Things have been going from bad to worse for the Charlotte Hornets, who are suffering from a terrible offseason. There hasn’t been much attention drawn to the team thanks to the various bigger dramas in the NBA, but Charlotte’s players have been facing some very serious off-court issues.
Miles Bridges, widely considered their second-best player, was charged with felony domestic violence earlier in the summer. Miles Bridges was poised to get a massive contract in the offseason, but his legal troubles put paid to that. Bridges is now a free agent after letting his qualifying offer expire.
And that is not the end of Charlotte’s troubles, with their 2021 first-round draft pick James Bouknight also facing legal trouble now. The young guard was arrested and charged with driving while impaired in Charlotte, as reported by ESPN.
“Charlotte Hornets guard James Bouknight has been charged with driving while impaired just days before the team was set to open the regular season.
“Bouknight, 22, was arrested at 1:51 a.m. Sunday by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, according to a police report. Bond was set at $2,500.”
This is terrible news for the Hornets, with the season set to begin soon. Bouknight is starting his sophomore season, and with Steve Clifford returning as coach, he was expected to play more than he did in his rookie season.
Hornets Coach Steve Clifford Spoke About James Bouknight’s Arrest
The Hornets start their season against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night, and this is something that the team did not need. Their Head Coach spoke about Bouknight’s arrest and the potential distraction for a team that is already dealing with unexpected issues this offseason, as ESPN also reported.
“We are just gathering information right now,” Hornets coach Steve Clifford said after practice. “Until we know more definitely on what happened I can’t comment on that.
“That’s this league. You know what I mean?” Clifford said when asked about Bouknight’s arrest being a distraction. “I was told a long time ago that if you want to enjoy coaching, understand that a lot more things go wrong every day that go right. It’s just the kind of job that it is. It’s part of coaching at every level.”
Bouknight has already gotten called out by the GOAT and Hornets owner Michael Jordan last season, so this is hardly the start to the season he would have wanted. There seem to be more problems than optimism in Charlotte at the moment, and their fans likely don’t have too much hope at the beginning of a new season.
