Toronto Raptors: How Norm Powell went about reaching new heights in 2020

The Toronto Raptors are starting to see Norman Powell’s true potential, as the 2019-20 season has been the best of Powell’s career to date. What are some reasons behind the UCLA product’s ascension this season?

For Norman Powell, the 2019-20 season has been the most fruitful of his career, impressive considering how many times its been interrupted by injury. The Toronto Raptors are finally starting to see the fruits of their developmental labours. Now if only Powell could stay healthy.

The Raptors’ guard has suffered multiple injuries this season, the latest being a fractured finger that will need several weeks to heal. But if Toronto has shown anything this season, it’s been the ability to withstand injuries to key players. No team has been ravaged by the injury bug more than the Raptors, yet, it hasn’t slowed Nick Nurse’s team down one bit, as Toronto currently sits second in the Eastern Conference.

That said, injuries are not something any team wants to make a habit of dealing with. Ensuring Powell gets healthy in a timely fashion will be critical for the Raptors, as the guard will surely want as much time as possible to hone his game before the postseason. Make no mistake, Powell’s play will go a long way in determining Toronto’s postseason fate.

As the team’s primary scorer off the bench – along with the likes of Serge Ibaka when Marc Gasol is healthy – Powell can ill-afford to go cold once the playoffs begin. If the same inconsistencies that have plagued Powell in the past rear their ugly heads in the postseason, the playoffs could get ugly for the Raptors.

But let’s not think about that – instead, let’s focus on what Powell has done this year to take his game to new heights in 2020, starting with his improved three-point shot.

Shooting the ball with confidence

Stat gurus have yet to find a way to quantify “confidence” – had they done so, you better believe Norm Powell’s 2019-20 numbers would be through the roof. When healthy, he has oozed confidence every minute he’s been on the floor.

Specifically, Powell’s shooting percentage has ballooned since the new decade kicked off. He hasn’t shot the ball this well from beyond the arc since his rookie season, though, year one did not feature the volume of shots that year number five has. Powell is not only taking more shots, but he’s also making more. On five-plus attempts per game, stormin’ Norman is shooting 40.1 percent from beyond the arc. From the corners, his percentage bumps up to 43.3 percent.

Inside the arc, Powell has been more aggressive – on shots inside three feet, he is shooting a career-best 66.9 percent. Between 16 feet and the three-point line, Powell’s conversion rate sits at 47.1 percent, which is also a personal best. Finally, the guard’s true shooting percentage (62.3) is nearly three percent higher than Powell’s previous best. Certainly not the only area of improvement for Powell this season, but a much-improved shooting stroke has transformed Norm into a reliable offensive threat which has given Toronto’s bench a big boost in the process.

Improved defence fuelling offensive growth

This season, Powell is scoring over a quarter of his points on the fast break which is far and away the most of his career. For the first time in five seasons, he’s averaging more than one steal per night, indicative of a defensive evolution in addition to the strides Powell has made on the offensive side of the ball.

Powell has always been a terror in transition – his open-court speed, quickness, and burst are among the best you’ll find in the NBA, and so knowing that Norm has made a point of running whenever an opportunity has presented itself. The results have been his best statistical season to date.

When he was drafted, Powell’s offensive arsenal was rather raw. Alternatively, few doubted his willingness or ability to defend. Undersized, sure, but Powell’s bulldog mentality allowed him to carve out a defensive role with Toronto while his offensive game developed.

Today, Powell is a complete player – the ability to defend multiple positions and impact games with his defensive playmaking has led to the combo guard turning a corner in his career. By working hard at both ends of the floor and not allowing missed shots and rough stretches to chip away at his confidence, Powell is sure to make a lot of noise for the Raptors in the second half of the season, and once the playoffs commence.

Heads up, NBA.

A storm is coming.