Can Malik Monk make the same jump with the Charlotte Hornets Devonte Graham pulled off?
Charlotte Hornet Malik Monk’s NBA career and earning potential hinge on next season.
He still has his team’s support after he was suspended under the NBA’s anti-drug policy and was reinstated during the NBA’s 3-month hiatus. General manager Mitch Kupchak has repeatedly said Monk might be the Hornets’ most athletic and talented player.
What that doesn’t say is Monk has been this team’s most underachieving player, since being drafted 11th overall out of Kentucky in 2017. He never started an NBA game until just before the suspension.
He showed promise in the last month he was eligible, averaging 17 points on 46 percent shooting in 13 games. Now, he has one last season under his rookie-scale contract to show the Hornets and the rest of the league he’s worth a big contract.
Monk’s future in Charlotte leads reader questions for this Hornets mailbag:
Do you see anyone on the current roster taking a leap next season in the way Devonte Graham has (or at least close)? Malik Monk would be my bet.
— Rich
Monk has the most unrealized potential and should have the most motivation. The second contract is the most important one for an NBA player’s career earnings. Right now, Monk wouldn’t get a big contract from the Hornets or anyone else in the summer of 2021.
He can change all that if he maintains how he played those last 13 games. It wasn’t just that he scored. It’s that he improved his weaknesses — defense and decision-making with the ball — to an extent coach James Borrego could leave him in games for sustained minutes. That must continue.
Given this is a weak draft class, should the Hornets consider a trade to acquire DeMar DeRozan (San Antonio) for Nic Batum and the 2020 first-round pick?
— Turner
I wouldn’t do that. DeRozan is 31 and has a $27.7 million player option for next season (which he would certainly exercise with the NBA’s revenues falling). I wouldn’t give up a lottery pick to exchange Batum for DeRozan, knowing either you’d lose DeRozan in the summer of 2021 or heavily pay a player who would be 32.
Kupchak finally isn’t hindered by salary-cap troubles. I’d be skeptical of trading Batum, rather than letting that salary fall off the payroll in a year. I sure wouldn’t lose a lottery pick to facilitate this sort of trade; I don’t think DeRozan would make that sort of difference.
Do the Hornets have any plans for keeping Dwayne Bacon? Seems like he is on the outs.
— Andre
Among the three free agents — Bismack Biyombo, Willy Hernangomez and Bacon — I’d say Bacon is the least likely to be back. Bacon knows the deal; when he was with the Greensboro Swarm, he questioned if the Hornets coaches still believe in him. After the season was declared over, he said he’s probably better off in a fresh start with another team.
Bacon has an NBA body and athleticism. He needs to finish better at the rim and have more defensive consistency to sustain an NBA career.
Do you see a larger role for Jalen McDaniels next season?
— Daniel
That McDaniels was called up from Greensboro before the season was halted, and playing regularly, showed great improvement. There weren’t high expectations when they selected him 52nd overall, as is the norm for a player chosen among the last 10 picks.
He has length (a 7-foot wingspan), which is of value to a team hurting for defense. His 3-point shooting (37.5 percent) was a surprise, although that was a small sample size of 24 attempts.
McDaniels’ future hinges on him adding strength and bulk. That will be crucial to him holding up in an 82-game NBA season.
When will pre-draft workouts start? Will they start at all?
— Connor
The draft lottery is Aug. 20 and the draft is now scheduled for Oct. 16. Normally, the lottery is the same week as the Combine. While the NBA has reached out to draft prospects they would invite to a combine, there is no decision whether one will be held. Or whether teams will be allowed to fly in draft prospects for individual or group workouts.
Kupchak said he would have felt fully prepared to make picks had the draft happened June 25, as originally scheduled. It’s good Kupchak feels that conviction.
But the loss of data due to the pandemic is far greater than the NFL’s was before it drafted in April: No NCAA tournament, canceled conference tournaments, and maybe no combine or player visits. That’s a big departure from the normal draft run-up.
Where would you rank the need for a big shooting guard on this team?
— Patrick
They need a dynamic wing player who can disrupt with offensive skills, and to get bigger than they are currently. Such a player would probably swing between shooting guard and small forward, because those positions aren’t all that different.
That, and a big man who can protect the rim, are clear needs. Also, coach James Borrego wants more long-range shooters.
But remember: Kupchak has signaled they aren’t far enough along in this rebuild that he’d prioritize positional need. They still lack collective talent to an extent that would trump roster balance.
This story was originally published August 11, 2020 at 2:01 PM with the headline "Can Malik Monk make the same jump with the Charlotte Hornets Devonte Graham pulled off?."
