and San Antonio, might offer a contract worth more than $100 million over four years. For reference, the Trail Blazers offered Anfernee Simons the same contract last summer.
Monk cannot turn down a nine-figure contract offer from a team, no matter how much he enjoys Sacramento.
It’s worth watching this summer. Monk has been linked to Detroit, and more speculations will follow, but on June 30, will a team step up and offer Monk that large contract? We are confident that Sacramento will make the best offer possible.
