- Kai Jones has been sent away from the team to deal with ongoing personal problems
- NBA fans are concerned after Jones’ history of bizarre behavior
- Charlotte Hornets are facing serious culture questions
With just a few weeks to go before the start of a new NBA season, now is usually the time when players are ramping up for a return to the court. In the case of Hornets forward Kai Jones, he is paused from team activities indefinitely due to an official ruling by the team. In an announcement on X, NBA insider Shams Charania broke the news of Kai’s temporary exile from the Hornets and what it means for his future with the franchise.
“The Charlotte Hornets will have 2021 first-round pick Kai Jones away from the team indefinitely and there’s no timetable for his return,” Shams wrote. “Jones will miss training camp due to personal reasons, and the team remains in constant communication with him.” With no further details on the situation, it’s impossible to draw a definitive conclusion on what happened or how things will play out.
For any fans who have paid attention, though, this may not come as a huge surprise. Kai, who was drafted in 2021, has been acting very strangely over the past few weeks, and his erratic actions have sparked some major concerns from fans and experts across the country.
Kai Jones Isn’t Making Any Sense
With Jones, there have been several incidents this summer that people are struggling to understand. Initially, Jones sparked outrage over a wild Instagram Live video, in which he ranted incoherently while appearing high on drugs. Even after receiving backlash for that stunt, which saw several of his teammates unfollow his account, Jones followed it up with even more fire by calling out his fellow Hornets players for not supporting his antics. At one point, Jones even claimed that he could beat LeBron James in a one-on-one.
His most egregious act to date is the DMs he sent to one of his “fans” on Instagram. The messages, which leaked online, showed Jones’ exchange with a fan, who he called a “dumba**” for no apparent reason. With all of these ordeals in mind, the Hornets probably felt it was best to avoid letting Jones become a distraction for them. The hope is that, with time and the proper response, Kai will get his act together and rejoin his teammates at some point later this year.
The Hornets Are In Trouble
With LaMelo Ball and 2023 lottery pick Brandon Miller, the Hornets may finally be in a position to rise in the East after years of mediocre play. The only problem now seems to be the culture in the locker room. Besides the strange behavior of Kai Jones, the Hornets roster includes other players of questionable character, including Miles Bridges.
Set to return to the league after a domestic assault case, Bridges is already on a short rope and any misstep from him could see him cast out of the NBA entirely. So, between Bridges and the situation with Jones, the Hornets are a team with some serious maturity issues and we’ve seen how those types of teams perform in the postseason. For Charlotte, however, they cannot afford to let good talent walk, even if it means sacrificing good character in the locker room.
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