Wisconsin Basketball Offense Could Greatly Benefit From Strong Transfer Nick Boyd
The Wisconsin basketball team recently began the search to replace star guard John Tonje after the end of a successful season.
Wisconsin snagged a gem in the transfer portal a season ago after taking a chance on Tonje, who had missed the entire season prior due to a knee injury. Retooling the backcourt is a priority for the Wisconsin basketball staff, and that starts with finding someone who can assist the offense in a way that Tonje did.
While finding an exact replacement for the talented guard seems unlikely, San Diego State transfer Nick Boyd might be the closest person that Wisconsin can acquire. The former Missouri transfer shares plenty of similarities on offense to Boyd, which makes the addition of the New York native feel like an ideal fit.
Wisconsin Basketball Staff Lands Possible John Tonje Replacement, San Diego State Transfer Nick Boyd
Three years ago, Boyd made a name for himself as a playmaker in the starting lineup for the Florida Atlantic Owls before changes would catch up to the guard.
Two years ago, the guard drifted away from a major role between injuries and some on-court struggles nailing just 40% of his shots, down greatly from the year prior.
Boyd decided to leave the program and enter the transfer portal after starting just 14 games out of a possible 27. The guard spent all of last season with the Aztecs, starting 31 games and averaging 13.4 points per game while shooting 41.1% from the field.
Boyd took on an entirely different role with the Aztecs, blossoming into an offensive-minded guard with a knack for playing beyond the arc.
The guard took 326 shots this past season, which is 126 more than his final year with FAU and 54 more shots than his previous career-high when the Owls played 38 games (Boyd played 31 games this past season for reference). Boyd might be a talented scorer, but the guard also adds spacing and an additional passing presence to the offense.
How can Nick Boyd Positively Impact the Wisconsin Basketball Offense?
The guard consistently finds open space with or without the basketball and works to attack the defense when in space, which was part of the reason why the offensive output of Boyd was so high this past season.
Additionally, Boyd does his best work at the rim where the guard shoots 54% while plowing through contact to get to the rim. When Boyd is able to find space, he will quickly look to attack before the defense has time to react accordingly.
The playstyle of Boyd could certainly work to the advantage of the Wisconsin basketball staff as it presents opportunities for transfers Andrew Rohde and Austin Rapp. Both Rohde and Rapp heavily favor shooting from outside, and Boyd can create space for each of them with the danger he presents inside. Reversely, Rohde can do the same for Boyd given his slick interior scoring presence.
Everyone has a favorite spot to shoot on the court, and when Boyd is not able to attack the rim, the guard heavily favors the right side of the three-point arc, shooting 38% from his hot-zone where 20% of his total shots came from.
The guard is not just a shooter either, with a 27% assist rate this past season on a team that moved the ball around quite a bit. An important note to mention is that Boyd is also talented at utilizing his teammates in the pick-and-roll to create space for shot opportunities. The guard tends create more of those opportunities on the right side of the court, while often making off-ball plays to the left side.
Historically speaking, Boyd has a background and play-style that could fit directly into what the Wisconsin basketball staff did this past season by taking a different approach offensively.
Boyd is someone who, like Tonje, can take over a game on the right night or provide the assistance the team needs to secure a win. The guard might not be the flashiest or most elite player in the country, but Boyd has more than enough in the tank to help propel the Wisconsin basketball team forward next season.
