South Carolina, one of college basketball's pleasant surprises this season, has reached its current status as a team two games back from the top of the SEC rankings through consistent contributions by several different players.
Guys like BJ Mack, Meechie Johnson, Ta'Lon Cooper, and the object of the piece, Collin Murray-Boyles, have been outstanding this year despite the less-than-glowing preseason expectations.
Under LaMont Paris, the Gamecocks sport an impressive 21-5, though they have lost two straight after nearly cracking the top 10 of the AP Poll, peaking at 11 last week.
The star of South Carolina from a draft perspective was and has been Collin Murray-Boyles, who was frankly outstanding in the first half of the Feb. 17 home loss against LSU.
Through the first 20 minutes, he went for eight points on 4-for-7 from the field, recorded four boards, and generally played active defense and made things difficult for opponents.
While the numbers are good for 10 minutes of time on the court, they don't entirely pop off the page. What does pop, however, is watching the versatility and confidence with which Murray-Boyles can score inside the arc.
There were several different instances of his getting to the basket with his handle, cutting without the ball to set himself up under the hoop, using off-ball screens to navigate and find holes in the pressure, and finishing at the rim.
Standing at around 6-foot-7, Murray-Boyles has the numbers of a physically bigger forward, a guy that uses physicality to both attack the glass as well as finish through contact while trying to score.
He also possesses quick feet, translating to effective post moves when fed in the paint, demonstrating so against LSU on Feb. 17 with a couple of tight spins inside leading to buckets.
Additionally, Murray-Boyles' defensive play style fits in very well with the way South Carolina coach LaMont Paris likes to scheme.
More specifically, Murray-Boyles is a very disciplined defender who stays where he should instead of helping off too early or making risky attempts at steals. Instead, he reacts quickly to the defense in general with active feet and hands.
Yet despite not being a player that takes a ton of chances jumping routes and trying to make low-chance, high-upside plays, he still manages to record several stocks (steals + blocks) per game.
Despite the bright upside, issues for Murray-Boyles are obvious, and can be essentially summed up in one stat: under 6-foot-7 with zero three-pointers made on the season.
He's simply not a shooter, and might never be. He's an undersized power forward in general, but one that seemingly has an inordinate amount of upside due to basketball IQ, feel, and physicality mixed with athleticism
While Colin Murray-Boyles in any other year would probably wait and play his sophomore season, it may behoove him to go pro in this weaker class should his hot streak continue.
He's been noted as high as top five by some people, but a more realistic spot for Murray-Boyles is late first round at the moment.
Of course, if his streak continues, he could easily continue to climb in a class plagued by question marks.
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