The Cal 100: No. 79 - Leon Powe

The Oakland native overcame poverty and knee injuries to become a basketball star for the Bears.

No. 79: Leon Powe

Cal Sports Connection: Powe played two seasons at Cal and was voted team MVP and All-Pac-10 Conference both years.

Claim to Fame: The power forward made it to the NBA and played a key role off the bench in the Boston Celtics' 2008 championship run -- still their most recent NBA title.

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Nothing was ever easy for Leon Powe. Growing up in Oakland, his father left when he was a toddler. At age 7, Powe’s house burned down and the family was homeless off and on for years.

A McDonald’s All-American at Oakland Technical High School, Powe played in the state championship game four days after his mother died.

Then there were the knee injuries, which repeatedly threatened to derail his budding career.

Powe somehow overcame all of it to become a dominant player at Cal, a two-time team MVP, a two-time All-Pac-10 selection, and the league’s scoring and rebounding leader his final season in 2005-06 when he also earned second-team Associated Press All-America honors.

Leon Powe / Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

He averaged 20.5 points and 10.1 rebounds that season — a statistical combination no other Cal player has achieved in 40 years.

Powe lost out to Washington’s Brandon Roy for Pac-10 Player of the Year, and he seemed to take it out on opponents at the conference tournament. He posted 22 points and 20 rebounds in a win over USC then scored a career-high 41 points in Cal’s 91-87 double-overtime semifinal win vs. Oregon.

Cal lost to UCLA in the tournament final but Powe was named MVP after averaging 26.7 points and 11.3 rebounds in three games, and helping to clinch the Bears’ bid to the NCAA tournament.

Through all of it, Powe’s dream was to become an NBA player. Generously listed at 6-foot-8, he was considered undersized for a power forward. But Powe didn’t lack in the power department and he was driven by a non-stop motor.

Chosen by Denver in the second round of the 2006 NBA draft, Powe was traded to the Boston Celtics, for whom he played his first three seasons.

In his second season, Powe averaged 7.9 points and 4.1 rebounds while shooting 57 percent from the field. Often, he didn’t get off the bench.

But Powe’s role grew in the playoffs, where he had five double-digit scoring games, including a 21-point performance off the bench in the Celtics’ 108-102 win over the Lakers in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, helping push Boston to a 4-2 series win for what remains the franchise’s most recent championship.

The AP game story that night suggested Powe’s performance “may make him a Celtics fan-favorite for life,” and he continues to work for the club as a community ambassador.

“I can’t even put it into words, but that game meant a whole lot to me,” Powe said. “Ever since I was younger, you always see all the greats, all the great teams and you see the storied franchises, like Boston on TV, winning championships.

“And everybody can’t get that feeling. There’s only one way to get that feeling, and that’s winning a championship. I didn’t know if I was going to get that feeling. We made some magic happen.”

Powe had one more big moment in the NBA, assembling 30 points, 11 rebounds, five blocked shots and three assists in a win over Memphis the next season. His knees ultimately betrayed him again and Powe was out of the NBA after five seasons.

-- No. 80: Bud Chandler

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Cover photo of Leon Powe by Howard Smith, USA Today

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo