Boo Buie Appreciation Thread

[NUera]

Chase gets a lot of love, and rightfully so. But how about we take a moment to praise the most unexpectedly steadying influence in the B1G, BOO BUIE.

All he does is lead his team, make infinitely better decisions with the ball and provide a consistent source of scoring (not to mention, he’s active on both sides of the court).

Take a bow, young man. Your development into a more complete player is fueling this team.

 

[DaCat]

He's first team All B1G this year. Who's a better point guard in the conference?

 

[AdamOnFirst]

Boo is a hero and stud. The offensive leader of the team unquestionably and the guy who carried the load most of the day today. At Northwestern, that makes you a legend.

 

[TheC]

He's first team All B1G this year. Who's a better point guard in the conference?

Haven’t seen a better one in conference yet

 

[Smolmania]

Amen. Heck of a day young man. Still having trouble processing that win. What a gritty bunch. Hey follow their undisputed leader

 

[EagerFan]

His offense has also taken off since he stopped pumping up threes. He scored how many layups against Edey today? He had how many assists to Matt?

Yeah he’s buckled down and become more consistently awesome as the year has progressed. Team MVP imho

 

[DaCat]

Boo's decision-making is night and day different from the previous years. Used to drive me crazy.

 

[ThatadultfromHolland]

His ability to penetrate and create is what makes the engine go for the cats.

 

[bjm989_rivals]

Boo’s reverse layup against Edey was a thing of beauty. Use the rim to shield the defender. Beautiful!

 

[DaCat]

In past years, if we hit a cold spell and the other team went on long runs, we were dead. This year, Boo can create his shot and break the ice. Not by chucking up a random three, but driving the lane and scoring or dishing for the dunk.

 

[NUCat320]

Mini plays of the game:
- After the boneheaded Barney jumper and Beran foul at the end of the first half, Boo drives the lane and makes a buzzer beater to make those mistakes slightly-less painful.
- Barney gets called for a cheapie in the post, and we head to the under 12, and Boo bounds between two boilers on the inbounds, getting the break and drawing the flagrant. He was the only guy with any confidence and any energy for most of the second half.

He had 11 of NU’s 17 total second-half points until the under-4. Fitting that he got to ice it.

26 is his career high in-conference. He also hit 26 against IU this season and , improbably, in a 77-72 loss against MSU in a December game as a freshman. Incidentally, that December game also appears to be the last time he came off the bench at NU.

 

[NUCat320]

I watched every minute today, which is a rarity. Locked in.

I only noticed that beautiful piece of artwork in his entire left arm today: “Only Time Will Tell.”

Big future ahead for Big Game Boo.

 

[Dugan15]

I am occasionally critical of Boo. Rarely, but sometimes, in public. Often in private. He has more grit and effort than I will ever have. Great job, Boo! Keep representing my alma mater so well.

 

[Sec_112]

The man controls a game on the offensive side of the ball.

 

[GrandRapidsCatFan]

With respect to some other guys, Boo Buie has been my favorite Northwestern guard since Juice Thompson. A steadying influence, increasingly making better decisions with the ball, reliable even if not flashy. We've been lucky to have him for four years - would be even luckier to have him for a fifth *ahem*

 

[NUCat320]

With respect to some other guys, Boo Buie has been my favorite Northwestern guard since Juice Thompson. A steadying influence, increasingly making better decisions with the ball, reliable even if not flashy. We've been lucky to have him for four years - would be even luckier to have him for a fifth *ahem*

PAY THE MAN

 

[phatcat_rivals223240]

He is playing like a leader. Well done Boo. Change his name to Yay Buie

 

[rwhitney014]

Zach Edey, deservedly, will win National Player of the Year.

But on February 12, 2023, in Evanston, Illinois, Boo Buie was the best player on the floor. Onions.

 

[NCPurplecat]

Persa or JJ the Ball Carrier type effort from Boo today.

 

[Arlcatsfan]

Not only has Boo been great offensively but also on the defensive side. Yelling at guys to step it up and telling them where to lineup and after a play pointing to them where they should have been. He has turned into a complete ballplayer. Veteran guard play helped turn the game today in our favor. Boo and Chase have led the team this season. Just a terrific tandem.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

Not only has Boo been great offensively but also on the defensive side. Yelling at guys to step it up and telling them where to lineup and after a play pointing to them where they should have been. He has turned into a complete ballplayer. Veteran guard play helped turn the game today in our favor. Boo and Chase have led the team this season. Just a terrific tandem.

Exactly, it is the leadership that he shows that comes as the most pleasant surprise. He just wills the team to wins.

 

[The Purple Knight]

Boo is a hero and stud. The offensive leader of the team unquestionably and the guy who carried the load most of the day today. At Northwestern, that makes you a legend.

I’ve called out Buie in past seasons, but he’s a different player this year in so many ways. He’s the leader and has turned into a top guard in the league. Biggest thing is he’s playing under control and not forcing things. He also stayed on the court with the fans for 30 minutes after the game. Much respect to Boo, you’re the Man!

