If you happened to have the security code for the gated community outside Las Vegas where Norm Powell makes his off-season home, you could drive by his house and see a rather unusual sight:
An NBA player in the prime of his career shooting hoops in his driveway.
After waiting out the 14-day quarantine required of Raptors players and staff in Toronto after the NBA season was suspended March 11, Powell got on a plane and headed to the desert.
But Powell is still getting his shots up and is still working on his skills. The club’s equipment manager arranged for a portable hoop to be delivered along with some balls to work with. Strength coach Johnny Lee has been taking him through workouts online.
And so just like when he was a kid dreaming big dreams growing up in San Diego, Powell has been working on his game, getting ready for what comes next.
You’d need to get that security code first, though.
Any chance?
“No,” said Powell.
We’ll have to leave it to our imaginations then.
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With the return to play still completely up in the air as COVID-19 remains an ongoing concern throughout North America, the Raptors fifth-year shooting guard has been taking the time away from basketball to spark his own imagination.
He’s taking an online sign language class, picking up a long-time interest he developed through his mother, a special needs educator and a subject he studied at UCLA.
“I always found it a beautiful language to learn and be a part of and I love that community,” he said on a conference call Wednesday. “It was just a little side hobby and interest of mine since I was a kid.”
He’s also found time to brush up on his Spanish – another project he’s been wanting to tackle but which has fallen by the wayside during the constant bustle of an NBA career.
“Just trying to keep myself busy and focus and locked in somehow,” he says.
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But even though the return to play is still undetermined – NBA commissioner Adam Silver has said he won’t even be in a position to give any guidance on the issue until May 1 – basketball hasn’t been too far from Powell’s mind.
He’s been watching up to two hours of film daily while working with Raptors assistant coaches Patrick Mutombo and Adrian Griffin, looking to improve elements of his game even though he was in the midst of a breakout season that saw him emerge as one of the most efficient wing scorers in the league.
He feels there is still more to give.
“I think something I can improve is off-ball defence,” said Powell. “I can get a little bit too attached to my man and be too late on rotations and things like that. So I’ve been watching that and seeing where I can improve. And then my attacking downhill and reads, I think I’ve done a lot better with that, but there are still some times when I misread what’s happening or I get a little too aggressive and miss the open guy, or I’m anticipating what I’m trying to do with the ball in pick and rolls and things like that. So I’ve been breaking down a lot of film and watching areas where I can improve from that aspect because I can’t get on the court with the team.”
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At least if he gets a chance to get back on the floor Powell should be healthy – the ankle sprain that saw him leave the Raptors game against Utah on March 9 was minor and he was planning to play in Toronto’s next game – and will be building on a season of excellence interrupted by a separated shoulder that cost him 11 games and a fractured finger that put him out for nine more.
As a sample, in the six full games he played before the season was suspended Powell was playing as well as he has in his career, averaging 28.2 points a game on 53 per cent shooting (39 per cent from three on 8.6 attempts a game), while putting up a career-high 37 points against Golden State on March 5.
Among players averaging at least five three-point attempts and scoring at least 16 points a game, Powell ranks fifth in TS% with .629, just behind noted sharpshooter JJ Reddick and ahead of superstars Damian Lillard and James Harden.
“Honestly, I think my mental approach to everything and my outlook on everything was really what helped me and worked for me,” he says. “… I always talk about how hard I work and how much time I put in on my game and the skill side of it. But I really focused on the mental aspect of the game and not only just basketball but the way I approached life in general.
“I think that really helped me stay even-keeled and locked in on whatever was thrown my way. With the injuries and that and just not being frustrated or getting down or upset. Just look at it like I’m hurt, I’m out, what can I do now? How can I improve? How can I get back? I didn’t let that affect me.
“Even when I wouldn’t have a good game or wouldn’t make shots or make mistakes, I wouldn’t let that affect me. I stayed locked in on the now and the moment and what I needed to do next. I think that is what helped me. I didn’t get caught up with previous game performances or anything. There was no pressure at all. I was just going out there playing and living with the results and going with that.”
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It’s that mindset that should serve him well while on hiatus with only questions about what comes next and no answers.
For the record, Powell is optimistic that there will be NBA basketball again this season and figures thanks to his driveway workouts he can be up to speed in the time that will likely be made available – for planning purposes the league has suggested a 25-day buildup although in exactly what form no one is quite sure.
Until then he’ll keep putting up shots in his driveway, knowing that the most important work he’s done this season has been in his mind.
