Norman Powell Rumors | Hoops Rumors

L.A. Notes: Powell, Harden, Hayes, Lakers’ Offseason

March 17th, 2025 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers didn’t ask much from Norman Powell as he returned to the court Sunday night, but they didn’t need a big contribution from their leading scorer in a 35-point win over Charlotte, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. Playing for just the second time since the All-Star break, Powell scored seven points in 22 minutes and Carr observed that the enthusiasm he displayed as he skipped onto the court showed his excitement to be playing again.

Carr notes that coach Tyronn Lue has found a way to keep the team successful without Powell’s 23.4 points per game. While he was sidelined, Lue focused the offense around Kawhi Leonard, Ivica Zubac and James Harden.

“(We were) understanding how we want to play through guys,” Lue said, “and I think we’re getting more comfortable playing through Kawhi, playing through Zu, and James is just James.”

L.A. has managed to stay in contention for an automatic playoff spot, trailing sixth-place Golden State by just a game and a half. Powell’s return comes at a good time as the schedule is about to get much tougher with home games this week against Cleveland, Memphis and Oklahoma City.

“We pretty much need to win these games,” Leonard said. “Obviously, James is playing at a great level, Zu too. They played great individual basketball, being efficient and (Bogdan Bogdanovic) being great as well, making threes. It’s just been a collective group of thinking, just making shots that have been helping us.”

There’s more from Los Angeles:

Harden has a streak of 15 straight playoff appearances that dates back to his rookie season with the Thunder, Carr adds in a separate story. It’s the fourth-longest such streak in NBA history, but he’ll have to go through the play-in tournament to extend it if the Clippers can’t move into the top six.
The Lakers also welcomed back an important player on Sunday as center Jaxson Hayes returned after missing the four-game road trip with a bruised right knee, per Khobi Price of The Orange County Register. Hayes tied his season high with 19 points while shooting 8-of-10 from the field, and Price notes that all his baskets came off assists from Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. “Just the vertical spacer is massive,” coach J.J. Redick told reporters before the game. “It’s not just in pick-and-rolls, but it’s on drives. Just the threat of that that Jaxson has provided has been so good for Luka, for LeBron (James), for (Reaves), so excited to get that back.”
Finding another center will be an offseason priority for the Lakers, whether it’s someone to take over the starting role or serve as a backup to Hayes, Jovan Buha of The Athletic said on his latest podcast (hat tip to BasketNews). L.A. acquired Mark Williams from Charlotte before the deadline, but eventually rescinded the trade due to concerns about Williams’ physical condition. Buha also expects the team to try to work out extensions with Doncic and Reaves and to reach new deals with James and Dorian Finney-Smith. Doncic will become eligible in August for a four-year extension worth an estimated $228.6MM.

Clippers’ Norman Powell Returning From Hamstring Injury

March 16th, 2025 at 5:09pm CST by Luke Adams

Clippers wing Norman Powell will be available for Sunday’s game against the Hornets in Los Angeles, head coach Tyronn Lue told reporters today (Twitter link via Justin Russo).

Powell missed five games due to a left knee injury coming out of the All-Star break, then returned to action on March 2. However, he played just nine minutes in that contest before exiting due to a right hamstring strain that has kept him on the shelf for the past seven games. If he’s able to stay healthy through the final buzzer on Sunday, it will be the 31-year-old’s first full game since February 13.

Powell has had a career year for the Clippers in 2024/25, with averages of 23.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game and a .494/.424/.821 shooting line across 46 outings (33.0 MPG). He’s the team’s leading scorer and helped keep the offense afloat when Kawhi Leonard was out during the first half of the season.

Powell had been viewed for most of the year as one of the league’s leading candidates for Most Improved Player honors, but his recent injury absences, along with a few missed games earlier in the season, have cost him a shot at earning that award. Even if he plays in every game remaining on L.A.’s schedule, Powell will fall shy of the 65-game requirement for award consideration.