 

[ThatadultfromHolland]

I’ve called out Buie in past seasons, but he’s a different player this year in so many ways. He’s the leader and had turned into a top guard in the league. Biggest thing is he’s playing under control and not forcing things. Much respect to Boo, you’re the Man!

But I was told we don’t have two of the better guards in the conference on this board. How can this be?

 

[DaCat]

Not only has Boo been great offensively but also on the defensive side. Yelling at guys to step it up and telling them where to lineup and after a play pointing to them where they should have been. He has turned into a complete ballplayer. Veteran guard play helped turn the game today in our favor. Boo and Chase have led the team this season. Just a terrific tandem.

He took their freshman point guard Smith to school today. Buie got the key turnover of Smith at the end to help seal the win.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

He took their freshman point guard Smith to school today. Buie got the key turnover of Smith at the end to help seal the win.

Buie definitely has taken charge of the team.

His early season struggles were all about taking on a challenge, presumably from McIntosh and Talor Battle, to transform himself from a 3 point gunner into a drive and dish type of point guard. He and Nicholson had no idea how to work together - it was such a departure from the offense of the past couple years. Now, the drive/lob option is a reliably productive aspect of our offense and Buie is playing lights out, getting to the basket and finishing.

Its hard to imagine that Buie's transformation belongs to anyone other than Boo and, to a lesser extent, McIntosh and/or Battle.

 

[SDakaGordie]

Buie definitely has taken charge of the team.

His early season struggles were all about taking on a challenge, presumably from McIntosh and Talor Battle, to transform himself from a 3 point gunner into a drive and dish type of point guard. He and Nicholson had no idea how to work together - it was such a departure from the offense of the past couple years. Now, the drive/lob option is a reliably productive aspect of our offense and Buie is playing lights out, getting to the basket and finishing.

Its hard to imagine that Buie's transformation belongs to anyone other than Boo and, to a lesser extent, McIntosh and/or Battle.

Did you try to imagine it was at least partially due to Collins’ continued counsel and decide it was not, or did you not even try?

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Did you try to imagine it was at least partially due to Collins’ continued counsel and decide it was not, or did you not even try?

I thought about it, but decided it was unlikely.

Collins had Buie for 3 seasons and Buie never seemed to listen. So I credit whatever it is that is different - and that is Lowery, who is known for defense and McIntosh who is known for getting into the paint and Talor Battle, who has Buie's ear and was a super-productive point guard at Penn State. I'd guess scrimmaging with the latter two has helped as well.

(I realize Battle was with Collins last year but it was such a mess I don't think Battle had much of a voice).

 

[hollandnucat]

Agree Buie's biggest development is his ability to finish at the rim.

 

[SmellyCat]

Agree Buie's biggest development is his ability to finish at the rim.

Biggest development was between his ears.

 

[hollandnucat]

Biggest development was between his ears.

Lol. Loved his reverse layup using rim to protect from getting blocked.

 

[StreamCat]

Boo’s reverse layup against Edey was a thing of beauty. Use the rim to shield the defender. Beautiful!

Guy I was with said before the bucket, “What are you doing?” Then, “Never mind.”

 

[AdamOnFirst]

I’ve called out Buie in past seasons, but he’s a different player this year in so many ways. He’s the leader and has turned into a top guard in the league. Biggest thing is he’s playing under control and not forcing things. He also stayed on the court with the fans for 30 minutes after the game. Much respect to Boo, you’re the Man!

I wonder how much of his improved efficiency is his seeming decision to stick to what he’s really effective at - getting into the lane and scoring that way while creating as many opportunities as he can for his teammates - and mostly dropping what he SHOULD and seemingly COULD be good at but never has been in shooting the three. As a result of this his game is simplified and he’s become very very efficient and effective.

I was once watching a college shoot around where a coach explained to an already all-conference player who said they wanted to add two new moves to their skill set. They thought it would take them to the next level. Instead the coach reminded them how Tim Duncan made a hall of fame career with basically only a couple signature shots, but he did them better than anybody else ever, did them repeatedly, and learned to make it very hard for the other team to stop him from being in position to do those things. The point was how adding several new weapons is exciting, but the best players often are really just unstoppable with a couple things and that’s better than being good at a bunch of stuff.

I don’t know if that applies to Boo for sure, but I feel like there is wisdom in that when I watch him game this year. It just feels simplified and purified.

 

[NUCat320]

Boo figured something out when the calendar flipped. Except for the New Year’s Day game against OSU, he has shot at least half his shots from two-point range in 2023. He’s a changed player.

In the Illinois game, he was terrible (2-13) from the field, but got 11 points at the line in an NU win.

Last year, including the tourney game, he had more than half his shots from 3 in 12 of 21 conference appearances. And with 9 foul shots today, he’s been at the line more this season than his entire junior season.

Bear in mind, the guy he grew up watching most was Big Brother Talor, and Talor was an ‘inside the gym’ shooter. Battle got to the line a bunch, but shot more threes than twos in all but one season at PSU.

It’s easy to say that all these low-minute guys are most improved, but Boo and Chase, in a matter of an offseason, have gone from good and cover-your-eyes to all conference and national all defensive team. These dudes were fine, and now they’re stars.

