Chris Boucher is set up for a breakout season

Photo credits: (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

Chris Boucher is set up for a breakout season

By: Daniel Lubofsky

Of the many contributors to the Toronto Raptors’ surprisingly successful 2019-20 campaign, Chris Boucher was hardly ever one of them.

Parked behind Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka on the depth chart, Boucher was given just 13.2 minutes a night last season. He made the most of his playing time by putting up numbers that equate to 18.1 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks per-36 minutes. Impressive performances were sprinkled through the season, including five double-doubles and a trio of four-block outings.

But on a team that went 10 deep trying to orchestrate an improbable championship defense, the development of Boucher could only be prioritized so much by Nick Nurse and company.

Even after falling to Boston in the conference semis, Toronto’s competitive fire hasn’t diminished at all. After finishing second in the Eastern Conference last season, the Raptors hold firm the belief that they can once again compete for the title. After watching Gasol and Ibaka depart for Los Angeles in free agency, they’ll need reinforcements on the frontline to help them do so.

They brought in Aron Baynes and Alex Len as potential answers. And yet it’s Boucher who has the potential to be the ultimate solution.

Boucher makes up for his undersized 6’7’’ standing with a ridiculously lanky 7’4’’ wingspan. A combination of length, mobility, and decisive timing make him not only an intimidating weak-side shot-blocker — only Mo Bamba blocked more shots with less than 900 minutes — but Boucher is also a stifling interior deterrent who had opponents shooting 10.3 percent worse within six feet of the rim, a top-20 mark among players to contest at least 200 such shots.

Though not an offensive creator, Boucher has complimentary traits that could seamlessly plug him into Toronto’s offense. He ranked inside the 61st percentile rolling to the basket last season and hit on 33.0 percent of 1.8 catch-and-shoot 3-point attempts per game.

Neither number is likely to strike much fear into defenses, not when Toronto possesses so many alternatives that could strike more proficiently. But they are both solid starting points for some of the crucial responsibilities big men have to check off.

Although he’ll turn 28 on January 11th, firmly placing him in what is traditionally an athlete’s prime years, it’s important to recognize where Boucher is in his NBA career, having only just wrapped up his third season after going undrafted in 2017. He still has sizeable room left to grow, which makes him a questionable play on a Raptors team trying to win in the present.

Where Nurse can look to for comfort in this potential rotation decision are the games in which his young center’s impressive per-minute production stayed with him when his actual playing time increased. Boucher saw north of 20 minutes 11 times last season and only scored in single-digits once, averaging 17.0 points on a shooting line of .519/.444/.788 — with a respectable volume — with 8.1 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game in those contests.

In past years, Nurse would prefer to lean on the stability Gasol and Ibaka brought to the center position. That luxury is no longer present. The drop-off compared to Baynes and Len might be significant enough for the reigning Coach of the Year to roll the dice on Boucher’s upside.

About the Author Daniel Lubofsky:

Daniel is a soon-to-be college graduate based in New York aspiring to get his foot in the sports media door. He’s developed several years of experience in editing, writing, and analyzing with a growing passion for film study and podcasting.