{{short description|American basketball player (born 2005)}} {{Infobox basketball biography | name = Drake Powell | image = UNC vs NCSU (Feb 2024) 27 (Powell).jpg | image_size = 200px | caption = Powell with [[North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball|North Carolina]] in 2025 | position = [[Shooting guard]] / [[small forward]] | height_ft = 6 | height_in = 5 | weight_lb = 195 | league = [[National Basketball Association|NBA]] | team = Brooklyn Nets | number = 4 | birth_date = {{birth date and age|2005|9|8}} | birth_place = [[Durham, North Carolina]], U.S. | high_school = [[Northwood High School (North Carolina)|Northwood]]<br>([[Pittsboro, North Carolina]]) | college = [[North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball|North Carolina]] (2024–2025) | draft_year = 2025 | draft_round = 1 | draft_pick = 22 | draft_team = [[Atlanta Hawks]] | career_start = 2025 | years1 = {{nbay|2025|start}}–present | team1 = [[Brooklyn Nets]] | years2 = [[2025–26 NBA G League season|2025]] | team2 = →[[Long Island Nets]] | highlights = * [[McDonald's All-American Game|McDonald's All-American]] ([[2024 McDonald's All-American Boys Game|2024]]) * [[Jordan Brand Classic]] (2024) }} '''Drake Edward Powell''' (born September 8, 2005) is an American professional [[basketball]] player for the [[Brooklyn Nets]] of the [[National Basketball Association]] (NBA). He played [[college basketball]] for the [[North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball|North Carolina Tar Heels]]. He was a consensus five-star [[college recruiting|recruit]] and one of the top players in the 2024 class.
==Early life and high school career== Powell grew up in [[Pittsboro, North Carolina]] and attended [[Northwood High School (North Carolina)|Northwood High School]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ncstate.rivals.com/news/sophomore-drake-powell-is-excited-about-nc-state-offer|title=Sophomore Drake Powell is excited about NC State offer|first=Jacey|last=Zembal|website=[[Rivals.com]]|date=November 29, 2021|access-date=March 3, 2024}}</ref> He averaged 18.6 points, seven rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game as a junior.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chathamnewsrecord.com/stories/drake-powell-rises-in-updated-2024-espn-100-rankings,16156|title=Drake Powell rises in updated 2024 ESPN 100 rankings|work=[[The Chatham News]]|date=September 6, 2023|access-date=March 4, 2024}}</ref> He put up averages of 17.7 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game along with 2.2 steals and 1.2 blocks during his senior year. Powell was selected to play in the [[2024 McDonald's All-American Boys Game]] during his senior year.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://247sports.com/college/arizona-state/Article/unc-basketball-signees-ian-jackson-drake-powell-named-mcdonalds-all-americans-225515010/|title=UNC Signees Ian Jackson, Drake Powell Named McDonald's All-Americans|first=Sherrell|last=McMillan|website=[[247Sports]]|date=January 23, 2024|access-date=February 29, 2024}}</ref>
===Recruiting=== Powell was considered a five-star [[college recruiting|recruit]] by most major recruiting services and was one of the top players in the 2024 class.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Baxley |first=Rodd |date=November 20, 2023 |title=How UNC basketball recruit Drake Powell went from unknown to unleashed as an elite player |url=https://www.fayobserver.com/story/sports/college/acc/2023/11/20/drake-powell-unc-basketball-recruiting-ian-jackson-james-brown/70863946007/ |access-date=February 27, 2024 |website=[[The Fayetteville Observer]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/high-school/article283378153.html|title=UNC Tar Heels basketball recruit Drake Powell analysis|work=[[The News & Observer]]|date=December 29, 2023|access-date=March 4, 2024}}</ref> He committed to playing [[college basketball]] for [[North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball|North Carolina]] over offers from [[Florida State Seminoles men's basketball|Florida State]], [[NC State Wolfpack men's basketball|NC State]], [[Texas A&M Aggies men's basketball|Texas A&M]], [[Tennessee Volunteers basketball|Tennessee]], [[Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's basketball|Wake Forest]], [[Miami Hurricanes men's basketball|Miami (Florida)]], and [[Georgia Bulldogs basketball|Georgia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://chathamnewsrecord.com/stories/northwood-junior-boys-basketball-player-drake-powell-commits-to-unc,14310|title=Northwood junior boys basketball player Drake Powell commits to UNC|work=[[The Chatham News]]|date=September 14, 2022|access-date=February 27, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://247sports.com/college/north-carolina/article/drake-powell-commitment-unc-basketball-northwood-2024-north-carolina-tar-heels-hubert-davis-191967772/|title=Junior Wing Drake Powell Commits to UNC|first=Sherrell|last=McMillan|website=[[247Sports]]|date=September 8, 2022|access-date=March 4, 2024}}</ref> Powell signed a [[National Letter of Intent]] to play for the Tar Heels on November 16, 2023, during the early signing period.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chathamnewsrecord.com/stories/drake-powell-chatham-county-athletes-sign-to-college-programs,16289|title=Drake Powell, Chatham County athletes sign to college programs|work=[[The Chatham News]]|date=November 16, 2023|access-date=March 4, 2024}}</ref>
