The 2016-17 college basketball season will be the "Year of the Freshmen," featuring what could be the best class we've ever seen. Over the next two weeks we will get familiar with the best of the best, examining who they are and where each of the top 10 prospects in the 2016 ESPN 100 came from.
Read more: No. 10 Duke's Frank Jackson | No. 9 Kentucky's Malik Monk
No. 8 Michigan State's Miles Bridges | No. 7 Washington's Markelle Fultz
No. 6 Kentucky's De'Aaron Fox | No. 5 Kentucky's Bam Adebayo
No. 4 UCLA's Lonzo Ball | No. 3 Duke's Jayson Tatum
No. 2 Kansas' Josh Jackson | No. 1 Duke's Harry Giles
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Before his slams in Kentucky's Blue-White scrimmage in late October went viral, Malik Monk nearly dunked a high lob from Dominique Hawkins during an offseason pickup game at the Joe Craft Center.
He had flushed other alley-oops. But Hawkins threw the one Monk missed near the top of the backboard.
And Monk, ranked ninth in the 2016 incoming class by ESPN.com, still got a hand on it.
Folks in the gym gasped or oohed because they knew Monk -- and Monk alone -- had a chance to finish.
"I think I always was able to jump higher than everybody," Monk said. "Yeah, it's crazy. Since I can remember back, I was jumping higher than everybody."
This season, the athletic wing will take Jamal Murray's slot as Kentucky's offensive catalyst. The state of Arkansas' first top-10 prospect since ESPN's database began in 2007 could lead the nation's most talented recruiting class in scoring and highlights. Monk is strong and graceful. He can hit the 3-ball, and he's a problem for opponents on a fast break.
"I remember there was this one time where he drove from the left side and he, like, shifted his body midair and got to the other side of the rim, and I don't know how he laid it in, but he, like, shifted his body a crazy way and he laid the ball in on the other side of the glass," said Jake Scoggins, an Arkansas State freshman and Monk's former AAU teammate with the Arkansas Wings.
And Monk should be at Arkansas, if you believe the disgruntled members of the Razorbacks' fan base who urged the Lepanto, Arkansas, native to boost a program with one NCAA tournament appearance since 2008.
Despite the pleas for Monk to stay home, he felt free to make his own choice, he said.
His brother, Marcus Monk, the state's Mr. Basketball in 2004, picked Arkansas, where he excelled as a wide receiver with the Razorbacks. Both he and Monk's mother, Jackie Monk, tried to protect the teenager from the nastiness of recruiting.
"We weren't expecting [Arkansas fans] to love that he was going to another school, especially Kentucky," Marcus Monk said.
The state of Arkansas is full of prideful fans who expect their best talents to stay home, because that has been the trend. Both Barry Switzer and Jerry Jones played for the Razorbacks. Torii Hunter, who did not attend college before his MLB career commenced, built the Torii Hunter Baseball Complex for Arkansas-Pine Bluff's baseball team. Sidney Moncrief led Arkansas to the Final Four in 1978. Corliss Williamson carried the Razorbacks to the national championship in 1994.
During the 2014-15 season, Little Rock native Bobby Portis earned SEC Player of the Year honors at Arkansas, where he led the program to the NCAA tournament for the first time in seven years before securing a slot in the first round of the 2015 NBA draft.
Monk bucked that trend (like former Wildcats star and Little Rock native Archie Goodwin) and picked Kentucky prior to his senior prep season. That's when everything changed.
He had always heard boos from opposing crowds as a standout at Bentonville High School in Bentonville, Arkansas. But the tone grew dark after his commitment to the Wildcats.
Jackie Monk worried about her son's safety. He complained when she asked him to stay home at night. She told him to stay off social media.
"We kept him secluded," she said. "I was afraid of him being out."
She also held her tongue when fans spewed their anger toward her son. She wanted to scorch the frustrated Twitter users who swore at her son or called him a traitor. It all seemed unfair for a timid person like Monk, who tweeted a thank-you note to his supporters after he made "the toughest decision I have made in my life."
💯💯👌🏾 pic.twitter.com/DVrZHJihb1
— Solo (@AhmadMonk) November 18, 2015
"It was hurtful because they didn't know him as a kid," Jackie Monk said. "I shook my head, of course. I wanted to explode as a parent. Every time he caught the ball when he ran up the court, they'd yell 'Marcus Monk! Marcus Monk!' to taunt him. They booed. We told him, 'Let me and your brother handle it. Let us handle the criticism.'"
Arkansas fans aimed a chunk of their frustration at Marcus Monk, who led the Razorbacks in receiving yards (962) and touchdowns (11) during the 2006 football season. He played 10 games with the Arkansas basketball squad in the 2004-05 campaign and eight more in the 2008-09 season.
After bouncing between a few NFL practice squads and playing pro basketball in Germany, he returned to Arkansas and accepted a graduate assistant position with Mike Anderson's team for the 2013-14 season.
