Chris Boucher finally clawed away into a stacked Toronto Raptors rotation in the 2019-20 NBA season, but what were his three best games of the season?
Chris Boucher hasn’t been in the NBA long and has only spent over a season and a half with the Toronto Raptors, but it looks as if he has finally found a way into the Raptors rotation in one of the most fun seasons in franchise history.
The Raptors have had injury troubles all season and that has mostly extended to the center position with both Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka missing extended periods with injuries. At times, the Raptors haven’t even had a true center to deploy at the five.
In their absence, and even when both are playing, Chris Boucher has battled his way to the best season of his career, averaging 6.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, and one block per game while contributing to one of the better bench units in the NBA.
What are his three best games of the season?
3. at Phoenix Suns – March 3
Oh baby, if there’s any game that signifies how impressive Chris Boucher can be on the glass then it’s this game. Against the Suns, Boucher netted the fourth double-double of his career – and of the season – with a 19 point, 15 rebound performance on the Raptors most recent road trip out West.
After dropping three straight games, the Raptors needed a win to get back on track with a win against the Suns. They got the win, and Boucher was a big factor en route to it. He battled down low with a rising star in Deandre Ayton and attacked the glass with great ferocity, grabbing six offensive rebounds in the process.
Boucher only shot 42-percent from the field but knocked down 40-percent (2-of-5) of his three-pointers as the Raptors walked away with a nine-point victory. Without a real starting center in this game – both Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol missed the game – Pascal Siakam played as the starting five and Boucher chimed in with just under 30 minutes of valuable minutes at center.
Though his frame leaves a little to be desired, Boucher held his own in the post and used his length to his advantage once again – a reoccurring theme in his best games of the season. Adding two steals and a block, Boucher was able to lend a hand on both ends of the court with some active hands.
2. vs Boston Celtics – December 25
This could well be a performance that gets lost in the archives considering this was the Raptors first-ever Christmas Day game and it ended in an ugly loss. If there is anything to take from the 118-102 loss it’s the performance of Chris Boucher.
In 27 minutes of action, Boucher scored a career-high 24 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field, adding six rebounds, and two blocks. In addition, Boucher shot 3-of-4 from deep and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line. In short, he caused untold havoc on the Celtics all night.
Boucher, though the proprietor a funky shooting motion, proved that he can be of value from deep and is great in pick and pop scenarios. He was tenacious on the glass and kept the Raptors in this game for as long as possible – without him, it could have been a lot different.
The Raptors were able to avenge their loss a few days later, but this game is, for now, the highest-scoring performance in Boucher’s NBA career.
1. vs Dallas Mavericks – December 22
While Boucher set a career-high in points against the Boston Celtics on Christmas Day, his best performance of the season came three nights earlier against the Dallas Mavericks. That night also coincides with one of the best games in Toronto Raptors history.
Down by 30 points late in the third quarter, the Toronto Raptors mounted the greatest comeback in franchise history and, potentially, one of the greatest comebacks in sports as they scored 47 fourth-quarter points and beat the Mavericks 110-107.
In that game, it wasn’t the starting lineup that led the comeback – it was the Raptors troupe of promising back-ups that got the job done along with Kyle Lowry. Chris Boucher was one of the standout performers in 24:06 minutes of action, scoring 21 points on 6-of-12 shooting, adding seven rebounds, two steals, and four blocks.
As usual, Boucher’s injection into the game caused the Mavericks all sorts of problems on the glass. His length is such a disruption for teams and that was no more evident than when Boucher was swatting shots away.
The Mavericks couldn’t handle Boucher attacking the rim and fouled him persistently. That saw him get to the line for a career-high 12 free-throw attempts and his dive to the paint late in the game ended with Lowry feeding the ball to him and Boucher delivering a thunderous slam dunk between a plethora of Mavericks defenders.
To have your best game come on one of the best nights in franchise history is really something. Chris Boucher gets to take ownership of that for the rest of his career.