Enough is enough. The time has come for the Charlotte Hornets to part ways with Kai Jones. Jones took to Instagram Live a few days ago, with the result being a bizarre and concerning video. While the dust did settle for a moment, controversy returned rather quickly as Jones was seen making scathing remarks about teammates Mark Williams and Nick Richards on Instagram. Jones’s erratic behavior is more than enough to warrant the Hornets parting ways.
The Hornets do not have time for this nonsense. If there was not a sense of urgency to do something before, there should be now. Continuing to roster a player who is actively creating a rift between himself and the rest of his teammates is an act of self-sabotage by the organization. This upcoming season is supposed to see the Hornets bounce back from a disappointing 2022-23 campaign. It is incredibly difficult to envision a world where Jones can return to this team, and there not be some level of animosity between himself and the rest of his Hornets teammates.
Here is the harsh reality when it comes to the sports world. There is a certain ratio of talent to distraction that is considered tolerable in a situation like this. When it comes to Jones, he falls extremely short of that ratio in the talent department. The Hornets have only one path forward, and that is moving on from a player who has decided to become an unnecessary thorn in the side of his teammates and the organization as a whole.
The organization needs to get out in front of this (as much as they can at this point) and remove Jones from the roster by any means necessary. If that means eating salary or attaching a future second-rounder in a trade if a team shows interest in his services, so be it. There does not appear a successful future for the Hornets that includes Jones at this time. Cut ties now, move forward, and do not look back.
Charlotte Hornets grade out mostly average in position-by-position ranking
It appears that most of the Charlotte Hornets' position groups grade out pretty average when compared to the rest of the NBA.