According to Clippers sideline reporter Lauren Rosen (Twitter link), Powell will reclaim his spot in the starting lineup on Sunday. He’ll presumably replace Kris Dunn, who will be unavailable due to left knee soreness.

L.A. Notes: Leonard, Lue, Morris, Hayes

March 10th, 2025 at 11:01am CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers‘ prospects for an automatic playoff spot — or at least a better position in the play-in tournament — improved dramatically on one Kawhi Leonard shot Sunday night, writes Law Murray of The Athletic. Trailing by a point in overtime, Leonard held the ball for 15 seconds before making a move. He dribbled eight times, then launched his shot over a collapsing Kings defense. It bounced off the back of the rim and fell through the net to give the Clippers a 111-110 victory.

“Read the defense, got to a spot on the floor and was able to get a shot off,” said Leonard, who topped 40 minutes for the first time this season. “I wanted to play. I’m kind of capped on the minutes — 36 is a lot of minutes. But it was just about me just wanting to finish that game. They told me they were going to sit me for a minute and bring me back. So just itching to get back in and didn’t want to sit.”

It was the third straight victory for the Clippers, who are eighth in the West at 35-29, one game back of Golden State for the sixth spot. L.A. has rebounded from a 1-6 stretch immediately after the All-Star break and appears to be surging ahead of four upcoming games against sub-.500 opponents. The Clippers have now clinched the head-to-head tie-breaker against the Kings, who trail their division rivals by a game and a half at 33-30.

Although Norman Powell and Ben Simmons remained out for Sunday’s game, league sources tell Murray that they’re both making progress. Powell, who is sidelined with patellar tendinopathy in his left knee, will be reevaluated following a three-game road trip. Simmons, who is also dealing with a knee issue, may play during the trip.

There’s more on the two Los Angeles teams:

Clippers coach Tyronn Lue had to miss Sunday’s game due to back pain, according to an Associated Press report. Lue didn’t give any indication during his pregame media session that he wouldn’t be able to coach, and the team didn’t provide any other details. Assistant Brian Shaw replaced Lue for the night.
Markieff Morris has barely played since rejoining the Lakers last month, but he’s finding other ways to contribute, notes Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times. The veteran forward has taken on a leadership role and was instrumental in helping Dalton Knecht regain his confidence after his trade to Charlotte was rescinded. “I missed (Morris),” LeBron James said. “… We’ve been in the foxhole together. We’ve been on the floor during big games together. And there’s someone whose opinion I value very much when I come off the floor. He’s watching it. He’s seeing it. I’m just happy to have him back. It’s great to see him.”
The Lakers will be without their entire starting front line for tonight’s game at Brooklyn. Center Jaxson Hayes has been ruled out on the team’s official injury report due to a contusion on his right knee. He joins James, who’s recovering from a groin injury he suffered Saturday night, and Rui Hachimura, who remains sidelined with patellar tendinopathy in his left knee.

Clippers’ Powell Out At Least 10 Days With Hamstring Strain

March 5th, 2025 at 2:29pm CST by Luke Adams

After missing five games due to a left knee injury (patellar tendinopathy), Clippers wing Norman Powell lasted just nine minutes in his return on Sunday before exiting the game due to a right leg injury.

As Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints tweets, Powell has been diagnosed with a hamstring strain and will be reevaluated in 10 days, according to the Clippers.

The team technically made that announcement on Tuesday night, so Powell’s evaluation date is set for March 14. Even if he’s able to return to action that night, he’ll have missed at least six games due to the injury, including yesterday’s loss to Phoenix.

Powell has had a career year in Los Angeles in 2024/25, with averages of 23.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game and a .494/.424/.821 shooting line across 46 outings (33.0 MPG).

However, injuries have impacted his availability in recent weeks and it’s hurting the Clippers, who have gone just 1-6 since the All-Star break and now sit ninth in the Western Conference at 32-29 after having held a top-six seed for most of the season.

Powell’s latest injury will also make him ineligible for Most Improved Player consideration. He had been one of the leading candidates for the award, but will no longer be able to meet the 65-game minimum necessary to qualify.

