Former Golden State Warriors center Chris Boucher has been named the G League MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. Boucher has spent the season on a two-way contract, splitting his time between the Toronto Raptors and the G League’s Raptors 905.
Congratulations to Chris Boucher on being named 2018/19 @nbagleague MVP & DPOY!
— NBA Canada (@NBACanada) April 1, 2019
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Boucher becomes the first player to win both awards in the same season. pic.twitter.com/gLqezk0RUH
Boucher’s 2018-19 season - his second professional year - has been nothing short of spectacular. He has been electric on offense, while controlling the rim defensively.
In the G League, where Boucher played 34.2 minutes a night in 28 contests, the 26-year old averaged 27.2 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 4.1 blocks per game, while sporting a 61.1% true-shooting rate.
He hasn’t had as many opportunities in Toronto, but those numbers have translated. He’s appeared in 26 NBA games this season, and averaged only 5.2 minutes per game. But his stats per 36 minutes are sensational: 20.4 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 5.9 blocks. His efficiency hasn’t been as good, however, as his true-shooting percentage is just 53.8% - close to league average, which is low for his position.
Boucher went undrafted in 2017, and the Warriors signed him to a two-way contract. He spent virtually the entire 2017-18 season with the Santa Cruz Warriors, and played in just one minute with Golden State.
The Warriors had Boucher under contract for this season as well, but opted to waive him. Their plan was to fill the two-way spots with players who can contribute immediately, rather than projects - as they did a year ago with Quinn Cook. Ultimately, Golden State opted for Damion Lee (who has indeed been a contributor this year), and Marcus Derrickson (not as much).
It’s unclear how much playing time Boucher would have gotten had Golden State kept him but, despite his wild G League stats, the answer is probably “not much.”
Poll
Did the Warriors screw up by letting Chris Boucher leave?
This poll is closed
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50%
Yes
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17%
No
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31%
Who cares, bring on the playoffs!