Former Tar Heels Star Drake Powell Takes Pride In Defense

As a freshman at North Carolina, Drake Powell was effective. He was not electric, but he had that certain something which made him a first-round draft choice in last week's NBA Draft.

Call it moxie, call it intangibles. Powell brought something extra to the party which not a lot of players have the ability to bring. The 22nd pick of the draft, along with the other draft choices of the Brooklyn Nets, met with the New York media for the first time as a professional.

Powell was asked about his reduced playing time at UNC. He had to learn to spread the ball around and not take every shot. Playing at the Dean Smith Center was different than playing at Northwood High School. He would not be counted on to be the chef, cook and bottle washer. The Tar Heels had four other players on the court with him who were just as good, if not better or more experienced.

"I'd say it really just switched my mentality a little bit," Powell said. "My usage rate, it dropped a lot once I got to North Carolina, but I was still playing heavy minutes and being able to help the team be successful. I really could have just sulked and complained to the coaches, but what does that get done? That was really the way I thought. And so I just accepted the role that I was given with open arms, and I just wanted to be able to play to the best of my ability to help the team be successful."

His time at North Carolina was unique compared to Northwood. Just as playing for the Nets will be different from being a Tar Heels sharpshooter. At Northwood, the whole team revolved around him. Those days are over. He is now a rookie in the NBA, when theoretically, he could have been a sophomore in college.

Powell relied on the upperclassmen to teach him the ropes in Chapel Hill. He will rely on the veterans to show him how to be a great NBA player.

"The preparation, everyday type preparation," Powell said. "I think that was something that I struggled with going in, but I had to continue to put trust in a lot of my vets. Seth Trimble, RJ Davis, Jalen Washington, guys like that. I just tried to shadow them a little bit, see how they operated."

Powell had 24 starts in 37 games as a Tar Heels player. That is not a large sample size, but it was still enough to give the Nets all they needed to see. They were impressed with his defense as was Tar Heels coach Hubert Davis. Powell, as a freshman, was named the defensive player of the year for North Carolina.

"I feel like my defense, that's mainly pride," Powell said. "That's something that I've had since growing up at a young age, playing with my older brother and older cousin. That's something I've always taken pride in. I think I can make an immediate impact to help this team be successful and do whatever I can to (play) to the best of my ability."

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