Newcomers Bogdan Bogdanovic and Ben Simmons have played regular rotation roles with Powell sidelined, while Kawhi Leonard, Kris Dunn, and Amir Coffey have all seen minute bumps.

Pacific Notes: Sabonis, Valanciunas, Suns, Powell, Lakers

March 1st, 2025 at 11:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Kings picked up an important win in Houston Saturday night even though they lost starting center Domantas Sabonis early in the game, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. After a little more than a minute of play, Sabonis grabbed his left hamstring while running down the court. Head coach Doug Christie immediately called time out, and Sabonis headed to the locker room to get it checked. The Kings announced that he wouldn’t return, and Christie is unsure how long he might be sidelined.

“We’ll see in the coming days,” Christie told reporters. “Probably tomorrow or the next day we’ll have an idea, but everyone’s just pulling for him. Stepping in and, wow, we’re talking about Domantas Sabonis, who covers the stat sheet in a way that is difficult to do. A lot of guys stepped in and weren’t trying to do too much. They were just trying to do what they do and that adds up to everyone pulling the rope in the same direction.”

Sacramento was able to overcome Sabonis’ injury because of a strong night from backup center Jonas Valanciunas, who was acquired from Washington at the trade deadline. Playing nearly 30 minutes off the bench, Valanciunas contributed 15 points, 14 rebounds, four steals and three blocks as the Kings leap-frogged two teams to move into eighth in the Western Conference standings.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Bradley Beal remains questionable for Sunday’s contest against Minnesota after missing the Suns‘ last two games with tightness in his left calf, according to Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Grayson Allen, who sat out Friday’s game due to left foot soreness, is probable to return. After snapping a three-game losing streak Friday night, Kevin Durant said the Suns need to block out distractions and concentrate on playing basketball. “It’s so much noise that’s going to be around us,” Durant said. “It’s so much tension around whether we’re going to win or lose the next game. So many people wishing that we don’t win games. It’s just a lot of BS around us, but I think if we understand that’s just the nature of the beast and we go out there and play with more pride and more energy, more enthusiasm, I think that things can turn around, but you really actually got to feel that.”
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue expressed hope that leading scorer Norman Powell can return soon after missing the last five games with soreness in his left knee, per Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. Lue added that Powell tried to play through the pain before the All-Star break, but he eventually had to make a change in the medical treatment he was receiving on the knee. “But like I said, he’s getting close, and he’s been doing the things needed to try to get back on the floor and so hopefully sooner than later,” Lue said.
The Lakers are getting valuable contributions from their two-way players, observes Khobi Price of The Orange County Register. Jordan Goodwin and Trey Jemison both played a role in Friday’s win over the Clippers. “Those guys are just professional,” coach J.J. Redick said. “And a lot of times with two-ways, you can err on the side of youth and development, and I think there’s a lot of merit and a lot of value in that. Trey and Goodie are older players by two-way standards. And so, to be able to have them both with experience and both having been in the league now for a couple of years – Goodie longer than that – but they know how to play and they can contribute to winning.”

Pacific Notes: Iguodala, Kawhi, Powell, Morris, Martin

February 24th, 2025 at 4:11pm CST by Rory Maher

Andre Iguodala‘s No. 9 jersey went into the rafters of the Chase Center on Sunday, making him the seventh Warriors player to have his jersey retired, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. The four-time champion dedicated much of his speech to thanking staff members, but made sure to express his appreciation to fans and former teammates as well, including two-time MVP Stephen Curry.

“None of this would have happened without all of you, the fans,” Iguodala said.

“We haven’t really had time to reflect, Steph, you made the world turn. That is not something you say lightly. You truly changed the game of basketball. It was beautiful. … I understood my role. I understood the genius of Draymond [Green], the genius of Klay [Thompson], the genius of Kevin Durant. … Shaun Livingston and I … we had this unique team that understood, had this precious ultra-talented assassin. Steph, none of this happens without you.”

Curry called it “weird and surreal” to attend the ceremony, noting that it’s been “hard to fill that void” in the locker room since Iguodala retired.

