For Chris Boucher, the past 10 months have just been one more obstacle to overcome. A relatively insignificant one at that.
Of course, it didn’t feel that way on March 10, when Boucher landed awkwardly during the Pac-12 Conference Tournament semifinals and blew out the ACL on his left knee. At the time, with his University of Oregon men’s basketball team ranked No. 4 in the nation and poised to challenge for its first NCAA Tournament title since 1939, it probably felt like fate. Boucher had experienced such a pell-mell boyhood that he’d grown wary of anything in his life that could potentially turn out in his favor.
But Boucher is determined to make a lengthy career for himself in the NBA, and the injury may have been the first step. Because of it, he went undrafted, yet he but caught the attention of the NBA champion Golden State Warriors, who signed him to the first two-way contract in club history. On Wednesday night, the forward makes his NBA debut, playing for the Santa Cruz Warriors in a G League game against the surging Reno Bighorns.
“I’ve been waiting for this battle the whole time, since March Madness,” Boucher, 25, said. “I have a lot of feelings, but right now, … when I first step onto the floor is when I’m going to realize that I’m getting to play the game that I love.”
No roots
Boucher is still in his infancy when it comes to playing organized basketball. A native of the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, he spent most of his life in Montreal, Canada, setting up temporary residence with his mother, his father or on a friend’s couch. A high school dropout, he was 19 and working part-time as a fry cook in 2012 when he got his basketball break. According to an article by Luke Winn in Sports Illustrated, Boucher, who had only played street ball until then, was invited last-minute by some fellow pick-up players to fill their team’s open roster spot at an annual tournament.
Boucher scored 44 points in a loss to the top AAU club in the area, mostly on put-backs and fast breaks. That turned some heads, including the one atop the shoulders of the coach of the AAU team QC United, Igor Rwigema. Boucher had applied to try out for QC United, but Rwigema had dismissed the application, believing the height Boucher entered — 6-foot-8 — to be a typo.
Upon meeting Boucher, Rwigema said, according to Winn, “So, you really do exist.”
Rwigema offered Boucher a slot in Alma Academy, his prep-school team in Quebec that provides a stable living environment and year-round coaching to its mostly immigrant players. There, Boucher blossomed. The next year he attended New Mexico Junior College, which would allow him to catch up in the classroom and on the court. The following year, he played for Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming, where he earned NJCAA Division I Player of the Year honors.
From there, he took a chance with Oregon, whose coach Mike Mennenga had been recruiting him since his year at Alma. When he arrived on campus, he stood 6-10 and all of 169 pounds.
Motor skills
With the Ducks, however, Boucher found a space to excel. During his junior year, he became the only player in Pac-12 history to record at least 100 blocks and 35 3-pointers in a season. Known for his motor and stamina, he made the Pac-12 All-Defensive team both seasons at Oregon and was also twice named a Pac-12 honorable mention selection. He ranks second in Oregon history with 189 career blocks.
His real impact on the team, however, could best be observed during the Pac-12 Tournament championship against Arizona. Boucher had played the entire semifinal matchup against Cal despite injuring his knee in the first half. But hours before the Ducks faced the Wildcats, Boucher was ruled out for the postseason with a torn ACL. Oregon went on to lose that game and later received a No. 3 seed, equating it to the No. 9 team in the nation according to the selection committee, a considerable tumble from the Ducks’ previous ranking of No. 5.
Still, that relatively significant impact was lost on many teams when it came time for the NBA Draft.
“It was hard at the beginning because I didn’t know what to expect, especially with the draft, I didn’t know what was going to go on with my career,” Boucher said. “I just had some rough moments where I had to figure out why it happened and figure out what I was going to do next.
“Luckily, I got a two-way from Golden State and it made it better on my rehab.”
Boucher signed with the Warriors in July and spent much of the summer with Golden State before heading to Santa Cruz in September. He said he gleaned the importance of work ethic and teamwork and an appreciation for the fast pace of the NBA game by watching up-close the likes of Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. Most of his rehab time, he said, has been spent improving his power, core strength and conditioning. His weight is up to 210 pounds now and he feels he can be more physical in the blocks.
In that way, he said, the injury has helped him prepare better for the NBA. Just as his rickety upbringing helped him to persevere through his injury.
“It prepared me emotionally. I’ve been through a lot, so I knew that everybody’s career doesn’t go off all the time,” he said. “So, I had to be ready mentally and it was just another hurdle on my path and I had to get ready to jump on over it.
“Obviously I was a little upset, but then I had to figure out why it happened. And if I wanted to play basketball again, I would have to put in the effort. And if I really wanted to come back on the floor, I would have to go through it, no matter what. “
Now, after 313 days of rest, drills and games that don’t count, the time has come for Boucher to return to the court. It’s not the big stage yet, but it is the NBA G League, and at Kaiser Permanente Arena he’ll be greeted by a sold out and most likely adoring crowd of fans who have been anticipating this day since the season’s start. There’s nothing insignificant about that.
“I’m definitely excited. I’ve been waiting for a long time. Since the injury, I’ve been thinking about it the whole time,” Boucher said. “I’ve been seeing friends playing and doing well and I was excited for them. But now I get the chance to show what I’m capable of doing.
“I’m definitely excited and can’t wait for the game to start.”
Contact Julie Jag at 831-706-3257.
