The wait was a few picks longer than some projected, but former UConn star James Bouknight became the program's 14th lottery pick in NBA Draft history last week. The Brooklyn native went 11th overall to the Charlotte Hornets, continuing a somewhat odd trend between the program and the city.
Separated by nearly 800 miles, Storrs has been a fairly consistent pipeline to the professional ranks in the Queen City, with Bouknight the latest example. Here are all of the former UConn players to spend at least some time with the Hornets or Bobcats in their pro careers:
Scott Burrell: The first former Husky to go to Charlotte was Burrell, who was the Hornets' first round pick (20th overall) in the 1993 draft. He spent his first three seasons and change with the team, averaging 8.5 points and four rebounds a game before being traded to Golden State in February 1997. He would briefly return to Charlotte in 2001, playing in four games before calling it quits for his NBA career.
Emeka Okafor: The 2004 Final Four Most Outstanding Player became the highest draft pick in program history when the Bobcats took him second overall in the '04 draft. The first pick in the expansion team's history, Okafor was a mainstay on the early Bobcats teams, winning NBA Rookie of the Year honors in 2005 and starting all but four of the 330 games he'd play with the team over five years. After signing a five-year contract to stay in Charlotte prior to the 2008-09 season, he was dealt a year later to New Orleans, where he'd spend the next three years (ironically enough, with the Hornets).
Jake Voskuhl: The 1999 national champion played for five teams in his nine-year NBA career, including a pair of seasons with the Bobcats. Dealt from Phoenix in exchange for a second-round pick, from 2005-07 the center averaged 4.8 points and 3.5 rebounds before hitting free agency and going to Milwaukee.
Jeff Adrien: Just over half of the 153 NBA games Adrien played in his career came with the Bobcats. After bouncing around Europe and the D-League (as it was then known), he was given his first NBA deal in December 2012 by the Bobcats, where he played the final 52 games of the 2012-13 season. Early the next season he was dealt from Charlotte to Milwaukee and had the best stretch of his career, averaging 10.9 points and 7.8 rebounds with the Bucks in 28 games.
Ben Gordon: The other star of the 2004 national championship team was at the tail end of his career when he made it to Charlotte, part of a trade that sent Corey Maggette to Detroit in June 2012. The first year with the Bobcats Gordon was a key piece off the bench, averaging 11.2 points. The second year, however, he was limited to just 19 games before being waived in March at age 30. He'd spend the next year with Orlando before retiring.
Kemba Walker: The hero of the 2011 national title team saw his draft stock soar from that legendary March run, and the Bobcats took notice. Charlotte took Walker with the ninth overall pick in the '11 draft, and it paid off. Over the ensuing eight seasons, as the team transitioned back to the Hornets, Walker became a three-time All-Star, averaging just under 20 points for his career with the organization. He'd sign a lucrative free agent deal with the Celtics before the 2019-20 season and leave Charlotte as the franchise's all-time leader in points by a large margin.
Jeremy Lamb: Walker's sidekick on the 2011 championship team would join him in Charlotte. Lamb was drafted by the Rockets in the 2012 draft, and was traded in 2015 to the Hornets. He was a mainstay in Charlotte for the next four seasons, the first two as a key piece off the bench before cracking the starting lineup in 2018-19. Over the four seasons he averaged 11.9 points and is best known for hitting a game-winning half-court shot in 2019. That summer he signed a three-year deal with the Pacers, ending his time with the Hornets.