“I think we all can feel it but this isn’t just about a number going into the rafters,” Curry said of Iguodala. “This is about a player who changed the course of our entire franchise. … You were the first one to choose us, and that meant the world. For a team that knew we were good but didn’t know how to get to that next level, you unlocked so much confidence, so much IQ, so much maturity to what we did.

“You sacrificed ego for excellence, which for us is the Warriors way.”

Here’s more from the Pacific:

Key Clippers starters Kawhi Leonard (left foot soreness) and Norman Powell (left patellar tendinopathy) will be sidelined for Monday’s contest in Detroit, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic. It’s the second straight absence for Leonard and third for Powell, who was previously listed as having left knee soreness. As expected, Ben Simmons will also be sidelined with what the team called left knee injury management — he has yet to play both ends of a back-to-back this season (the Clippers lost at Indiana on Sunday).
Veteran forward Markieff Morris was an afterthought in the blockbuster trade that saw Luka Doncic land with the Lakers, but head coach JJ Redick says he’s been a valuable leader in the locker room, according to Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group (subscriber link). “He’s been awesome,” Redick said. “It’s very valuable to have a guy like that, a voice, an older voice, someone who’s seen it all in the NBA, someone who’s won a championship. Obviously that helps as well. He’s been great on the bench with talking with guys, making sure our bench energy is good. I told him the other day, we see it and we appreciate it and we all just value what he’s doing right now from that aspect in leadership.”
Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer says there’s no timetable for Cody Martin to return from a sports hernia injury, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter video link). “He’s putting work in. I think he’s making progress, but I don’t have an update on his expected return time. I think we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Budenholzer said. Martin, who was acquired from Charlotte at the trade deadline, last played on January 24. The 29-year-old wing was doing some shooting drills prior to Saturday’s game, Rankin adds (via Twitter).

L.A. Notes: Doncic, Goodwin, Leonard, Bogdanovic

February 23rd, 2025 at 9:01am CST by Arthur Hill

After a bumpy start to his Lakers career, Luka Doncic looked more like himself in Saturday night’s win at Denver, writes Jovan Buha of The Athletic. Beyond his 16-point first quarter outburst and the familiar stat line of 32 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, and four steals that he put up in the battle of two of the West’s top teams, Doncic was more animated than he has been at any time since being traded.

“He was super dialed in,” LeBron James said. “He was very locked in on what he wanted to do out here on the floor tonight. Once he started hitting those step-back threes and got to yelling and barking, either at the fans or at us or himself. … He was just dialed in on what he wanted to do and how he wanted to execute his game plan individually.”

Coach J.J. Redick told Doncic before the game that he wanted to see “at least one blackout episode” where Doncic screams “at no one in particular.” Along with his unique talents, that fiery competitiveness is what has made Doncic one of the best players in the world. Doncic handled the ball more often on Saturday, Buha notes, repeatedly targeting Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic in the pick-and-roll. Redick added that the plan moving forward will be to keep the ball in Doncic’s hands as much as possible.

“I think Luka needs to be the guy that controls the offense,” Redick said. “And (James) and (Austin Reaves), because we’re gonna stagger everybody, they’re gonna have their times to be on the ball. But all three of those guys are very intelligent basketball players, and we can create mismatches. We can get teams in the blender.”

There’s more on the Lakers:

Jordan Goodwin has been productive since signing a two-way contract with the Lakers earlier this month, and Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report suggests they may want to convert him to a standard deal by the end of the season to make him eligible for the playoffs (Twitter link). L.A. would have to open a roster spot first, with Pincus pointing to Cam Reddish as the most likely player to be released. Goodwin can be on the active roster for up to 19 games after signing on February 7, so the Lakers have some time to make a decision.
The Clippers added Kawhi Leonard to their injury report for today’s game at Indiana with soreness in his left foot, marking his first new injury of the season, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic. Leonard and Norman Powell are both listed as questionable, while Ben Simmons is expected to play today and sit out Monday’s contest at Detroit, according to Murray.
Simmons has quickly developed a chemistry with Bogdan Bogdanovic even though they’re both new to the Clippers and haven’t played together before, Murray adds (Twitter link). Bogdanovic said building the on-court relationship was easy because of their respective talents. “We are basketball players at the end of the day, so we just play,” he said. “It’s tough when you’re joining a new team, definitely tough because you have to learn plays, you have to learn tendencies of the guys, but we are both new so that’s kind of making the job a little bit easier.”

