Head coach Jordi Fernandez and the Brooklyn Nets have been working in the laboratory to convert rookie Drake Powell from a defensive stalwart to an offensive force to be taken seriously. He left North Carolina after one year and drafted for his defensive prowess. His offensive talent is new to him.
Drake Powell arrived in Brooklyn with a short resume. He played one season at North Carolina and was known primarily as a defensive stopper. He gained his minutes from Tar Heels coach Hubert Davis based upon his defensive prowess, not his abilities as a scorer.
Powell was good for an occasional assist here or a bucket there, but was really relied upon for his ability to defend the basket. He did his 38.1 percent of his triple attempts. but that it not really necessarily where he made his money.
He was viewed coming into the NBA Draft as a simple 3 and D wing. However, after playing in his first 11 games in the league, he has shown to be more of a complete player who can contribute on offense and defense. He is capable of laying the smack down on both sides of the floor.
In the wake of the 113-100 loss to the Knicks Monday night at the Barclays Center, the 20-year-old matched his career high in scoring. He netted 15 points on 5-for-10 shooting, with two rebounds, four assists and a steal in 24 minutes off the bench.
He scored nine points in the third quarter and showed he likes to be in charge and that he can distribute the basketball.
Nets coach Jordi Fernandez is giving Powell room to show his abilities. His system allows him rook to maneuver with and without the ball. He is able to read a defense and make a decision as to where he is going to go with the basketball at any given moment.
Fernandez likes what he sees from the rookie and is impressed with what he saw Monday night.
“As we go, he’s going to continue to understand the league, the schemes, especially defensively,” head coach Jordi Fernández said. “Back-to-back games where I consider him a very, very good defender with a really high ceiling defensively, and I’m going to keep challenging him to be better.
“And then offensively, he saw the ball go in. He’s going to keep trusting the shot… He has to be comfortable shooting it a little faster. This is just going to come with time and work, which I think he’ll be OK, but I’m happy with how he looked out there… He looked free out there, having fun, playing really hard. We have to keep taking positive steps, for sure, with him.”
Noah Clowney is not surprised with what he sees from his teammate. He saw how hard he worked since the draft and is glad it is all coming together.
“We’ve seen him throughout the summer, so we knew what he was capable of,” Clowney said. “Toward the end of the summer, we started putting him in different positions where he was handling it a lot more. So, yeah, most of it we’ve seen before. He’s just showing y’all all that now.”