Monk thought he’d be a Knick
Some Knicks fans weren’t alone in their disappointment over the team’s first-round pick.
“I actually thought the Knicks would take me,” said Malik Monk, a highscoring shooting guard out of Kentucky.
Instead, the Knicks went with French point guard Frank Ntilikina with the eighth overall pick in Thursday night’s NBA draft. The selection got a mixed reaction, cheers initially, followed by a storm of boos. Kentucky coach John Calipari shared their sentiment.
“I wanted Malik in New York because I thought he would light it up. It would be back on,” Calipari said on ESPN’s draft set. “But they must’ve liked the French kid. I’ve not seen him enough, but I hear he’s really good.”
Monk, the explosive guard who had been linked to the Knicks, fell out of the top 10, to the Hornets and owner Michael Jordan at No. 11.
“I knew that he wasn’t going to fall by Michael,” Calipari said. “He plays like Mike.”
Monk wasn’t upset by where he landed. He gets to join Kemba Walker of The Bronx, whom he modeled his game after growing up. The two, represented by the same agency, had talked dur- ing the draft process.
“I got the step-back from him,” Monk said. “So I’m just thankful to be in this situation, and hopefully it’ll work out good.”
But Monk did say that 10 teams passed on him will give him a chip on his shoulders.
“I’m trying to be Rookie of the Year,” he said.
There were questions about his size, only 6foot-3 for a shooting guard, and whether he could handle the ball well enough to play point guard at the next level. At his press conference following the pick, Monk didn’t seem to mind he fell so far. He couldn’t stop talking about the chance to play for the team Jordan owns.
“I still can’t believe it right now. I still can’t believe it,” he said. “Maybe [on Friday] I’ll believe it. But I think he’ll teach me a lot and I’ll take an even bigger step each year. Each year I’m going to try to learn as much as I can from him.”
Monk said he hopes to get to play some one-onone with Jordan.
“I’m going to beat him,” the Arkansas native said with a smile.