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University of Kentucky head coach John Calipari had one of the biggest praises for his star freshman Malik Monk — one of his two NBA prospects that figure to land in the top 10 of the 2017 NBA Draft.
The New York Knicks have been reportedly “enamored” with Monk during his workout with the team, as have the Phoenix Suns, who were impressed with “one of the best” shooting displays they've seen in recent years for a prospect.
“He would be one of those guys for the Knicks that fans would pay to go see,” Calipari said Tuesday on a conference call, per Adam Zagoria of FanRag Sports.
Monk has all the characteristics of a big ticket star in The Big Apple and he's shown it during his only year at Kentucky, with a flamethrower-like performance against North Carolina on national TV, scoring 47 points against the eventual champs during a regular season game, shooting 18-of-28 from the field and a dazzling 8-of-12 from deep.
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“What Malik is, is an elite, special athlete, talent,” Calipari said. “When he gets in a zone, when he just locks it down, you just kind of sit there and say, ‘Oh, my goodness.’ He also could be and I believe in the NBA will start to become a terrific defender and rebounder for his position, because there’s no reason he shouldn’t be. He’s long enough, he’s athletic enough, he’s bouncy enough.”
“Never once did I have to use a board to draw up stuff with him. I could just tell him, ‘Look, you’re going to come off that screen; I want you to step out, but go back.’ And he’d say, ‘OK,’ and then he’d go do it. A great basketball mind, could pick up things quickly.”
The Knicks are in dire need of capable guards and have been linked to Dennis Smith Jr. and Frank Ntilikina, while also working out Duke shooting guard Luke Kennard and soon to work out Louisville shooting guard Donovan Mitchell.
Monk is set to work out with the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday, while Kentucky teammate and lottery prospect De'Aaron Fox is expected to do this weekend.