Clippers Notes: Post-Deadline Expectations, Powell, Rotation, Zubac

February 22nd, 2025 at 9:37am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Clippers retooled their rotation at the deadline, bringing in Bogdan Bogdanovic, Drew Eubanks, Patty Mills and MarJon Beauchamp via trade while also adding Ben Simmons from the buyout market. With the new-look roster comes rejuvenated expectations for the stretch run of the season, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register.

“It’s good for us to start over, I think offensively,” head coach Tyronn Lue said. “[We need to] just to get better and do the things we need to do that’s necessary to win games. Just be better at executing what we’re trying to do. It’s going to take a little bit of time as far as rotations and how we play guys together and things like that. But from a basketball standpoint, I’m kind of excited about it.”

Bogdanovic and Simmons in particular have logged big minutes since arriving in Los Angeles, while Eubanks is also expected to play a modest role. Both Bogdanovic and Simmons have been effective off the bench. Simmons reportedly was deciding between the Clippers and the Cavaliers as he negotiated a buyout agreement with Brooklyn, ending up with Los Angeles in a sizable role.

“I’m excited man, I mean Ben brings a skill set that we don’t have other than myself, his passing ability and his speed pushing the ball in the offense to get guys involved,” teammate James Harden said.

The arrival of five new players isn’t the only reason the Clippers are operating under a renewed identity. Star Kawhi Leonard returned from an offseason knee injury and only topped the 30-minute mark for the first time on Feb. 6, Carr notes.

“I think every team needs to, wants to come out the All-Star break and be playing with [a high intensity],” Harden said. “If we want to get to where we want to go, the time is now. We added some shooting, we added some defense and obviously with a healthy Kawhi we’ve got a chance to compete with anybody. So, I think for us, it’s just finding out how we want to play and attacking it.”

We have more on the Clippers:

Guard Norman Powell was added to the Clippers’ injury report on Thursday with left knee soreness and went on to miss the contest against Milwaukee (Twitter links via ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk and The Athletic’s Law Murray). It marked Powell’s 10th missed game of the season. The Most Improved Player candidate will have to play at least 20 of the team’s remaining 27 contests to qualify for award consideration.
The absence of Powell and the ongoing integration of the newcomers had Lue searching for the right combination in the rotation on Thursday, Murray writes. Kris Dunn and Derrick Jones Jr. are cycling in and out of the starting lineup while Amir Coffey earned a starting nod on Thursday in Powell’s place. Additionally, Murray opines that the team will need to optimize lineups involving Simmons. Lineups featuring both Simmons and Ivica Zubac struggled against Milwaukee.
In the same story, Murray notes that Zubac has been less involved in the fourth quarter than in the rest of the game as of late. The Clippers’ starting center didn’t attempt a field goal in the fourth against the Bucks, the fifth time in six games that’s occurred. Zubac said he’s “trying to figure it out” when it comes to his role in the offense in the fourth.

Community Shootaround: Most Improved Player

February 16th, 2025 at 11:07am CST by Rory Maher

According to the latest betting odds (link via Kevin Rogers of VegasInsider), there are two clear frontrunners to be named 2024/25’s Most Improved Player: Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Clippers wing Norman Powell.

Cunningham is the current favorite for the award, but Powell is a close second. Tyler Herro, Amen Thompson, Trey Murphy, Christian Braun, Evan Mobley, Jalen Williams, Dyson Daniels, Victor Wembanyama and Max Christie are among the other players in consideration, but it would be genuinely shocking if anyone from that group wins, given the current odds.

