Collin Murray-Boyles skillset projects to NBA Draft value

South Carolina forward Collin Murray-Boyles showcases a valuable skillset to any team, whether in college basketball or the professional ranks. Few players at any level of basketball project better into any system.

For Murray-Boyles, the interest from NBA scouts is nothing new. After his freshman season – in which he averaged 10.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.0 stocks (steals + blocks) – the decision to return for a sophomore campaign caught some by surprise.

The move has allowed him more time to develop on both ends of the floor. And while his team has not seen the early success he would have hoped for, interest is still high in his future.

With a range anywhere between the Top 10 and the mid-20s, opinions on Murray-Boyles come down to a few projections on where he game could land.

Breaking down Collin Murray-Boyles

The physical tools of Collin Murray-Boyles quickly draw in scouts, with the size to matchup with centers when needed and the quickness to guard wings on the perimeter too. At 6-foot-7, his length projects him easily into the defensive duties necessary at the NBA level.

Production on defense is also an easy translation. After averaging 1.0 steal and 1.0 block in 2023-24, he is now averaging 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocks this season. Those numbers are backed up by a 94.3 defensive rating.

On offense, Murray-Boyles has developed his game further, using his quickness to produce on and off the ball. While he projects largely off the ball – primarily as a cutter and dunker-spot option – there is an upward trajectory if the ability to create develops.

Averaging 15.8 points and 9.1 rebounds this season, the sophomore has just one weakness in his game keeping him from checking all the boxes of a 15-year role player in the NBA.

Murray-Boyles shoots just 26.7-percent from beyond the arc, which is a default improvement from 0.0-percent last season but not at the level desired. While not an immediate way to predict future shooting ability, he has also gone from 66.7-percent to 69.0-percent at the free throw line.

In particular, the area he must shoot the best is also the one he will get the least opportunities to shoot in college basketball. The corner 3-point shot is likely a big part of his future but his most common perimeter shot this season comes at the top of the key.

With that, prototype at the NBA level is clear. If the South Carolina star can scale his game and develop his shot, he fits the mold of OG Anunoby, Dorian Finney-Smith and other veterans who have made a career by plugging whatever hole needed to complement star players.