OKC Thunder: 2 former Kentucky Wildcats to pursue this summer

Former Kentucky Wildcat target for OKC Thunder No. 1) Malik Monk

Though Malik Monk never played with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with the Wildcats, as he was drafted the summer before SGA logged his first minutes for the university, when it comes to a storied basketball school like Kentucky, ties tend to run deep.

Viewed as a fraternity to some, both are connected through their blue and white blood and, this offseason, the fourth-year guard will be heading towards the free agency market where the OKC Thunder could snag him up at a relatively low cost.

Selected 11th overall back in 2017, Monk was viewed by many as an explosive guard with an unbelievable feel for the game in the scoring department and even drew strong comparisons to the likes of Lou Williams.

Though he has yet to meet such lofty expectations that traditionally come with being a lottery pick, this past season in his reserve role with the Charlotte Hornets the 23-year-old managed to play quite effectively as an offensive sparkplug in his 20.9 minutes of action per night.

Through 42 games played, Malik Monk posted averages of 11.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 2.1 assists on 43 percent shooting from the floor and 40 percent shooting from deep on five attempts a night.

It’s evident that despite his woes and hiccups during his short tenure in the league the four-year veteran still has the potential to be a quality player in this league.

The Thunder have an unnecessary amount of cap space and have little desires to contend for a chip any time soon, so perhaps taking a chance on the raw talent guard could be an experiment worth partaking in.