Charlotte Hornets Player Out For 4 Weeks

James Bouknight (Charlotte Hornets) is out for at least four weeks following surgery.

James Bouknight is coming off a year where he played in 34 regular season games for the Charlotte Hornets.

The 23-year-old averaged 5.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists per contest while shooting 35.8% from the field and 30.3% from the three-point range.

Recently, Bouknight underwent surgery for a knee injury, and the team has announced that he will be out for at least four weeks. 

Via Charlotte Hornets PR: "UPDATE: Bouknight has undergone successful surgery on his left knee and will be reevaluated in four weeks."

UPDATE: Bouknight has undergone successful surgery on his left knee and will be reevaluated in four weeks. https://t.co/ZFg9mHZTmg

— Charlotte Hornets PR (@HornetsPR) October 11, 2023

Bouknight was initially the 11th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft out of UConn and has spent the first two seasons of his career with the Hornets.  

He has career averages of 5.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.0 assists per contest while shooting 35.3% from the field and 31.6% from the three-point range in 65 games.  

The Hornets will play their first game on October 25 when they host the Atlanta Hawks, so Bouknight will not be available to start the season. 

OMG JAMES BOUKNIGHT 😱
(via @NBA)

pic.twitter.com/xhSwCF4uMP

— Overtime (@overtime) October 8, 2021

This past season, the Hornets were one of the worst teams in the NBA and finished the year as the 14th seed in the Eastern Conference with a 27-55 record.

That said, they dealt with injuries to key players such as LaMelo Ball (who only played 36 games). 

In 2022, the Hornets went 43-39 and made the play-in tournament, so they had been on the verge of becoming a playoff team. 

The franchise last made the NBA playoffs in 2016 when Kemba Walker was still on the roster.