Many Razorbacks fans expected the former Arkansas standout to lead his brother to his alma mater.
But Marcus Monk refused to influence his decision. Sure, he had played at Arkansas and enjoyed his experience. He told Malik Monk, however, to do what he desired. He'd give his support either way.
His little brother had to consider his career, he told him.
"I always would tell him when it comes to him picking a school, he has to pick what he feels is the best situation to help him achieve his long-term goal, and that's the only thing that matters," Marcus Monk said. "I told him you don't have to go to a school because I went there. ... I would've loved to see him [at Arkansas] if it would've been the best thing for him, but I think he made the best decision."
Added Malik Monk: "Him and my mom kept most everybody off of me."
In Arkansas, Monk earned the "savior" tag once Anderson began to recruit him during his freshman season. The Razorbacks needed Monk. That was the attitude as the early signing period approached.
To them, Monk's choice felt like betrayal.
According to popular local radio host Mike Irwin, Monk lost respect throughout a state that will never forgive his choice.
"He hasn't seen pressure like he's going to see now," Irwin said on air after Monk committed. "He's nobody. He will become nobody to most Razorbacks fans. ... Not only is it an insult that it happened, but he went to the one place that is just unacceptable, which is 'I'm a one-and-done.' OK. Stand up two years ago and announce that you're a one-and-done. Do that because you better move because, look, I know how this stuff works. I've seen it."
Irwin's "you better move" comment preceded a story about his brother-in-law, who picked Baylor football over Arkansas and couldn't find a job for three years once he came home. But his tale represented the anger some Razorbacks fans felt.
Within the backlash, former Arkansas star and eight-year NBA veteran Ronnie Brewer tweeted his support for Monk and disappointment with the fan base.
Crazy how fans bash a KID on a decision. If you are a true fan cheer and support your team. Show some class. Once a hog always a hog #WPS
— Ronnie Brewer (@RonnieBrewerJr) November 18, 2015
It's unfair to place all Arkansas fans in the same pool of disappointment. Monk said an abundance of local supporters congratulated him.
But any fan base would hate to see a player of Monk's caliber go. He's a combo guard who could earn all-conference honors in the SEC before he transitions to the next level, likely next summer. He's the best athlete on one of the nation's most athletic rosters. And he's as physically gifted as any player in the country.
"With his extreme athleticism and shot-making, he makes a lot of difficult shots," Kentucky freshman point guard De'Aaron Fox said. "In transition, it's extremely hard to stop him."
Kentucky attracts players like Monk because Calipari's record of producing NBA athletes is unmatched. Since his arrival in 2009, 21 Kentucky players have secured first-round slots in the NBA draft.
Most programs offered Monk a starring role. Calipari issued a challenge.
The alphas accustomed to the constant shower of adoration appreciate a Kentucky pitch that promises a dogfight for minutes and a collective failure if they can't subdue their egos. That's the key to Kentucky's Avengers-like recruiting classes.
That's the mission that lured Monk.
"My thing with Malik is, you must respect each shot because you're probably gonna be like Jamal [Murray] and take the most shots on our team," Calipari said. "So you must respect that and let the other guys know on this team that you know. So shot selection and other things like that, he's learning and getting better."
The young man who lagged on the defensive end in high school has evolved into the team's "best off-the-ball defender," per Calipari.
"He was truthful with Malik," said Jackie Monk, who was amazed by her son's defensive intensity when she watched a recent Kentucky practice. "He let him know if you're not physically or mentally ready, don't come. He's listening and paying attention. [Calipari] won't let him be lazy."
Monk speaks with his game. He's demonstrative on the court but quiet and reserved off the floor. He doesn't trust early or easily.
His high school friends said he avoided trouble. Monk said he never had a choice. His mother told him to consider his tomorrows before he made key choices. Teenage girls and parties seemed like distractions, so he avoided them. He preferred to join relatives and friends on the pastures of Lepanto and Bentonville, where he'd go mudding, hunting and fishing.
"With the work he's put in, he deserves to be where he's at," said Scoggins, Monk's AAU teammate. "He's a self-made guy. He's a great teammate."
That's how he soared and earned the right to pick his collegiate destination. Although many Arkansas fans assume their favorite school was locked into a two-team race, Monk said Oregon, Kansas, Arkansas and Kentucky were all in the running for his talents.
The day he committed to the Wildcats, Monk said he felt a unique tie to Kentucky. So he and his brother called Kentucky assistant Kenny Payne and told him the five-star recruit would play in Lexington this season.
On Jan. 7, Arkansas will face Kentucky in Lexington in the only scheduled matchup between the two schools. Monk won't return to Arkansas this year. But Anderson, the coach who recruited him hard for years, will see the prized recruit he couldn't sign. And that night, some Razorbacks fans will mourn the loss of the best in-state product in years.
"Malik is a really good kid," Anderson said. "Make sure you put that in there."
A good kid who made the best decision for him, his family and his future.