Malik Monk (SG, SAC) - Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 17

Malik Monk is worth considering as a fantasy basketball waiver wire pickup heading into Week 17 of the 2022-23 NBA season.

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues

ROSTERED IN: 12% of leagues

ANALYSIS: After going through a rough spell just a few weeks ago to start the 2023 calendar year, Malik Monk is now back as a prominent part of the Kings' rotation. Monk played fewer than 20 minutes in 10 of the 14 games he appeared in from December 30 through January 28 but he's averaged 29 MPG in the last four through Sunday, playing 28+ minutes in three of those outings.

Monk had a reasonably strong first two months, averaging 25 FPPG, but that production went down a notch to just 21 FPPG from mid-December to the final days of January. The guard has now bounced back a bit and seems to have regained his shooting touch after a horrid stretch through the last month of play.

From December 16 to January 25, Monk shot 19-of-66 from the floor for a putrid 28.8 FG%. Ugh. He's gone 24-of-56 in his last four matchups, though, hoisting a season-high 11.2 FGA per game and hitting an average of 7.0 FGM nightly. The three-pointers come and go and are a little bit bouncy, mind you, but he normally gets them and he's scored at least one long-range shot in six of his last eight games (10 total 3PM in that span).

Monk has stolen a lot of possessions of late to good with steady assists numbers, and he's super efficient on a per-minute basis. Monk's currently averaging 1.04 FP/min over the full season (league average at 0.90) and a much stronger 1.10 FP/min in his last 15 games.

It's hard to envision any major changes happening in Sacramento before the trade deadline, though, so if you grab some shares of Monk, at least you know what you're getting without many question marks floating about his head. If he fits your needs, go ahead and safely add him to your roster. He's nothing incredibly special but he's definitely wildly unrostered for what he provides daily.

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