(Chase has gotten so much coverage for his defense. There’s a chance that he gets some all-America consideration, while Boo gets more in-conference recognition. There are lots of crazy chances.)

 

[clarificationcat]

I wonder how much of his improved efficiency is his seeming decision to stick to what he’s really effective at - getting into the lane and scoring that way while creating as many opportunities as he can for his teammates - and mostly dropping what he SHOULD and seemingly COULD be good at but never has been in shooting the three. As a result of this his game is simplified and he’s become very very efficient and effective.

I was once watching a college shoot around where a coach explained to an already all-conference player who said they wanted to add two new moves to their skill set. They thought it would take them to the next level. Instead the coach reminded them how Tim Duncan made a hall of fame career with basically only a couple signature shots, but he did them better than anybody else ever, did them repeatedly, and learned to make it very hard for the other team to stop him from being in position to do those things. The point was how adding several new weapons is exciting, but the best players often are really just unstoppable with a couple things and that’s better than being good at a bunch of stuff.

I don’t know if that applies to Boo for sure, but I feel like there is wisdom in that when I watch him game this year. It just feels simplified and purified.

Boo is finishing in the lane at a much higher rate than in prior years. He was just bad at it in his first 3 years. His decision making is better in large part because he is making shots he used to miss. He’s still averaging the same amount of shot attempts from 3 as last year and making a much lower percentage. His turnovers have actually increased pretty significantly this year. Folks loved to blame him for losses last year when he frequently wasn’t to blame. I am happy for him that he’s finally getting some praise when we win. I don’t think most folks understand how much he has on his plate offensively. Every team’s focus is on stopping him.

 

[Sec_112]

... Every team’s focus is on stopping him.

Three guys on him almost every time he was in the lane in the second half.

 

[AdamOnFirst]

Boo is finishing in the lane at a much higher rate than in prior years. He was just bad at it in his first 3 years. His decision making is better in large part because he is making shots he used to miss. He’s still averaging the same amount of shot attempts from 3 as last year and making a much lower percentage. His turnovers have actually increased pretty significantly this year. Folks loved to blame him for losses last year when he frequently wasn’t to blame. I am happy for him that he’s finally getting some praise when we win. I don’t think most folks understand how much he has on his plate offensively. Every team’s focus is on stopping him.

Agreed. And I just wonder if this improved efficiency inside is because either consciously or unconsciously he's just said "this is what I'm going to focus on" and has thus improved there and become mentally much more comfortable there. Like a pitcher dumping his bad fourth pitch or a salesmen just sticking to client types who buy.

 

[bjm989_rivals]

To score in the lane, a player of Boo’s size has to be some combination of crafty, quick, and/or be able to jump out of the gym. Boo has developed through the first two aspects. He’s much better at getting to and scoring at the rim than he’s been in previous years. He is no longer attempts to be a three first scorer, but he can and does still hit his threes. Someone can tell us the stats on his 3 pt FG %, but regardless of how that number has changed, he’s now putting so much more pressure on the defense than in simply settling for threes. It definitely takes more endurance to take a defender to the rim versus putting up a three if you have a small window, so perhaps there’s a stamina element here too. One other thing I notice is that Boo will still shoot a floater in the lane, but it seems he’s going all the way to the rim more frequently than he did in prior years. Some combination of these things has made him more effective in driving and has balanced out his offense nicely. He still needs to be a threat from three and to shoot that shot willingly, but the balanced threat makes him so much tougher to guard this year.

 

[clarificationcat]

Agreed. And I just wonder if this improved efficiency inside is because either consciously or unconsciously he's just said "this is what I'm going to focus on" and has thus improved there and become mentally much more comfortable there. Like a pitcher dumping his bad fourth pitch or a salesmen just sticking to client types who buy.

I think part of it is that winning colors how people perceive his game, especially on these boards. Last year against Penn State he had averaged 15 points, 7.5 assists and 1.5 turnovers in the 2 games. Pretty impressive stats. We lost both games and nobody was taking about his improved decision making. Everything runs through him now, so

 

[AdamOnFirst]

I think part of it is that winning colors how people perceive his game, especially on these boards. Last year against Penn State he had averaged 15 points, 7.5 assists and 1.5 turnovers in the 2 games. Pretty impressive stats. We lost both games and nobody was taking about his improved decision making. Everything runs through him now, so

I was about to say he’s turning it over less… but he actually isn’t, which is pretty surprising. He’s just a little better at everything across the board. Biggest different probably is he’s shooting 51% for 2 instead of low 40s.

 

[Cataria]

Boo is finishing in the lane at a much higher rate than in prior years. He was just bad at it in his first 3 years. His decision making is better in large part because he is making shots he used to miss. He’s still averaging the same amount of shot attempts from 3 as last year and making a much lower percentage. His turnovers have actually increased pretty significantly this year. Folks loved to blame him for losses last year when he frequently wasn’t to blame. I am happy for him that he’s finally getting some praise when we win. I don’t think most folks understand how much he has on his plate offensively. Every team’s focus is on stopping him.

Great post. You are right about last year. He couldn’t finish and now he’s excellent.