The Sacramento Kings are mired in a dismal 2025-26 season, with a woeful record marred by injuries, inconsistent play, and roster imbalances that plague their efforts. Amid a five-game losing streak that included back-to-back defeats to the Portland Trail Blazers. Head coach Doug Christie made a bold and eyebrow-raising rotation decision: benching Malik Monk, one of the team’s most dynamic bench scorers and a longtime fan favorite, for consecutive games despite Monk being fully healthy and available.

Monk, who had been averaging around 13 points, 2.1 assists, and solid shooting in roughly 24 minutes per game prior to these DNPs – Coach’s Decision, suddenly became the “odd man out” in Sacramento’s crowded guard rotation. Christie prioritized defensive-minded wing Keon Ellis, who delivered strong performances in expanded minutes with 10 points, 6 steals in 32 minutes during the first Blazers loss.

Explaining the move post-game, Christie cited the team’s guard logjam and a focus on defense: “We were going with defense, but it’s a logjam. We’ve got a lot of guards, so whenever it was Keon being the odd man out, then it was Keon being out. Tonight, we were playing Keon, so Malik was out. We’re searching… so far, it has not worked the way that we want it to work.”

Fact is, Sacramento is very much in an evaluation phase on the way to a rebuild from scratch. Doug Christie’s rotation in a poorly constructed team has been inconsistent. The result was five straight losses before tonight and a 7-22 record.

Christie emphasized that the change isn’t permanent, stressing effort and lineup experimentation amid the Kings’ struggles: “Nothing is permanent… The main thing is that the product that hits the floor, first and foremost, plays extremely hard.” He plans to give Ellis an extended run while continuing to tinker.

In all of this, it has become obvious that Monk, for all his speed and athleticism combined with elite shooting talent, is now at the end of the rotation. He used to be effective coming off the bench. But that didn’t happen against Portland, and he got a token five minutes tonight after Christie said, “That doesn’t mean he’s out of the rotation. He could be in [the game] very well tonight.”

Monk’s position is very similar to Jonathan Kuminga‘s, who was DNP-ed at the coach’s decision. Steve Kerr also said that they had too many players for him to sufficiently allocate minutes. Kerr’s rotation tweaks, even without JK, worked.

It adds a bit of irony that rumors about the Kings and Warriors exchanging Monk and Kuminga have swirled all year. Insiders claim that Sacramento is very keen on getting Kuminga. It may not mean that Monk is leaving. But the DNPs have made him a trade target for certain teams.

Malik Monk’s DNP makes his trade chances dicey

The Warriors don’t need another guard, which makes Kuminga for Monk not viable. However, analysts see him fitting in better with five other teams – the LA Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks, Orlando Magic, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Dallas Mavericks.

Not hard to see why the injury-ridden Mavs and Bucks might need another player if they can afford it. Interestingly, the Pistons were seeking him in the summer, but that has changed quickly. Analysts say that a significant reason for the declining interest is Monk’s reduction in minutes.

Monk is averaging 13.0 PPG and 24.0 minutes this season so far. It’s not far from his 2024-25 average of 17.2 PPG across 31.6 MPG.

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His defense leaves a little to be desired, but he could still make a difference offensively for the Bucks and maybe the Magic. If they can find a way to afford him. The price tag on Monk right now far outweighs his minutes.

The standout guard has three years remaining on his deal (2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28, with a player option). His 2025-26 salary is about $18.8 million, with higher amounts in subsequent seasons totaling more than $41.6 million remaining.

Yet it’s all a fantasy scenario. Doug Christie is trying to find a lineup that works best for the team. Monk’s DNP could also change significantly depending on that.