A tumultuous offseason led to some changes in personnel all around the league. ONe of the more notable moves was the Raptors losing two major players from the frontcourt of their title team – losing Marc Gasol to the Lakers and Serge Ibaka to the Clippers. To fill these roles, Toronto signed multiple big men. One of these signings, Chris Boucher, has emerged as a legitimate role player coming off the bench and is playing the best basketball of his career.
He’s had a fairly unique career path up to this point. After going undrafted as a 25 year old out of Oregon, he spent the first three years in the league in a fairly marginal spot, not seeing many minutes until his third year. This season has been a breakout for him though, having played in every game but one, and getting regular minutes as a backup post.
All of this has led to him putting up career highs in every category, which has caught the eye of those who are playing in a fantasy league.
NBA Fantasy Pick Up
He has become one of the best NBA fantasy league picks for the 2020-21 season, as he was averaged as the 23rd drafted center on ESPN leagues, so for those who got him late in the draft, he’s turned out as an excellent 4th year value pick.
In his new role with the Raptors, he’s averaging 13.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 2.0 blocks per game. As a bench player, this is quite productive in an array of categories. Those who play in a roto fantasy league will appreciate the well-rounded output.
In addition to his raw numbers, he’s also been quite efficient – shooting 54.5% from the field and 44.4% from three. His number from deep is especially impressive considering he came into this year as a career 33% from three.
What Gamblers Should Look Out For
Lots of people out there enjoy making a wager on sporting events, and with the increasing number of states that allow sports betting, now is a good time to make a bet on something like the A2S sports betting app.
Chris Boucher is a name that is appearing near the top of multiple NBA awards, according to OddsShark he is in the top 6 for both the Sixth Man of the Year and the Most Improved Player Award. He’s at +1400 for Sixth Man and +2000 for Most Improved Player, and he’s only getting better odds as he continues to play well. If you want to make a wager on him, now may be the time before his odds decrease.
Also, if you’re more interested in betting against the spread in games, Toronto might be a team to pay attention too. While their slow start was quite disappointing, they have been playing better, and have won 4 of their last 5 against the spread.
Certainly it has been a disappointment so far, but the Raptors have reason to keep rising up the East standings. RIght now they are sitting as eighth in the conference, which is hugely important this year. With the pandemic, the NBA has implemented a new playoff system for this season, with the 7-10 seeds in both conferences participating in a play-in tournament to decide the final two playoff spots.
So for the Raptors, getting up to the sixth seed is massive because it allows them to avoid that play-in tournament, and based on the success they’ve had over the past half decade, is a spot that would be expected.
Regardless of how the season plays out, Chris Boucher has established himself as a player in the league that will be getting meaningful minutes this year and beyond. With more experience he hopes to continue his improvement into the future.
