Charlotte Hornets Decline James Bouknight's Fourth-Year Option

James Bouknight's option has been declined.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Hornets are declining the fourth year option on guard James Bouknight.

The Charlotte Hornets are declining the fourth-year option ($6.1 million) on 2021 No. 11 pick James Bouknight, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 31, 2023

Charlotte selected Bouknight with the 11th overall pick in the 2021 draft with the hopes of him becoming the running mate in the back court with all-star LaMelo Ball.

The mercurial third-year guard has yet to make much of an impact in his young NBA career, and he will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. Bouknight touts career averages of 5.1 points, 1.9 rebounds, and an assist in his career on 35% shooting from the field and 31.6% from deep. 

The best stretch of his career came at the end of last season, with his peak coming on March 31st in Chicago when he tallied 22 points, six rebounds, and four assists.

The 2023-24 season was always going to be a pivot point in the career of the former UCONN guard, and a knee injury in the preseason has stripped any chance Bouknight had to make an impact on the Hornets this fall. His return is imminent, and he now has the knowledge that he will be playing for a new contract next summer. 

Bouknight will enter next summer as an unrestricted free agent, free to sign with any team across the league. 

This news combined with the release of Kai Jones makes it unlikely that either player that the Hornets selected in the first round of the 2021 draft will sign a second contract in Charlotte. For a team that has a hard time signing marquee free agents, poor drafting is a death sentence, and the 2021 draft is currently a massive failure as it stands.

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