Bulls ruin Chris Boucher’s career night, Raptors lose 122-113

Allow me to give Boucher his flowers for what he has done this season.

Photo from the Raptors twitter account

First check out Oren and Sahal, who always put in work breaking down each game on The Rap Up:

Let me get the fading playoff “so you’re saying there’s a chance” picture out the way. With this loss, the Raptors are now three games behind the Bulls for the final play-in spot. Only eight guys were available, so despite the good start droughts were inevitable when subs were put in. With the Nets-Nuggets-Jazz-Clippers-Lakers stretch looming at the end of April, chances of an eighth straight playoff trip are increasingly bleak.

I’m going to narrow down this recap to three players.

Chris Boucher

Allow me to give Boucher his flowers for what he has done this season.

He’s the definition of a late bloomer, being 28 years old already. Boucher played sparingly in the championship season, had a bigger but still inconsistent role last season and only scored eight points in the 2020 playoffs. The only good thing that has come with the departures of Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka is Boucher’s rise to being one of the more dependable players on the squad.

Last season, Boucher scored mainly on hustle plays, the roll guy to the basket, or the occasional open jumper that he was perhaps too eager to launch. Nobody was worried about closing out on a guy shooting 32 percent behind the arc with a funky release. That was the first noticeable sign of his offseason development. In the third pre-season game against Miami, Boucher was firing threes off pick and pops with elevated Dion Waiters-like confidence. He’s spent most of the season in the 40th percentile from deep. We went from “woah woah, don’t shoot that” to looking at other teams leaving him open wondering “what are they doing?”

Developing as a dependable open shooter would have been good enough to warrant praise. Boucher has already scored in double figures in 29 of 51 games this season (13.3 ppg), despite starting only six times. Montreal’s very own has started taking it to the next level, which is shooting off the dribble. Check out Boucher’s new offensive weapon in action last night:

Apparently these shots aren’t only new to us.

“He had a night for sure,” Nick Nurse said after the game. “He was hitting shots I don’t think I’ve ever seen him take before. Dribbling, driving, stepping back, he was in a moment tonight, that’s for sure.”

Boucher was also asked about that.

“I think it was a great game to showcase a little bit of that since they know I’m popping and can shoot the ball, so they are closing out a little better. So I get to showcase a little bit of a read after the pick and pop,” Boucher added.

Mix that in with his usual portion of open threes and hustle plays, and you get a career night. Boucher was an absolute beast on the boards, with nine offensive rebounds and 19 overall, which helped contribute to his 38 points. Boucher flirted heavily with putting up the Raptors first ever 30-20 game but fell one rebound shy.

What’s even more special about this performance is that Boucher did this after recently coming off his worst stretch of the season. He had scored in single digits six times in his previous 10 games, and his minutes were starting to dwindle in the teens as well. Starting with his 19 point bounce back against the Lakers, seeing Slim Duck play to peak form again is great to see. His 2-year $13 million contract that expires at the end of next season is a bargain.

Malachi Flynn

The rookie got his first career start with a mixed bag of results. He definitely has a feel for the game, but shot selection will be a work in progress. Over the last four games (30+ minutes in all of them), you’re seeing his liking to the pull-up three, similar to Kyle Lowry. Overall, Flynn has shot 8-19 from three over that stretch.

Flynn also set a new career-high with eight assists and does a great job of digging in the post on defence like Fred VanVleet. Flynn has at least two steals in each of his last five games. Right now his defence is ahead of his offence but these extended minutes will only help him get more comfortable running the show. Depending on the standings, Malachi should get decent run the rest of the season even when Kyle and Fred return.

Zach LaVine

LaVine has been in a mini funk since the Nikola Vucevic trade, shooting under 50 percent from the field in eight straight games. Zach snapped that slump by going 8-16 vs the Raptors, and the fact that he’s still firing at a 51 percent clip from the field (42 from three) this season regardless is insane. This is the first time since being traded to Chicago that he doesn’t have to be the rapid-fire microwave assassin that earned him his first all-star selection this season.

In order for the Bulls to take the next step as a playoff team, LaVine has to improve as a facilitator and limit his turnovers where he ranks top 10. Everyone else in the top 10 averages at least 6 assists a game, while LaVine only averages 4.8. He had five more turnovers in this game, but his 13 assists were one shy of tying a career-high.

And then of course, LaVine can elevate and shoot over anyone at will. One of his favourite shots come off a pump fake, waiting for the defender to jump and then rising for his jumper in the same spot. That’s an extremely tough shot, but one he has mastered in clutch moments.

Seven Bulls scored in double figures, led by LaVine and Vooch who both had 22. That’s a much better recipe for success than Zach dropping 45 and the next man up having 15 a month ago.

What’s next?

Another back-to-back awaits the Raptors on the weekend in Cleveland and New York with half a roster intact! Yay!

Cover Photo by Scott Audette/NBAE via Getty Images

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