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CHICAGO — The obstacles kept standing in Chris Boucher’s way. Because he has stayed positive, stubborn and motivated, Boucher has found ways to navigate those obstacles.
Boucher made his professional debut with the Warriors’ G-League affiliate in Santa Cruz on Wednesday, marking the first time he played basketball since tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee 10 months ago as a senior at the University of Oregon during the Pac-12 tournament in a semifinal win over Cal.
Soon enough, Boucher went from a coveted draft prospect to undrafted. Yet, the Warriors still remained intrigued with his shot-blocking and 3-point shooting to sign him to a two-way contract on July 14, a new mechanism that allows NBA teams to split the financial burden with their G-League affiliate. And since then, Boucher became determined to make good on the Warriors’ investment.
“It just prepared me emotionally,” Boucher said about his injury in a conference call this week with a handful of reporters. “I’ve been through a lot. I knew that everybody’s career doesn’t go up all the time. There’s going to be ups and downs. I was already ready mentally. I just felt like it was another hurdle in my path. I just had to make sure I was ready to jump over it.”
Boucher made that first jump on Wednesday before a sell-out crowd of 2,476 at Santa Cruz’s Kaiser Permanente Arena. There, the Santa Cruz Warriors’ loss to the Reno Bighorns featured Boucher offering 11 points on 4-for-6 shooting, with three blocks and two rebounds in 15 minutes.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr expressed uncertainty on what to expect from the 25-year-old Boucher after admittedly not watching much college basketball. Kerr has a busy schedule, after all, during the NBA season. Boucher provided some encouraging answers, though.
“I know he blocked a lot of shots and made threes,” Kerr said of Boucher. “That made him attractive as a prospect. That’s what we’re hoping for.”
It remains too early to say if Boucher will fulfill the Warriors’ hopes, obviously.
As part of the terms of a two-way contract, the Warriors can have Boucher for up to 45 days in practices and games combined. The Warriors (37-9) have won two NBA titles in the past three years and own the league’s best record. And the Warriors lean on future Hall-of-Famers in Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
Yet, the Warriors’ willingness to use their first two-way contract on Boucher spoke about their optimism about his trajectory and ability to recover from his injury. Boucher’s willingness to do that stems from his success in fighting adversity.
“A lot of people give up. That’s why they don’t get what they want,” Boucher said. “I want to make sure I’m not one of those people. I have dreams and I want to help my family. I want to make that happen.”
Boucher proved he would not give up in other ways.
Boucher left his native island nation of St. Lucia, Boucher to Montreal, Quebec early in his childhood. There, Boucher attended various schools before becoming a high school dropout and became a part-time fry cook in 2012. During that time, Boucher lived temporarily with either his mother, father or a friend. Boucher eventually arrived at the University of Oregon after attending various Canadian prep academies as well as junior colleges in Wyoming and New Mexico.
“He started at the bottom. He knows what it takes to get to the top,” said Warriors rookie forward Jordan Bell, who played with Boucher at the University of Oregon. “I’m sure he never wants to go back down there, so he’s an extremely hard worker.”
And Boucher is an extremely hard worker that Bell argues would’ve gotten drafted if not for his injury. After all, Boucher spent his junior season with the Ducks becoming the only player in Pac-12 history to block at least 100 shots and make 35 3-pointers. Bell also made the Pac-12 All-Defensive teams both during his junior and senior seasons.
So when Boucher suffered his injury, he refused to allow this to mark the end of his basketball career. Instead, Boucher often reminded himself that “nothing is given.”
“Obviously I was a little bit upset. But I had to figure out why it happened and make sure that if I really wanted to play basketball again, I would have to put in the effort if I wanted to come back on the floor,” Boucher said. “I would have to go through it, no matter what. Since it happened, I can’t go back and take it away. I just had to be ready and put my mind into it.”
As a result, Boucher said “a lot of positives came out of” his rehab.
Boucher went with the Warriors’ Summer League to Las Vegas and then spent the remainder of the summer rehabbing at the Warriors’ practice facility in Oakland. There, Boucher performed strength and conditioning drills to relieve the strain on his left knee. Boucher also focused on weight training both on his upper body and core to achieve two goals.
Boucher wanted to increase his strength so he would become more equipped to handle the physical demands that the G-League and NBA entails. Boucher also wanted to control his body better to minimize the likelihood of injuring himself again.
And by signing with the Warriors, Boucher took advantage of two things. He had the luxury to take his time with his recovery, as he only advanced to five-on-five drills three weeks ago. Boucher also had the benefit of having exposure to Kerr and his All-Star players.
“Golden State is the place I felt like I could learn from the game, especially with KD, Steph Curry and Klay,” Boucher said. “They already have a good system going on. I felt like they didn’t need me to rush back on the floor. I can take my time to get better. Especially with playing with the best players in the world, I felt like I could learn a lot from those guys.”
Then, Boucher learned plenty about those players’ work ethic and routines. Boucher also learned about himself, validating both his ability to handle setbacks and his love to play basketball. And now that he has returned to the court in what he considered “a long time coming,” Boucher’s quest to have a long and productive NBA career has just started.
“Making it to the NBA and staying in the NBA are two different things,” Boucher said. “Just learn from the best. Ask questions when I need to, make sure I’m at the right place at the right moment and always be able to listen to people. That’s one thing that will make me better.”
