Charlotte Hornets waive former first-round pick Kai Jones after trade request

Barely two years after Kai Jones was selected in the first round of the NBA Draft, his days with the Charlotte Hornets are finished.

The Hornets waived Jones on Wednesday, the team announced. The move puts an end to Jones’ tenure with the Hornets, which became tenuous in the past three weeks due to several curious social media posts including a couple where he critiqued some of his teammates and Los Angeles Lakers star Lebron James and Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal.

Jones requested a trade on Monday posting a message on X, formerly known as Twitter. But given Jones’ weeks-long absence from the team combined with him averaging only 2.7 points and 2 rebounds in 67 career games, there was no market for the forward/center to be moved, so the Hornets waived him.

Barring injury, Jones wasn’t going to be part of the Hornets’ rotation this season. He didn’t travel with the Hornets to Miami for Tuesday’s preseason opener against the Heat and he didn’t participate in any of the players’ optional workout sessions leading into training camp.