Griffin Wong of DraftKings recently weighed in on what is seemingly a two-man race, making the case both for and against Powell and Cunningham. While Wong believes that Powell has “clearly” shown more individual improvement, he thinks voters — 100 members of the media — will ultimately choose Cunningham, given the recent history of selecting rising young players and Detroit’s dramatic turnaround from a season ago.

A 10-year veteran, Powell is posting career-best numbers in virtually every major statistic in 2024/25, including points (24.2), rebounds (3.6), assists (2.2), steals (1.3) and minutes (33.6) per game. In 45 appearances, he has posted an extremely efficient shooting slash line of .496/.428/.819, good for a career-high true shooting percentage of .633. He is the leading scorer on the West’s No. 6 seed (the Clippers are 31-23).

At 31, Powell would be the oldest player to ever win MIP. That distinction currently belongs to former Magic guard Darrell Armstrong, who was 30 when he won the award in ’98/99.

Cunningham, 23, is also posting career-best numbers in several statistics in ’24/25, averaging 25.4 PPG, 6.3 RPG and 9.3 APG on .455/.351/.850 shooting (.551 TS) in 50 games (35.5 MPG). After finishing with the NBA’s worst record (14-68) last season, the Pistons have already more than doubled that meager win total and currently hold a 29-26 record, good for the No. 6 seed in the East.

Obviously, Cunningham has far more impressive rebounding and assist totals, and he’s Detroit’s best player. But as Wong writes, the first-time All-Star has been a far less efficient scorer than Powell, who also has better on/off numbers. According to Wong, Cunningham’s improvement was more or less expected — he was the No. 1 overall pick in 2021 — whereas Powell’s has been much more surprising and arguably more impactful to winning. Neither player is great defensively, so Wong views that as essentially a wash.

We want to know what you think. Should Cunningham, Powell or another player be selected as this season’s Most Improved Player? Head to the comments section to share your thoughts.

NBA Announces Three-Point Contest, Skills Challenge Participants

February 7th, 2025 at 3:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has officially announced the participants for the All-Star Saturday festivities in San Francisco on February 15, revealing today (via Twitter) which players will compete in the three-point contest and the skills challenge. Here are the details:

Three-Point Contest:

Jalen Brunson (Knicks)
Cade Cunningham (Pistons)
Darius Garland (Cavaliers)
Tyler Herro (Heat)
Buddy Hield (Warriors)
Cameron Johnson (Nets)
Damian Lillard (Bucks)
Norman Powell (Clippers)

Among this year’s participants, Powell (43.1%), Garland (42.9%), and Johnson (41.7%) have been the most accurate three-point shooters so far this season, while Herro (39.3% on 9.7 attempts per game) has been the most prolific.

Lillard won the event in both 2023 and 2024 and will be looking to become the first player since Craig Hodges in 1992 to claim the three-point title for a third consecutive year. Larry Bird was also a three-time winner, having achieved the feat in the first three years the NBA held the event (1986-88).

Hield is the only other player in this year’s field to have won the contest before, having done so in 2020. The Warriors wing will be the home team’s representative next Saturday.

Skills Challenge:

Team Cavs: Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley
Team Rooks: Zaccharie Risacher (Hawks) and Alex Sarr (Wizards)
Team Spurs: Chris Paul and Victor Wembanyama
Team Warriors: Draymond Green and Moses Moody

It appears the NBA will be tweaking the format of the skills challenge again in 2025, with the event set to feature four teams of two players apiece instead of three players per team.

Mobley was part of the Cavs team that won the event in 2022, along with Jarrett Allen and Garland. He’ll be teaming up with Mitchell this time around.

The NBA also officially confirmed the participants of the dunk contest earlier this week (Twitter link). Those four players, who had been previously reported, are Bulls rookie Matas Buzelis, Spurs rookie Stephon Castle, Bucks guard Andre Jackson, and Magic two-way guard Mac McClung.

Like Lillard in the three-point contest, McClung will be looking to three-peat in his event next Saturday night.