When the Charlotte Hornets used their No. 4 selection on Kon Knueppel in this summer's draft, there were folks who believed they made a mistake, arguing they should have chosen Ace Bailey instead. Even Tre Johnson's name popped up. Now, it has become clear that the Hornets were justified in taking Knueppel.
The Duke University product has emerged as a top candidate for the Rookie of the Year plum, although his college teammate Cooper Flagg is hot on his trail. He can regain or widen the lead if his shooting efficiency picks up again and his all-around game continues to develop.
Still, in any redraft, Knueppel should land somewhere between the second and fourth overall pick because he has proven capable of developing into either a star or an elite role player. Meanwhile, the two players selected right after him, Bailey and Johnson, have shown promise but have not yet delivered on the hype that surrounded them leading up to the draft.
Kon Knueppel's edge
To be fair to Bailey, the Utah Jazz misutilized him in the early going of the season. In the nine games he came off the bench, he recorded just 5.9 points per game on 33.9 percent shooting from the field and 21.1 percent shooting from 3-point area. However, since being promoted to the starting lineup, the Rutgers University product has averaged 13.1 points per contest and has shot nearly 50 percent from the field and over 40 percent from beyond the arc.
Still, Bailey has not shown anything to prove that he would have been a good fit with Charlotte. He is more of a go-to guy than a team player, and with LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, and Miles Bridges already in the starting lineup, one ball wouldn't be enough for all of them.
On the other hand, Knueppel has been more versatile, displaying his abilities to be a connective piece and rise up to the occasion whenever his teammates are down with injuries. If the Hornets' roster had been constructed differently, maybe bringing in Bailey would have made more sense. It's clear now that they need a chameleon like Kon.
As for Johnson, there might come a time when he finally gets to display his shot-making prowess. What's concerning, though, is that despite being on a rebuilding Washington Wizards squad, he has been unable to lock a spot in the starting lineup. Ahead of him in the shooting guard hierarchy is veteran CJ McCollum, who might not even be a part of their future.
Currently, the sixth overall selection has missed the Wizards' past seven games due to a left hip flexor strain. There is no timetable for his return. It's unfair to label him as injury-prone, of course, but with Charlotte already dealing with several injured players, the last thing the team would want is its prized prospect also being a fixture on the report.
So, considering how Bailey and Johnson's rookie campaigns have turned out by this point, Knueppel was simply the right choice for the Hornets in the 2025 draft. Will they look back years from now and still feel the same? There's no reason to believe that they shouldn't, although we will just have to wait and see.