{{College Athlete Recruit Start|40=no|collapse=no|year=2024}} {{College Athlete Recruit Entry | recruit = Drake Powell | position = [[Shooting guard|SG]] / [[small forward|SF]] | hometown = [[Pittsboro, North Carolina|Pittsboro, NC]] | highschool = [[Northwood High School (North Carolina)|Northwood]] (NC) | feet = 6 | inches = 6 | weight = 195 | 40 = | commitdate = September 8, 2022 | scout stars = | rivals stars = 5 | 247 stars = 5 | On3 stars = 4 | espn stars = 5 | espn grade = 92 }} {{College Athlete Recruit End | 40 = | year = 2024 | rivals ref title = North Carolina 2024 Basketball Commitments | scout ref title = | espn ref title = 2024 North Carolina Tar Heels Recruiting Class | rivals school = northcarolina | scout s = | espn schoolid = 153 | rivals overall = 15 | 247 overall = 11 | On3 overall = 16 | espn overall = 14 | accessdate = August 4, 2025 | bball = yes }}
==College career== In his freshman season, Powell played in all 37 of the Tar Heels' games, starting 24, becoming a main piece in the rotation down the stretch of the season. Noted for his defensive versatility and ability, Powell anchored a Tar Heel defense that struggled at times during the 2024–25 campaign. This was highlighted by his season averages of 0.7 steals and 0.7 blocks. Offensively, he averaged 7.4 points per game, shooting 48% from the field and 38% from three-point range.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/stats/_/id/5037873/drake-powell|title=Drake Powell Career Stats - NCAAM - ESPN|website=espn.com|publisher=ESPN|access-date=April 4, 2024}}</ref> Following the season, he declared for the [[2025 NBA draft]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Borzello |first1=Jeff |title=Bryant, Sorber, Powell, Philon to remain in NBA draft |url=https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45151088/bryant-sorber-powell-philon-remain-nba-draft |website=[[ESPN]] |access-date=May 16, 2025 |date=May 14, 2025}}</ref>
==Professional career== Powell was drafted by the [[Atlanta Hawks]] with the 22nd pick in the [[2025 NBA draft]]. His draft rights were later traded to the Brooklyn Nets.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Brooklyn Nets Acquire Terance Mann and Draft Rights to Drake Powell in Three-Team Trade {{!}} Brooklyn Nets |url=https://brooklynnets.com/news/brooklyn-nets-acquire-terance-mann-and-draft-rights-to-drake-powell-in-three-team-trade |access-date=July 7, 2025 |website=brooklynnets.com |language=en}}</ref>
==Career statistics== {{NBA player statistics legend}}
===NBA=== {{NBA player statistics start}} |- | style="text-align:left;"| {{nbay|2025}} | style="text-align:left;"| [[2025–26 Brooklyn Nets season|Brooklyn]] | 63 || 24 || 21.0 || .402 || .280 || .896 || 1.8 || 1.4 || .6 || .2 || 6.5 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 63 || 24 || 21.0 || .402 || .280 || .896 || 1.8 || 1.4 || .6 || .2 || 6.5 {{S-end}}
===College=== {{NBA player statistics start}} |- | style="text-align:left;"| [[2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season|2024–25]] | style="text-align:left;"| [[2024–25 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team|North Carolina]] | 37 || 24 || 25.6 || .483 || .379 || .648 || 3.4 || 1.1 || .7 || .7 || 7.4 {{S-end}}
==Personal life== Powell is the son of Dedric and Cherice Powell. His father played baseball at UNC, and his mother was an all-state high school basketball player and also attended UNC. His sister, Cera, played volleyball at Virginia Tech and UConn. His brother Deuce was a three-sport standout at Northwood, who played basketball at [[Louisburg College]] and also attended North Carolina A&T. <ref>{{cite web |title=Drake Powell - Men's Basketball |url=https://goheels.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/drake-powell/26256 |website=University of North Carolina Athletics |access-date=September 25, 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
Powell is a cousin of UNC head coach [[Hubert Davis]]. His grandmother is Davis's aunt.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Koh |first1=Michael |title=Northwood High's Drake Powell Commits to UNC Basketball |url=https://chapelboro.com/sports/northwood-highs-drake-powell-commits-to-unc-basketball |website=Chapelboro.com |access-date=September 25, 2024 |date=September 9, 2022}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{basketball stats}} *[https://goheels.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/drake-powell/26256 North Carolina Tar Heels bio] *[https://www.usab.com/players/drake-powell USA Basketball bio]
{{Brooklyn Nets current roster}} {{2025 NBA draft}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Drake}} [[Category:2005 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:21st-century American sportsmen]] [[Category:American men's basketball players]] [[Category:Atlanta Hawks draft picks]] [[Category:Basketball players from Durham, North Carolina]] [[Category:Brooklyn Nets players]] [[Category:Long Island Nets players]] [[Category:McDonald's High School All-Americans]] [[Category:North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players]] [[Category:Shooting guards]] [[Category:Small forwards]]