Not only was last night a costly loss for the Sacramento Kings, but it was also costly due to injury. Sixth Man of the Year favorite Malik Monk left the game in what is feared to be a sprained MCL. Further testing will be done on Monk to confirm this.
The injury occurred when Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic landed on Monk and they both fell to the ground. The Kings battled without their top reserve but were defeated by the score of 107-103.
Malik Monk went to the Kings’ locker room after this collision with Luka Dončić pic.twitter.com/24JzYM4bk5
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) March 30, 2024
The Kings and their fans have to be hoping this is not an injury that will keep Monk out of action for substantial time. They have just nine regular-season games remaining.
Sixth Man of the Year Favorite Feared to Have Sprained MCL
Will be Hard to Replace Monk’s Production
Now in his second season with Sacramento, the 26-year-old Monk has yet to start a game for the team. He has still played an integral role for a Kings team looking to make the playoffs for the second straight season.
Selected 11th overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, Monk is posting a lot of career-highs in 2023-24. Now in his seventh season, Monk’s career-best averages this season include points (15.6), rebounds (3.0), assists (5.2), and blocks (0.5). The 6-3 shooting guard is shooting 44.3% from the field, 35.1% from three-point territory, and 83.3% from the charity stripe.
As of this writing, FanDuel Sportsbook has Monk listed as the betting favorite for Sixth Man of the Year at -150 odds. He is seemingly one of two candidates to have a chance to win the award along with Naz Reid who is listed at +110.
In 458 career regular season games, Monk has averages of 11.6 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. Prior to joining the Kings, he played four seasons with the Charlotte Hornets and one with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Monk is Not the Only Recent Injury Sacramento Has Suffered
On March 18, shooting guard Kevin Huerter suffered a torn left labrum in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies. It was announced on Friday that he will undergo shoulder surgery that will sideline him for the rest of the season.
While Huerter’s second season with the Kings didn’t go quite as well as his first in 2022-23, he still started 59 of his 64 appearances. The 25-year-old has averages of 10.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.6 assists this season.
Crowded Western Conference Playoff Picture
Friday’s loss dropped the Kings record to 42-31 on the season. They sit eighth in the Western Conference standings. The top six seeds get guaranteed playoff spots while seeds 7-10 take part in the Play-In Tournament.
Friday was a huge loss for Sacramento as they are now two games behind the Mavericks for the sixth seed. They are a half-game behind the seventh-seeded Phoenix Suns and 1.5 games ahead of the ninth-seeded Lakers.
For 16 straight seasons spanning from 2006-07 until 2021-22, the Kings missed the postseason. That stretch of futility finally ended last season. Losing Malik Monk could hurt their chances of extending their playoff streak to two straight seasons.
