The Story of a Mid-Major Star

Nathan Boothe, not exactly a household name amongst college basketball enthusiasts, may be the most skilled post player in all of college basketball. Disclaimer, I consider Ben Simmons of LSU to be a perimeter player even though he is 6’10. The reason Boothe flies under the radar is because the University of Toledo is not exactly one of the blue blood programs. Boothe’s journey to mid-major stardom is interesting, and it is a path that should be embraced by many promising high school players.

Nathan grew up in Illinois near the Wisconsin border. He had a successful career at Warren Township High School in Gurnee, Illinois. In fact, during his junior season, his team played for the 4A State Championship, losing to Jabari Parker’s Simeon Wolverines. Unlike so many grassroots players, Nathan only played for one AAU program. That program was Team NLP and was founded by former Chicago Bull and three-time NBA champion Dickey Simpkins. Boothe came to NLP as a quiet, unpolished, 6’4” fifteen year old. Truth be told, Nathan didn’t even really like basketball and only played because he had size and his older sister was a standout player; Sarah Boothe went on to earn the 2008 Illinois Ms. Basketball award and played at NCAA power Stanford University.

Nathan’s AAU team was talented, with four players ultimately earning D1 scholarships. The stars of that team were high scoring guards Aaron Simpson, who currently starts at DePaul University, and Keith Carter, who starts at Valparaiso University. Like much of youth basketball, guards dominate the game because the ball is always in their hands. Boothe never complained about a lack of touches and fulfilled his role of being an interior defensive presence and a pick and pop guy on offense. He truly is a man of few words. When I noticed that he had on a trendy pair of expensive headphones, I tried to strike up a conversation with him. I asked him, “How do they sound? Are they as good as advertised?” Rather than offer up his opinion, Boothe simply handed me the headphones to try on, as if to say, “don’t let my opinion influence you, see for yourself and form your own evaluation.” I recall Nathan being asked to demonstrate an offensive move at a skills camp and being ridiculed by some of his peers because he executed a lay-up rather than dunking the ball. As Nate returned to the group, he was un-phased by their verbal jabs. These stories illustrate who Nathan Boothe was as a high school player; a no frills, blue collar type of kid. Nathan has never allowed himself to be influenced by rankings, message boards, exposure, or criticism. To this day, he does not have a Twitter account and has little interest in social media. He keeps his head down and his nose clean and cares little of what others outside his inner circle have to say.

When Nate finally decided that he wanted to attend college and play basketball (Boothe actually considering enlisting in the military), thankfully, he had some options. Boothe was fortunate to receive two scholarship offers: South Dakota State and the University of Toledo. South Dakota State competes in the Summit League and Toledo had won only four games in 2011, not exactly Duke and Kentucky. The most important factor in where Boothe would decide to play college basketball was his comfort level with the coaching staff. As a result of his connection with Coach Tod Kowalczyk, Boothe chose to play for the University of Toledo in the Mid-American Conference.

Nathan had a solid freshman campaign, starting all 28 games for the Toledo Rockets and averaged 8 PPG and 5 RPG. Consequently, he was named to the All Freshmen Team in the MAC. During his sophomore season, he started all but one game and helped lead the Rockets to a MAC championship and a school record 27 wins. Boothe started all 33 games during the 2014-2015 season as the Rockets won 20 games, and Boothe averaged 10 PPG and 5 RPG. If you are keeping track, the kid started 94 out of 95 college games—not bad for someone who only had two division one offers. Throughout Boothe’s first three college seasons, he was simply a piece of the puzzle, an important piece, but nonetheless just a piece. During his final year of college, he would be asked to be the straw that stirs the drink.

Boothe relentlessly prepared for his final college season by reshaping his body and changing his diet. His current playing weight hovers around 250 pounds; that’s 30 pounds less than what he weighed in high school. He expanded his shooting range to the three point arc and added a plethora of post moves to his game. The kid was ready.

Through the first fifteen games of the season, Boothe has had five games where he has scored more than 24 points. He is one of only two division one players to post a triple double this year (10 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists vs. San Jose State) and was named the Most Outstanding Player at the Great Alaskan Shootout. Additionally, Boothe has been named MAC Player of the Week on four separate occasions and was just named to the Mid-Major, Mid-Season All-American Team. He is dominating the conference from a statistical standpoint in points per game (2nd at 18.5), rebounding (3rd at 8.8), and assists (5th at 4.3). His size—he has actually grown to 6’9 - skillset, and basketball IQ has attracted the attention of opposing coaches and NBA scouts.

After Boothe scored 29 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, Loyola Rambler head coach Porter Moser said in his post-game press conference, “We have not had to prepare for a post player that talented since Seth Tuttle played at Northern Iowa.” During Tuttle’s senior season, he was named one of 30 finalists for the Naismith College Player of the Year award. Toledo head coach Tod Kowalczyk is far more succinct in his evaluation, “He’s a pro.” Numerous NBA scouts have attended Boothe’s games this season, and one unnamed scout provided this glowing evaluation, “Boothe is as skilled as any post player in the country and a better pro prospect than any of these hyped one-and-done guys.”

What separates Boothe apart from other prospects is his shooting ability and his passing skills. Boothe is shooting 85% from the free throw line, 54% from the field, and 41% from three point territory. Last season, he made his final 34/36 free throw attempts, eliminating any thoughts of the hack-a-Boothe strategy. He passes the ball extremely well out of the myriad of double teams he faces and initiates the Rockets fast break with Wes Unseld-like outlet passes.

So how does a kid go from having only two scholarship offers to possibly having a chance to play in the NBA? First and foremost, the kid is extremely coachable and has a team-first mentality. He accepts whatever role he is given and is willing to work hard and earn more responsibility. He hasn’t transferred or tweeted about being overlooked; he simply goes about his business and understands that life is a marathon, not a sprint. Second, he has surrounded himself with an excellent support system. Third, his relationship with Coach Kowalczyk has been instrumental in his development. He has enjoyed playing basketball so much for the University of Toledo that the kid who once wasn’t sure he wanted to play in college now wants to coach basketball once his professional playing career is over. That speaks volumes about the impact that Coach Kowalczyk has had on Nathan Boothe. Coaching is not about the X’s and the O’s it is about the Jimmy’s and the Joe’s, and Coach Kowalczyk has nurtured Nathan Boothe and grown his confidence to the point that I do not even recognize the kid when I watch him play anymore.

The moral of this story is simple; you don’t have to be a top ranked player in your state or play for a shoe company sponsored AAU program to earn a scholarship. Additionally, it is possible to become a professional basketball player even if you did not play for UCLA or Kansas. Nathan Boothe will play professional basketball either in this country or overseas and epitomizes author and motivational speaker Greg Bell’s ‘water the bamboo’ metaphor. When first planted, a bamboo tree requires at least three years of daily watering before it emerges from ground. This process can be frustrating because there are no visible results that can be attributed to your efforts. However, once it is ready to grow, it can shoot up ninety feet in only sixty days. I cannot think of a better representation of this concept than Nathan Boothe. He watered his bamboo tree every day during his first three years at Toledo and now he has grown to stand head and shoulders above all.