Malik Monk suffers sprained MCL, out 4-6 weeks (and potentially the rest of the year)

Well, that sucks. Malik Monk is the heavy favorite to win NBA Sixth Man of the Year, putting together the best season of his professional career with the Kings. He’s averaging career highs in points (15.4) and assists (5.1), helping keep Sacramento in the playoff picture as the No. 8 seed in the West.

Now, there’s a very real chance he misses the rest of the season with a knee injury.

Monk collided with Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks in the first quarter of the Kings’ loss on Friday, missing the rest of the game and undergoing further testing. And the news was not promising, as ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that the former Kentucky star will miss four-to-six weeks with a sprained right MCL.

With just nine games left in the regular season and the playoffs a few short weeks away, it’s not a promising timeline for a team that desperately needs Monk’s help down the stretch and into the postseason — former Cat De’Aaron Fox certainly does. That now appears unlikely.

ESPN Sources: Sacramento Kings G Malik Monk has suffered a sprained right MCL and is expected to miss four-to-six weeks. Monk — who’s had a career-best season — needs a Kings run in the Western Conference playoffs to return this season. pic.twitter.com/5Q3isJ0U1N

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 30, 2024

Monk started his career in Charlotte and never broke through as the high-impact scorer he was drafted in the lottery to be back in 2017, exiting after four years with the franchise without averaging more than 11.7 points per contest. After a fresh start with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2021-22 where he put up 13.8 PPG, he found a new home in Sacramento alongside his former Kentucky teammate, appearing to find a long-term fit next to Fox.

He was set to make an impact with the Kings in the playoffs this spring. Now, that remains firmly up in the air, if not highly unlikely.