Miami Heat guard Norman Powell
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NBA coaches are taking notice. Rick Carlisle publicly backed Norman Powell as an All-Star and the numbers support it.
Veteran guard Norman Powell has done everything an NBA All-Star candidate is supposed to do and then some. After a breakout season with the Los Angeles Clippers ended in one of last year’s most debated snubs, Powell has somehow elevated his game again after being traded to the Miami Heat. The numbers are louder. The role is bigger. And now, the support is coming directly from opposing benches.
That support became public Saturday night, even after Miami suffered a 123-99 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle didn’t hesitate when asked about Powell’s season.
“Norman Powell is such an important player for them,” Carlisle said. “Powell to me is an All-Star this year; he’ll get a vote from me. I have no problem saying it publicly. He’s been really tremendous this year for them.”
For a coach with Carlisle’s résumé to say it out loud, unprompted, matters. Coaches decide the reserves. And for Powell, that’s the path that still exists after he failed to crack the top tier of early fan voting returns.
A Bigger Role, Better Numbers, Real Impact
Powell is averaging 23.8 points per game, another career high, while playing just 30.8 minutes per night. That’s two fewer minutes than last season with the Clippers, when he averaged 21.8 points but never got the call. The efficiency jump is real. Powell is shooting 41.5 percent from three and tying a career high with 3.0 made triples per game.
The recent stretch only sharpens the case. Over his last six games, Powell is averaging 27.3 points on absurd 52.9/47.1/94.1 shooting splits in under 30 minutes per night. That isn’t volume scoring. That’s elite offensive output condensed into short bursts, the kind that swing games.
More importantly, the production hasn’t been empty. Miami sits at 20-19 and inside the East’s top eight despite a season riddled with instability. NBA analyst Zach Lowe sees it clearly, stating how Powell has become a stabilizing force force for the Heat, primarily on the offensive end.
“I have Norman Powell on [as an All-Star] because this is the best season of his career,” Lowe said on the Zach Lowe Show. “He’s kinda one of the defining features of how they play their wacky no pick-and-roll, north-south style.
“For Tyler Herro being injured almost the entire year, Bam having a down offensive season and Andrew Wiggins having a down couple of months after a hot start, I just don’t know where they’d be without Norman Powell. They certainly wouldn’t be where they are.”
That’s the crux of the argument. Powell isn’t just producing, he’s propping up a system.
The All-Star Math Still Favors Him
Despite the performance, Powell currently sits 18th in fan voting. That limits his starter chances, but it doesn’t end the conversation. Reserves are chosen by coaches. And if injuries create an opening, commissioner Adam Silver makes the final call.
Powell knows the math. He also knows the emotional trap. Last season, he believed he had done enough. This year, he’s careful not to expect it. Still, the belief is there and it’s earned. Few guards in the league are scoring this efficiently. Fewer still are doing it while carrying real team value.
Carlisle’s endorsement won’t be the last. Coaches notice who stresses game plans. They notice who keeps teams afloat. And this season, Norman Powell checks every box an All-Star reserve is supposed to check. Visibility may lag behind production. But production like this usually wins out.