Bouk 'Em, Danno: The James Bouknight Thread

[fatlever]

Most useless first round picks in franchise history... off top of head


1. Kirk Haston
2. Alexis Ajinca
3. James Bouknight
4. Kai Jones
5. Noah Vonleh
6. Sean May
7. PJ Hairston
8. Adam Morrison
9. George Zidek
10. Tony Delk

Damn that's an impressive list of busts. Delk not really, he did score 50 in a game later in his career, but I needed a 10th for my list.

At least a few were used in trades to get value in return, like Vonleh.

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[Hornet Mania]

I'd put Haston at number one personally. Ajinca managed to carve out nine years in the league.

[fatlever]

I'd put Haston at number one personally. Ajinca managed to carve out nine years in the league.

i guess it was based on useless to the hornets, but fair enough. kirk wins,

[Diop]

i was about to defend Delk but then saw your disclaimer, I have to admit I did not know Haston. Phew his record is terrible, he could be on the all time bust list.

[Diop]

Ajinca has that Larry Brown stink on him to make it worst. Could have just taken Brook Lopez and called it a day, but instead he insist upon drafting She J and trading a future pick for Ajinca.

[Robot Rock]

I'd rank Bouknight No. 1 above Haston. Bouk was drafted higher and was expected to be an impact player. "What the hell?" was the reaction with Haston. No one expected much and nothing was delivered. That, to me, isn't as bad as expecting a potential cornerstone piece and getting skinny Cory Higgins with a drinking problem.

[fatlever]

i didnt factor draft position (other than 1st round) or expectations, only their contributions.

if factoring draft position and expectations, the list looks much different. more like

1. ammo
2. mkg
3. bouk
4. zeller
5. biz
6. may
7. vonleh
8. jr reid
9. monk
10. augustin
hm okafor/felton

[JMAC3]

i didnt factor draft position (other than 1st round) or expectations, only their contributions.

if factoring draft position and expectations, the list looks much different. more like

1. ammo
2. mkg
3. bouk
4. zeller
5. biz
6. may
7. vonleh
8. jr reid
9. monk
10. augustin
hm okafor/felton

Bouk was the 11th pick. Yeah he hasn't worked out, but some of you are talking like he was the 3rd pick and busted.

We have had plenty of picks in the 9-12 range that have been nearly as bad.
Vonleh, Frank, Monk... Frank and Vonleh are barely in the league once they left Charlotte and are consistent DNP's.

Gerald Henderson averaged 2 points per game as a rookie with zero starts and 8 mpg as 12th pick.

My expectation for Bouk when we picked him was to become a 6th man/scoring guard off the bench. I wasn't expecting him to be a star or replace Terry in the starting lineup by year 2.

[Robot Rock]

Gerald Henderson was banished to the bench because Larry Brown hated rookies, not because he couldn't play in the NBA. He proved he was a passable SG for years after that.

Morrison and MKG gave me hope at times in their rookie seasons. Bouknight and PJ Hairston each had about one game that gave you some optimism.

Bouk also fell to 11, it's not like he was mocked there. Some had him in the 5-7 range.

[NCHeels2008]

Seeing Monk now I wonder if Charlotte is just a bottom 10 organization for developing players. Bouknight is probs a bust regardless but it seems like Charlotte is a tough place for young guys to develop.

[yosemiteben]

Seeing Monk now I wonder if Charlotte is just a bottom 10 organization for developing players. Bouknight is probs a bust regardless but it seems like Charlotte is a tough place for young guys to develop.

Just out of curiosity, is there another example of a player say in the last 10 or 15 years that we failed to develop but developed elsewhere?

The only possible other answer I can see is Christian Wood, and two subsequent teams also cut him.

Monk has been talked to death, but I'll just say it's tough to blame the team when the player both has drug charges and admits to being immature and not preparing appropriately.

[fatlever]

Yeah, I really can't blame the organization for how they handled monk. He wasn't ready.

Good for him for finally putting it all together.

And even if we had him right now, I'm not sure how much more value he would add to the team. He would essentially fill either the role of Terry (the undersized sg next to melo who can't defend) or Kelly (the green light 6th man, who randomly gets red hot, but can't defend) Would we be better with Monk in either of those roles?

I would still rather have Cody Martin and DSJ for what this team needs.. just need them healthy.

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[JDR720]

I think most of us knew Monk was going to do well on another team. We let him go for personal reasons, not on court ones.

Letting Caleb Martin go was dumb though.

[fatlever]

I think most of us knew Monk was going to do well on another team. We let him go for personal reasons, not on court ones.

Letting Caleb Martin go was dumb though.

To make room for Scottie Lewis and Kubolka. Sigh.

