Collin Murray-Boyles 2025 NBA Draft Profile

Collin Murray-Boyles 2025 NBA Draft Profile

We are mere days away from the 2025 NBA Draft! Today, we will be previewing South Carolina’s Collin Murray-Boyles, one of the more polarizing prospects in this year’s class! Let’s jump right into it!

Height (no shoes): 6’6.5 (7’0.75 wingspan, 8’10 standing reach)

Weight: 239.2

Draft Age: 20.0

Position: Big

As a four-star recruit out of Wasatch Academy in Mount Pleasant, Utah, Collin Murray-Boyles finished just outside the top 100 in recruiting rankings for the 2023 class, according to 247sports.com. South Carolina was the only power program to offer him a scholarship, according to 247sports, as he chose them over Appalachian State, SMU, Coastal Carolina and St. Bonaventure, among others.

Murray-Boyles became a full-time starter by the end of his freshman season in 2023-24, averaging 10.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. However, his production took a considerable leap as a sophomore, even though the team’s success wasn’t quite there. Murray-Boyles averaged 16.8 points on 63.0 percent true shooting, in addition to 8.3 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

Let’s dive into his profile!

Strengths:

While I have genuine concerns about him offensively (more on that below), Murray-Boyles is one of the most disruptive defenders in the 2025 class.

I don’t know if he’ll be able to guard 5s consistently at the NBA level, but he’ll be able to guard at least 2-3 positions. He’s got absurd length, has excellent hand-eye coordination, will disrupt passing lanes and block shots despite having subpar vertical athleticism and is always in the right spots. He knows how to cut off angles on drives, has fluid closeouts with quick feet on the perimeter and his sturdy frame allows him to guard up on the block.

Murray-Boyles is way quicker laterally than he is vertically. A total of 18 players across the country last year recorded a steal rate of 2.5 percent or greater with a 4.5 percent or greater block rate. Murray-Boyles was one of them, as were Rasheer Fleming, Cooper Flagg and Thomas Sorber. That’s pretty company, right?!

I’m not sure how scheme-versatile he’ll be at the next level because he’s way too undersized to consistently play drop. But at worst, Murray-Boyles can play at the level of the screen with upside as a switchable defender.

However you want to describe it, the 6-foot-7 South Carolina alum is a battering ram when he tries to get to the rim. He’s super physical when he gets to his left hand and isn’t afraid to ram his right shoulder through your chin. He’s got good touch and concentration despite zero vertical pop, finishing around bigger defenders better than most his size do.

Murray-Boyles was an adequate short-roll playmaker who processed what was in front of him fairly well more often than not. He was also a very good rebounder for his size, hauling down nearly 24 of available defensive rebounds, finishing in the 92nd percentile among players listed at 6-foot-7 or taller, according to Stathead (min. 750 MIN).

Thomas Sorber 2025 NBA Draft Profile

Weaknesses:

Well, for starters, does anyone have any idea what Murray-Boyles’ (offensive) role will be in the NBA?

He plays like an undersized big at 6-foot-7; he can’t shoot outside of 10 feet to save his life, isn’t athletic vertically and finishes good-not-great around the rim relative to his playstyle. Those kinds of bigs are among my least favorite prototypes.

For one, Murray-Boyles’ swing skill will have to be his shooting. Last year, he shot just 35.5 percent on non-rim 2s and just 26.5 percent from 3-point range. Heck, I’d like to see Murray-Boyles develop a consistent in-between game before I see him expand his reach from beyond the arc. He currently doesn’t have either, which I think significantly limits his upside offensively. Teams will have no problem playing 4-on-5 if that’s the case, regardless of how disruptive he is at the other game.

Murray-Boyles processes the game well, but I worry about his tendency to only go left. That’s going to be scouted. He’s incredibly strong and can be a connective piece offensively, but he can’t go right for more than 1-2 dribbles and is pretty predictable when he gets into the paint. He’s a below-the-rim finisher and I worry about his ability to finish above and through NBA-caliber bigs when he’s practically a half-foot shorter.

Projection: Top-20 Pick

I’m much lower on Murray-Boyles than the consensus; I’d feel so much better about him if he was, say, 6-foot-9 or 6-foot-10. He’s not, as impactful as he was defensively at times, that’s enough to sway me on picking him higher than 20-25, even though I think he’ll go far before that. I’m out until I see the shot carry.

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