CHICAGO — One of the few constants in Chris Boucher’s life is that at some point, probably at the worst possible moment, a major setback will test his resolve.

He approaches everything — the good, the bad, the awful — with the skepticism of someone decades older. In March, when he learned he had a torn ACL, Boucher — then a senior forward at Oregon — took the news in stride that he’d spend the NCAA Tournament and the run-up to the NBA draft rehabbing.

“I was already ready mentally,” said Boucher, now on a two-way contract with Golden State. “It was just another hurdle on my path, and I just had to jump over it.”

Ten months after he tore the ACL in his left knee in the Pac-12 tournament, Boucher made his professional debut Wednesday night in front of a capacity G League crowd of 2,476 at Santa Cruz’s Kaiser Permanente Arena. In the Santa Cruz Warriors’ 117-112 loss to the Reno Bighorns, the 6-foot-11, 200-pound big man showed flashes of his diverse skill set, posting 11 points on 4-for-6 shooting, with three blocks and two rebounds in 15 minutes.

Anyone who saw him oscillate between hoisting three-pointers and swatting shots understood why Golden State quickly signed Boucher to a two-way deal after he went unselected in June’s draft. With the NBA trending toward small-ball lineups, front-office executives are chasing the next great basketball unicorn, a long-limbed interior defender who can hit three-pointers, pass and guard any position. Adding Boucher was a low-risk, high-reward move for a Warriors team not in need of immediate frontcourt help.

If Boucher doesn’t stick, Golden State can stomach the fact that it used effectively its 16th or 17th roster spot on a flier. The financial hit is minimal. As a two-way player, Boucher makes $75,000 in the G League and a prorated portion of the NBA rookie minimum salary — about $816,000 this season — for any days he spends with the big club.

Though his age — at 25, he is older than five Golden State players, including former Oregon teammate Jordan Bell — limits his upside somewhat, Boucher is far along for someone who has played organized basketball for only six years. It wasn’t until May 2012, when a talent evaluator discovered Boucher — then a 19-year-old high school drop-out — at a tournament in Montreal, that his basketball odyssey finally began.

Boucher played for a prep school a 4½-hour drive northeast of Montreal before one-year stints at junior colleges in Hobbs, N.M., (pop. 38,143) and Powell, Wyo., (pop. 6,407). As a junior with the Ducks in 2015-16, Boucher became just the third major-conference player of this decade to average at least 17 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks per 40 minutes, with an offensive efficiency rating of at least 120, per Sports Illustrated.

The other two on that list are Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns and New Orleans’ Anthony Davis, each a No. 1 pick from Kentucky. Unlike Towns and Davis, both of whom seldom ventured to the perimeter in college, Boucher drained 75 three-pointers in his two seasons at Oregon.

“I didn’t watch him much in college, to be honest with you,” Golden State head coach Steve Kerr said. “But I know he blocked a lot of shots and made threes, and that made him attractive as a prospect. That’s what we’re hoping for.”

Had he not torn his ACL in the Ducks’ Pac-12 tournament semifinal win over Cal, Boucher probably would have been drafted. That June 22 night spent hearing 60 names other than his called, however, is not some big source of motivation for a player who already has overcome long odds.

A native of Castries, Saint Lucia, Boucher grew up in a rough neighborhood of Montreal. His home life was so unstable that he didn’t bother to make long-term plans. Little more than a half-decade ago, he was out of school, working part-time as the grill master at a restaurant.

“A lot of people give up, and that’s why they don’t get where they want to go,” Boucher said. “I’m not one of those people. I just keep working to get where I want to go, because I have dreams.”

Connor Letourneau is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cletourneau@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Con_Chron

MRI on rookie Bell ‘pretty good,’ Kerr says

CHICAGO — The Warriors don’t plan to formally announce the results of the MRI exam on forward Jordan Bell’s sprained left ankle until Friday, but head coach Steve Kerr eased fans’ concerns during a radio interview Thursday.

“The MRI was pretty good this morning — nothing glaring,” Kerr said on 95.7 FM. “The X-ray was fine yesterday. So, it doesn’t appear to be more than a bone bruise, but bone bruises can be tricky to heal. So, we’ll see what happens, but so far, the news has all been good.”

Twenty-four seconds into Wednesday night’s 119-112 win over the Bulls, Bell landed awkwardly after trying unsuccessfully to block a Robin Lopez dunk. Bell was on the floor for more than a minute, grabbing his left ankle and grimacing, as teammates surrounded him and a team trainer tended to him.

Bell tried to walk off the court, but was in enough pain that he needed to be rolled to the visiting locker room in a wheelchair. X-rays were negative. After team doctors in the Bay Area review Bell’s MRI, Golden State will have a clearer idea of how much time he will miss.

Bell is averaging 5.2 points, four rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 37 games.

With Bell expected to miss extended time, Kevon Looney could be in line for more playing time. Looney is averaging 5.3 points and 4.8 rebounds in 21.5 minutes over his past four games.

— Connor Letourneau