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[bravor]

I think most of us knew Monk was going to do well on another team. We let him go for personal reasons, not on court ones.

Letting Caleb Martin go was dumb though.

I dont think it was dumb for CM. Cody was sometimes unplayable when he was playing with his brother. The separation was beneficial for both players imo.

Losing Monk for nothing was beyond dumb though, despite the on court and off the court stuff.

But Booknight can figure it out. If all what he's been through - not saying he's a victim - dont help him to mature, nothing will anyway.
As irrirating as some youngsters are, the Hornets need to take business decisions. At the very least, they need to find a way to make him look good enough to recover some good value.

[NCHeels2008]

Seeing Monk now I wonder if Charlotte is just a bottom 10 organization for developing players. Bouknight is probs a bust regardless but it seems like Charlotte is a tough place for young guys to develop.

Just out of curiosity, is there another example of a player say in the last 10 or 15 years that we failed to develop but developed elsewhere?

The only possible other answer I can see is Christian Wood, and two subsequent teams also cut him.

Monk has been talked to death, but I'll just say it's tough to blame the team when the player both has drug charges and admits to being immature and not preparing appropriately.

I mean look how much better Wiggins looked with a change of scenery (obvi not a Hornets-specific example). I tend to think one of MKG, Biyombo or Vonleh (in addition to Monk) would've popped elsewhere and were irreparably ruined by Charlotte.

[Diop]

I think most of us knew Monk was going to do well on another team. We let him go for personal reasons, not on court ones.

Letting Caleb Martin go was dumb though.

To make room for Scottie Lewis and Kubolka. Sigh.

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I had so much hope for Kubolka, finally a shooter

[JDR720]

Seeing Monk now I wonder if Charlotte is just a bottom 10 organization for developing players. Bouknight is probs a bust regardless but it seems like Charlotte is a tough place for young guys to develop.

Just out of curiosity, is there another example of a player say in the last 10 or 15 years that we failed to develop but developed elsewhere?

The only possible other answer I can see is Christian Wood, and two subsequent teams also cut him.

Monk has been talked to death, but I'll just say it's tough to blame the team when the player both has drug charges and admits to being immature and not preparing appropriately.

I mean look how much better Wiggins looked with a change of scenery (obvi not a Hornets-specific example). I tend to think one of MKG, Biyombo or Vonleh (in addition to Monk) would've popped elsewhere and were irreparably ruined by Charlotte.

MKG was hurt all the time, that was his issue. Vonleh and Biz were just bad at basketball. Although Biz managed to get paid after his playoff run with Toronto and has stuck around for a decade.

[Diop]

Seeing Monk now I wonder if Charlotte is just a bottom 10 organization for developing players. Bouknight is probs a bust regardless but it seems like Charlotte is a tough place for young guys to develop.

Just out of curiosity, is there another example of a player say in the last 10 or 15 years that we failed to develop but developed elsewhere?

The only possible other answer I can see is Christian Wood, and two subsequent teams also cut him.

Monk has been talked to death, but I'll just say it's tough to blame the team when the player both has drug charges and admits to being immature and not preparing appropriately.

I mean look how much better Wiggins looked with a change of scenery (obvi not a Hornets-specific example). I tend to think one of MKG, Biyombo or Vonleh (in addition to Monk) would've popped elsewhere and were irreparably ruined by Charlotte.

I think Biyombo maxed out his talent, Vonleh didn’t have the smarts for nba basketball, we weren’t the only team that tried with him.

Mkg though, I think another team might have got more out of him. He had a confidence issue that Charlotte couldn’t seem to help him with.

[NCHeels2008]

Just out of curiosity, is there another example of a player say in the last 10 or 15 years that we failed to develop but developed elsewhere?

The only possible other answer I can see is Christian Wood, and two subsequent teams also cut him.

Monk has been talked to death, but I'll just say it's tough to blame the team when the player both has drug charges and admits to being immature and not preparing appropriately.

I mean look how much better Wiggins looked with a change of scenery (obvi not a Hornets-specific example). I tend to think one of MKG, Biyombo or Vonleh (in addition to Monk) would've popped elsewhere and were irreparably ruined by Charlotte.

I think Biyombo maxed out his talent, Vonleh didn’t have the smarts for nba basketball, we weren’t the only team that tried with him.

Mkg though, I think another team might have got more out of him. He had a confidence issue that Charlotte couldn’t seem to help him with.

I think Biz might've gained more confidence if he had his "Toronto stint" earlier in his career. I can't explain it but his hands looked less crappy and defensively he seemed to be in the right places there and in Phx now to an extent. Noah you might be right, my point was I think at least 1 of those 3 guys would've had a better career in a more promising organization.