Has a candidate for Sixth Man of the Year hinted at joining the Houston Rockets?

Social media has changed the dynamics of the sports industry.

It’s no surprise: social media has changed everything. It changed sports, and it also changed sports media.

Sometimes players leave hints about their future on social media. Other times, their cryptic messages end up making no sense.

Did Malik Monk just hint that he was joining the Houston Rockets?

It’s interesting. Let’s break it down.

Monk might just be suggesting he’s about to have (another) career year. The suggestion that it’s about to “take off” might just be a colloquialism. It is possible that Monk did not consider that a rocket, although an object subject to projectiles, was also the symbol of an NBA team.

At the same time, the planes take off. The pilots take off. Monk knows the Houston Rockets are a team. Additionally, his use of two rocket emojis suggests some deliberation.

We’re not sure what to make of this, but it seems like Monk, a free agent, deliberately hinted that he was headed to the Rockets.

Would adding him be a smart move for the team?

As things stand, the Rockets don’t have enough cap space to accommodate Monk. They have access to the mid-level exception (MLE). Monk will surely order more than that.

At the same time, the Kings could be interested in a sign-and-trade. When a team loses a free agent, they generally don’t receive much value in these arrangements. Jae’Sean Tate and Jock Landale are both on flexible, team-friendly contracts. That might be enough to keep Monk away from Sacramento.

If so, Monk could be a smart acquisition for Houston. We know he won’t mind supporting Jalen Green – Monk just finished second for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award. It’s obviously a role in which he is comfortable.

Last year, Monk had his best NBA season. His jump as a point guard was impressive – Monk’s 5.1 assists per game was by far a career high. He shot a disappointing 35.0 percent on his 5.9 three-point attempts per game, but Monk’s reputation as a dangerous shooter forces defenses to close out on him aggressively. He would be a wise addition to a Rockets team in need of floor spacing:

Unless his social media post makes no sense.