According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-rumors-new-lakers-contract-likely-off-table-for-lebron-james-1559-20220616-SPD-1559.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sacramento Kings</a> have agreed to a two-year, $19 million agreement with <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-news-malik-monk-willing-to-take-less-money-to-return-to-the-lakers-1833-20220627-SPD-1833.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Malik Monk</a>, one of the positives of the Los Angeles Lakers’ past season. In order to keep the shooting guard, the Lakers were able to simply give him the $6.5 million tax mid-level exception. 



The Kings will give him a substantial bump in compensation for moving from Southern California to the north. Only the Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks contacted Monk when he became a free agent last summer because his first four seasons with the Charlotte Hornets were erratic. 



No,w the Kings may extend Monk’s deal to a four-year contract with a mid-level exception valued at around $10.5 million next season. Trade or release of cap holds by the Sacramento Kings might free up some cap space for them to sign him directly instead.



<h2>Malik Monk opts for Kings</h2>



Between Christmas and New Year’s, Monk scored an average of 16.2 points per game while shooting 48.3 percent from the field and 40.5 percent from the three-point range. There is space for improvement in both his defense and his playmaking, but Monk is becoming an NBA threat as a second-half scorer and a threat in transition.



For the first time since high school, the 24-year-old will team up with De’Aaron Fox in Sacramento. While playing for Kentucky, these two were close friends and teammates who were devastated by their team’s disappointing season-ending defeat to North Carolina in the NCAA championship game.

No Lakers stay: Malik Monk agrees two-year, $19 million deal with Kings - thesportsdrops NEWS

No Lakers stay: Malik Monk agrees two-year, $19 million deal with Kings

To change things up in a significant manner, the <a href="https:\/\/news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/magic-johnson-explains-what-the-lakers-should-expect-from-their-new-head-coach-1011-20220523-SPD-1011.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Atlanta Hawks</a> may be willing to move one of their most important players over the summer. According to Marc Stein, the Hawks are set to trade power forward <a href="https:\/\/news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-news-deandre-ayton-requested-maximum-deal-from-suns-1080-20220526-SPD-1080.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">John Collins</a> this summer. 



A player option for the 2025-26 season might help make Collins more enticing to potential suitors since he still has four years left on his current deal. Since last season saw the Hawks make it to the Eastern Conference finals before being knocked out in the first round this year, the team’s top management has obviously decided that they need to make some changes to the squad.



Aside from the Portland Trail Blazers, it’s likely there are many more teams interested in Collins. In addition to the Hawks, the Sacramento Kings have also shown interest in the 24-year-old, according to Shams Charania.



<h2>Where could Collins be traded?</h2>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“The likelihood of a John Collins trade, league sources indicate, is as high as it’s ever been. Collins just completed the first season of a five-year, $125 million contract, but the newness of his deal didn’t do anything to downgrade external interest in the 6-foot-9 forward that has bubbled leaguewide since talks broke down between Collins and Hawks on a $90 million extension at the start of the 2020-21 season.“He was one of the league’s most-talked-about trade targets this season until Atlanta ultimately decided to shut down all Collins discussions before the Feb. 10 trade buzzer when the team started to pull out of its 17-25 start. The trade chatter has since only intensified since Atlanta’s meek first-round exit to Miami in five games… I’ve been advised that relocation for Collins this offseason is pretty much expected now.”<cite>Marc Stein on Collins</cite></blockquote>

Sacramento Kings

No Lakers stay: Malik Monk agrees two-year, $19 million deal with Kings

NBA Rumors: Trail Blazers and Kings among teams interested in Hawks' John Collins

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