Norm of the Fourth: How the Clippers have leveraged Powell's excellence
Norman Powell has been integral part of the Clippers, especially late in games.
It behooves oneself to keep one’s head when all about them are losing theirs.
It’s a line famously attributed to English novelist Rudyard Kipling, author of such literary works as “The Jungle Book” and “Gunga Din”.
For the LA Clippers, it applies to their versatile scoring guard and his penchant for delivering the goods at nearly every turn in fourth quarters.
Norman Powell is averaging his fewest points per game since 2018-19, when he was in his fourth year in the NBA and operating solely off the bench for a Toronto Raptors squad that went on to win a championship.
Powell has since improved as an offensive player, rounding out his game with an ability to get to the free-throw line while becoming a prolific driver and shooter. It’s what has allowed the Clippers to thrive late in games when Powell is on the floor, and it’s given the team something few other squads in the league presently possess — a legitimate off-the-bench scoring option that teams have to account for at all times in closing lineups.
Among the 53 players in the NBA that have taken at least 120 fourth-quarter field goal attempts, Powell ranks fourth in field goal percentage behind only Zion Williamson, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Nikola Jokic. Yet it’s even more staggering when considering that among the 59 players to attempt at least 50 fourth-quarter 3-pointers, Powell leads the NBA in 3-point percentage and is the only player in the league to make over half of his attempts in that setting.
Despite Powell's lowest points-per-game average since 2018-19, the stellar guard is shooting 50 percent from the field, 45.3 percent on 3s, and 87.5 percent from the line. Powell had a streak of 53 consecutive made free throws at one point this season, as well, just five shy of tying Jamal Crawford's franchise record.
But it’s how the Clippers have used Powell that’s changed.
Largely due to the addition of James Harden and the re-signing of Russell Westbrook, Powell’s usage and time on the ball have decreased from where they were last season and presently sit at some of the lowest marks of his career.
Powell’s averaging just 2.62 seconds per touch this season, dramatically down from a career-high 3.09 last season. It’s the lowest it’s been since 2019-20. Same with his average of 2.09 dribbles per touch. But this season, by far, features the fewest touches per minute and, consequently, the fewest touches per 36 minutes of Powell’s veteran career.
However, and you might recall this when we examined how Kawhi Leonard’s role had shifted and been reshaped with Harden in the fold, Powell’s efficiency has spiked while featuring less time on the ball.
There are 131 players presently in the NBA that have logged at least 1,000 minutes this season. Norman Powell leads all of them in points per touch, averaging 0.501. That alone should tell you how good he’s been.
So far this season, the Clippers have outscored opponents by 85 points in Powell’s 360 fourth-quarter minutes. That’s the 15th-highest plus-minus in the league. The Clippers are 32.7 points per 100 possessions better with Powell on the floor as opposed to off in the fourth quarter, as well, which is the highest margin on the team. For reference: Kawhi Leonard is second (plus-30.9).
But why? What’s made Powell so deadly with the Clippers this season? After all, his free-throw rate is at the lowest mark (.242) since 2018-19, meaning he's not generating as many trips to the line as in years past. So, what have the Clippers done, specifically concerning fourth quarters, that’s allowed Powell, and to a far larger extent, the overall team itself to flourish?
The answer appears to be a simple one: By limiting Powell’s on-ball time, it’s allowed him to excel as both a spot-up shooter who benefits from the gravity of others …
… and also by being an off-ball cutter who slides into gaps that opposing defenses just aren’t paying attention to …
… and, lastly, by attacking weaknesses in second-side action as defenses get bent to their maximum rotational point …
This season, Norman Powell is presently averaging:
Cuts: 1.67 points per possession
Spot-ups: 1.43 points per possession
Off-Screen: 1.13 points per possession
Transition: 1.09 points per possession
Powell’s also shooting 56.4 percent on drives, 48.9 percent on catch-and-shoot 3s, and 41 percent overall on pull-ups.
The guard has been fantastic at all levels, as evidenced by his shot chart above.
The Clippers have leveraged that three-level scoring ability to take advantage of the narrow spaces they’ve been afforded offensively in certain settings and then really hammered home that ideal when opting to flank Powell alongside the likes of James Harden, Paul George, and Kawhi Leonard.
It’s that quartet — George, Harden, Leonard, and Powell — that has stolen the show for the Clippers thus far this season.
In the 132 minutes that Powell has spent alongside the “three stars”, the Clippers have outscored opponents by 109 points and racked up a mind-blowing plus-35.1 Net Rating — 133.0 offensive rating and 97.9 defensive rating. They’ve only turned the ball over nine percent of the time, and 42.7 percent of their total field goal attempts have come beyond the 3-point line. They’re averaging 51.4 paint points per 100 possessions, further showcasing that they’re not only wreaking havoc from deep but also exhibiting an innate ability to make teams pay inside.
When looking at how those four have done together in fourth quarters, the Clippers have outscored opponents by 70 points in 88 minutes. To illustrate how phenomenal that is, it should be noted that the Clippers themselves have been outscored by 20 points in the 45 fourth-quarter minutes that George, Harden, and Leonard have played without Powell on the floor.
In other words: Norman Powell is a supreme difference maker for the Clippers, especially down the stretch of games as his mere presence alleviates some of the burden being shouldered not just by George and Leonard but also Harden as teams can’t just endlessly blitz the stellar passer to force the ball out of his hands for fear of Powell’s late-game excellence.
The Clippers are the sum of their parts, and no part is perhaps more valuable right now than what Powell is supplying the team not just in fourth quarters but overall.
Powell is one of the league’s most efficient players while doing it in a more limited role than in years past. But it hasn’t stopped Powell, or the Clippers, from finding success in his minutes. Especially in crucial moments.