Former UCLA Star Injured Amid Shocking Breakout Season

Former UCLA Bruins star Norman Powell is unfortunately missing some time due to injury in the midst of his breakout NBA season.

Nov 17, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Norman Powell (24) shoots the ball during the fourth quarter against the Utah Jazz at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images / Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Who had Norman Powell breaking out on their bingo card heading into the 2024-25 NBA campaign?

Well, that is exactly what has happened, as the former UCLA Bruins star has been pacing the Los Angeles Clippers by averaging 23.3 points per game on 49.0/48.7/81.7 shooting splits thus far.

While Powell's scoring average has dipped a bit over the last couple of weeks, he has maintained his red-hot shooting,

Over his last two games before the Kings battle, Powell went 9-for-17 from beyond the arc, including a 5-of-6 showing during the Clippers' win over the Golden State Warriors on Nov. 18.

The problem is that Powell injured his hamstring in Los Angeles' victory. He missed the team's win over the Orlando Magic two days later, and he will be sidelined for another two games because of the issue.

Hamstrings are always tricky, so you have to wonder how this will affect Powell going forward. Three games seem like a rather quick turnaround for a hamstring injury, so this is something that could potentially derail Powell's season if not handled properly.

Hopefully, the Clippers take it easy with Powell and work him back slowly.

The 31-year-old spent four seasons at UCLA between 2011-12 and 2014-15, and while he had a couple of impressive years for the Bruins, he was not viewed as a top NBA prospect.

Powell was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of the 2015 NBA Draft before immediately being traded to the Toronto Raptors.

The 6-foot-3 wing quickly forged a rather reliable role with the Raptors and spent the first five-and-a-half years of his career in Toronto as a nice supplementary player.

Powell also played for the Portland Trail Blazers before being dealt to the Clippers midway through the 2021-22 campaign.

While Powell steadily improved as a scorer throughout his career, no one ever expected him to perform at the rate he is this season.

Obviously, it's still very early, and there is plenty of time for Powell to regress to the mean. But he isn't showing that many signs of slowing down and currently ranks fifth in the NBA in three-point makes. He also owns a terrific true-shooting percentage of 63.8 percent.

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