James David Bouknight ( ; born September 18, 2000) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for the Rip City Remix of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

UConn Huskies The UConn Huskies (or Connecticut Huskies) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Connecticut, with its main campus located in Storrs, Connecticut. The school is a member of ...

Early life

Bouknight grew up in

Crown Heights, Brooklyn Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. Crown Heights is bounded by Washington Avenue to the west, Atlantic Avenue (New York City), Atlantic Avenue to the north, ...

, in New York City. He played

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

for much of his childhood and started playing basketball in middle school. He began his high school career with

La Salle Academy } La Salle Academy is an American private, Catholic all-boys' high school in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York. The school is run by the Eastern North American District of the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, New York. As a junior, Bouknight averaged 17.4 points per game, leading his team to the New York Federation Class B state championship, and was named tournament

most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

(MVP). He earned

Catholic High School Athletic Association The Catholic High School Athletic Association or CHSAA is a high school athletic association made up of Catholic high schools based in New York City, Long Island, Westchester and Buffalo. It is the largest Catholic high school athletic league ...

B Division MVP and

New York State Sportswriters Association The New York State Sportswriters Association (NYSSWA), founded in 1967, is a source of reference information and statistics about scholastic athletics in the state. Begun by sportswriters Larry Serrell of the Schenectady Daily Gazette and Chuck K ...

Class B Player of the Year accolades. After the season, Bouknight

reclassified ''Reclassified'' is the reissue of Australian rapper Iggy Azalea's debut studio album, '' The New Classic'' (2014). It was released internationally on 21 November 2014 by Virgin EMI Records, and in the United States on 24 November 2014 by Gran ...

down and transferred to MacDuffie School in

Granby, Massachusetts Granby is a New England town, town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,110 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield metropolitan area, Massachuset ...

to gain more exposure. In his reclassified junior season, Bouknight averaged 19.3 points, five rebounds and two assists per game before suffering a season-ending

torn meniscus A tear of a meniscus is a rupturing of one or more of the fibrocartilage strips in the knee called menisci. When doctors and patients refer to "torn cartilage" in the knee, they actually may be referring to an injury to a meniscus at the top of ...

in his left knee. After recovering, he played for the PSA Cardinals alongside

Cole Anthony Cole Hilton Anthony (born May 15, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Listed at and , he pla ...

on the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

circuit. As a senior, Bouknight earned All-

New England Preparatory School Athletic Council The New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) is an organization that serves as the governing body for sports in preparatory schools and leagues in New England. The organization has 169 full member schools as well as 24 associate ...

AA honors.

Recruiting

Bouknight was a consensus four-star recruit and was considered the 53rd-best player in the 2019 class by

247Sports 247Sports is an American network of websites that focus mainly on college recruiting, athletic recruitment in college football and college basketball, basketball. It is owned and operated by Paramount Global, Paramount. The website hosts a large ...

. On September 18, 2018, before his senior season, he committed to play

for

UConn The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

. Bouknight chose the Huskies over offers from

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

and VCU, among others.

College career

On November 7, 2019, Bouknight was suspended for three games by UConn for allegedly fleeing a car crash on September 27. He had been charged with evading responsibility, interfering with a police officer, traveling too fast for conditions and operating a motor vehicle without a license. On February 9, 2020, Bouknight scored a freshman season-high 23 points in a 72–71 overtime win over

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

. He scored 19 points in the second half and overtime and made the two game-sealing free throws. One day later, Bouknight was named

American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference (AAC), also known as The American, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States, featuring 13 full member universities and 6 affiliate member universities that compete in t ...

(AAC) Player of the Week. On February 29, he had his first

double-double In basketball, a double-double is a single-game performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in two of the following five statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots. The first "double" in the ter ...

of 19 points and 10 rebounds in a 84–63 victory over

East Carolina East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of universities in North Carolina by enrollment, fourth largest university in North Carolina and the only one in the state with s ...

. As a freshman, he averaged 13 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game and was a Third Team All-AAC and All-Freshman Team selection. At the beginning of his sophomore season, Bouknight was named to the preseason John R. Wooden Award watch list. On December 20, 2020, he scored a career-high 40 points in a 76–74 overtime loss to ninth-ranked Creighton. On January 5, 2021, he suffered an elbow injury against Marquette, and missed eight games after undergoing surgery. As a sophomore, he averaged 18.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, earning First Team All-

Big East The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...

honors. On March 31, he declared for the

2021 NBA draft The 2021 NBA draft, the 75th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual NBA draft, draft, was held on July 29, 2021, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. The NBA draft returned to Brooklyn after 2020 NBA draft, the pre ...

, forgoing his remaining college eligibility.

Professional career

Charlotte Hornets / Greensboro Swarm (2021–2024)

Bouknight was selected with the 11th pick in the

by the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

. On August 3, 2021, he officially signed with the Hornets. Bouknight made his NBA debut on October 22, 2021, in a 123–112 victory against the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

, getting only one rebound on a minute of playing time. He scored his first NBA points on November 26, in a 133–115 victory over the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

, scoring two free throws in four minutes. On December 10, Bouknight scored a career-high 24 points in a 124–123 win over the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

. Prior to the 2022–23 season, Bouknight changed his jersey number from 5 to 2. On February 8, 2024, Bouknight was waived by the Hornets.

Rip City Remix (2024–present)

On October 15, 2024, Bouknight signed with the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

, but was waived the next day. On October 28, he joined the Rip City Remix.

Personal life

Legal issues

On October 16, 2022, Bouknight was arrested by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police for

driving while intoxicated Driving under the influence (DUI) is the crime of driving, operating, or being in control of a vehicle while one is impaired from doing so safely by the effect of either alcohol (see drunk driving) or some other drug, whether recreational or ...

at around 1:51 a.m. He was found

unconscious Unconscious may refer to: Physiology * Unconsciousness, the lack of consciousness or responsiveness to people and other environmental stimuli Psychology * Unconscious mind, the mind operating well outside the attention of the conscious mind a ...

in a parking deck around 12:44 a.m. At the time of his arrest, he had a .40-caliber gun, a bag of Doritos, a

Glock 23 Glock (; stylized as GLOCK) is a brand of polymer- framed, short-recoil-operated, striker-fired, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military an ...

. His bond was set at $2,500, and he returned to practice the following day. Prior to this incident, he had multiple speeding and reckless driving offenses. He was sentenced to a year of probation.

Career statistics

NBA

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Charlotte , 31 , , 0 , , 9.8 , , .348 , , .347 , , .871 , , 1.7 , , .8 , , .2 , , .0 , , 4.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Charlotte , 34 , , 0 , , 15.1 , , .358 , , .303 , , .667 , , 2.1 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , .1 , , 5.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Charlotte , 14 , , 0 , , 5.8 , , .439 , , .433 , , .500 , , .6 , , .4 , , .1 , , .1 , , 3.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 79 , , 0 , , 11.4 , , .363 , , .335 , , .770 , , 1.7 , , .9 , , .3 , , .1 , , 4.8

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;",

, 28 , , 16 , , 25.9 , , .462 , , .347 , , .822 , , 4.1 , , 1.3 , , .8 , , .2 , , 13.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 15 , , 14 , , 31.7 , , .447 , , .293 , , .778 , , 5.7 , , 1.8 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 18.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 43 , , 30 , , 27.9 , , .456 , , .320 , , .802 , , 4.7 , , 1.5 , , .9 , , .2 , , 15.0

References

External links

UConn Huskies bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bouknight, James 2000 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Basketball players from Brooklyn Charlotte Hornets draft picks Charlotte Hornets players Greensboro Swarm players Rip City Remix players Shooting guards UConn Huskies men's basketball players