Hornets rookie James Bouknight struggled in his second game. Here’s what he can work on
When the ball is in James Bouknight’s hands, most of the attention goes to him. Defenders know about his athleticism, his handles, his passing and his ability to get to the basket.
“He’s a star player,” rookie Kai Jones said. “He can be a really good player in this league.”
Bouknight was a projected top-10 pick for a reason. The Hornets didn’t think they had a chance to grab him at 11.
But Monday night, in the Hornets’ 80-70 loss to the Kings, Bouknight went through some growing pains, along with the rest of his teammates.
Bouknight was 1-for-5 from 3, and 4-for-11 overall. He finished with 11 points, after leading the Hornets with 18 points on Sunday.
He made his first 3 with about 1:30 left in the fourth quarter, and he looked relieved that it went in.
He also had five of the Hornets’ 22 turnovers.
Hornets Summer League coach Dutch Gaitley wants to see Bouknight do less dribbling late in the shot clock. He wants to see his team play faster and make quicker decisions.
“It’s understanding that you don’t have to beat somebody one-on-one,” Gaitley said of Bouknight. “This isn’t college any more. It doesn’t have to be four, five, six dribbles. It can be one or two...That’s the main thing he has to understand, and that’s what we have to do a good job of showing him.
“The way we’re playing now isn’t going to work at the next level. You have adapt.”
It was a problem Sunday, and remained a problem Monday.
The Hornets like to play fast, especially with LaMelo Ball at the point. And instead of playing fast, they’ve played slow, often milking the clock before it gets to zero. It has resulted into some rushed shots or turnovers.
Aside from taking too many dribbles, Bouknight also needs work on his jump shot. There are going to be more nights like Monday night for Bouknight, and if he doesn’t show he can knock down a 3-pointer next season, the Hornets have a problem.
Defenders will begin to sag and give him space, which will make it easier to stop his drive.
Bouknight said he’s not worried about his 3-point shot, adding that he’s been working on it. But it’s clear he doesn’t have confidence in it yet. The good news is that Ball had questions about his 3-point shot heading into the draft, too. And he showed that he could hit it by shooting 35.2% from 3.
Perhaps Bouknight can do the same. He shot 34.7% from 3 as a freshman at UConn.
The Hornets have two more games: Wednesday against the Spurs and Saturday against the Raptors. It’ll be interesting to see if he can bounce back.
But Gaitley sees potential.
“He’s a great passer...He’s moving the ball around,” Gaitley said. “Get to Vegas, bright lights, a lot of eyes. Now we just have to help him understand how he can impact the game without just dribbling and scoring.”
LiAngelo Ball looking good through two games
For someone who hasn’t had competitive game action in nearly two years, LiAngelo Ball has been a bright spot.
He dropped 10 points Monday night against the Kings. While he scored 16 points Sunday after making five 3-pointers, he did it differently Monday.
He crashed the offensive glass and got a couple of put backs. He also got to the free throw line.
That’s how Ball will make an NBA/G League roster — by playing his role and doing the little things like crashing the offensive glass and consistently hitting a 3-point shot.
Along with his 10 points, Ball also had five rebounds and two steals in 20 minutes.
Kai Jones’ unselfishness
Jones didn’t have the best game Monday night, but when his shot wasn’t falling, he found another way to get involved.
He had four assists to go with four points, and he has shown is his ability to drive and find open teammates when the defense collapses on him.
It was also something he did well in Sunday’s game, too.
Jones also had seven rebounds, a block and a steal in 29 minutes.
This story was originally published August 9, 2021 at 9:58 PM.
