Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk finished second in the voting for NBA Sixth Man of the Year on Wednesday.
Monk, who was viewed as the favorite for the award almost the entire season, suffered an MCL injury in his right knee, causing him to miss the Kings’ final nine games. But even with the absence, Sacramento fans feel as though Monk was robbed of the award.
“I think voters should have to prove they watch the league,” Morgan Ragan of NBC Sports wrote. In another post, she said: “I was recording all excited to hear Malik Monk’s name being called. Just disappointed because again Kings not getting the love they deserve on a different stage- but congrats Naz Reid.”
“Hard to believe Malik Monk didn’t do enough to win 6th man of the year. Malik Monk had 17 games with 20+pts and 5+ asts off bench (led NBA). 25 games with 20+ points off the bench (led the NBA). 2nd in assists off drives (153)-2nd in the NBA behind SGA,” Deuce Mason added.
Here are more reactions to the Monk snub:
Kings’ Malik Monk finishes behind Naz Reid
After being rewarded by the Timberwolves with a three-year, $42 million contract last offseason, Naz Reid did not disappoint this season. The Timberwolves big man proved to be an excellent complementary piece in Minnesota’s frontcourt alongside Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns, especially given his ability to stretch the floor on offense.
In a total of 81 games played – 67 of which saw him come off of the bench – Reid averaged 13.5 points and 5.2 rebounds per game while shooting 47.7 percent from the floor and a career-high 41.4 percent from three-point range. Reid had a total of 843 points off the bench this season, the seventh-most in the league, according to StatMuse. His 128 made 3-pointers off the bench ranked ninth out of all NBA reserve players in the league this season.
He may not be on the same level as his teammate Gobert, but Reid is more than capable of holding his own defensively, and he helped the Timberwolves finish the regular season as the best defensive team in basketball. Reid finished the year with a 107.4 defensive rating, the third-best in the league behind only Gobert (104.5) and Victor Wembanyama (105.8).
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