There’s a bunch of talk about what will happen with Cameron Boozer in the NBA Draft. Some of it is ridiculous, while other points are fair. Boozer was the best college player in the country this season and deserves more respect, but that doesn’t mean people can’t look at his game in ways that critique it.
Boozer is viewed as a top-four pick and likely won’t fall anywhere past four. Perhaps it’s possible with things in the NBA always going in weird directions, but most have him around there.
Kevin O'Connor predicted that Boozer going to the Indiana Pacers at No. 2 overall will be what happens. He had a lot of good thoughts on why it could happen.
“Boozer’s college career ended with a heartbreaking blown lead in the Elite 8. But after winning at every other stage of his basketball life, Boozer might quickly get back to his winning ways if he lands with a team that has Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam, Ivica Zubac and a bunch of other quality talent.
“Boozer gets knocked for a perceived lack of upside, but he’s a do-it-all offensive talent who can post up, run pick-and-rolls, set screens, spot up and crash the boards. He doesn’t need to rely on bully ball to make an impact as a scorer or passer.”
“Defensively, some of the questions about him popped up in Duke’s Elite 8 loss to UConn: He wasn’t big enough to defend Tarris Reed, and he got smoked by Alex Karaban on a key 3-pointer on the perimeter.”
Offensively, he’s elite and can make the right passes. Boozer has shown that he can score inside and looked better and better on that side of the basketball as the year went on. Defensively, there are matchups that did give him problems, especially against bigger players that will have to be guarded on a daily basis in the NBA.
The Pacers would be an intriguing team for him. Given they’d have a lot of talent around the Duke standout, it’s not the worst idea to think it could work well. Indiana is a high powered offensive team and Boozer could fit into that.
Only time will tell on how things go for him.