The Charlotte Hornets have a type. After selecting two players in the first round that can impact winning basketball without the rock in their hands, the Hornets opted to select a couple more with their pair of early second round picks.

Duke’s Sion James (14) drives around Alabama’s Mark Sears (1) during the first half of Duke’s game against Alabama in their Elite 8 game in the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., Saturday, March 29, 2025. Ethan Hyman [email protected]

The Charlotte Hornets used the first of their early picks in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft on Duke forward Sion James. At 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, James was named an All-ACC defender, averaging 8.