Leon Powe Jr. (; born January 22, 1984) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers and are typi ...

. Drafted in

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

by the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

, Powe grew up in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

, and played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

California Golden Bears The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...

. He played his first three years in the NBA with the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

and won a championship with the team in

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

. From 2009 to 2011, Powe played for the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

. He also had a stint with the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

in 2011. After a stint in Puerto Rico, Powe announced his retirement in 2014 citing multiple injuries and his desire to become a businessman.

Early life

Powe grew up in Oakland, California. His father left him when he was two years old. When he was seven years old, the family's house burned down and they were homeless for years. They moved more than twenty times within six years. He and his siblings were taken away from their mother by the state of California and put into

foster care Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home ( residential child care community or treatment centre), or private home of a state- certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent", or with a family mem ...

. Powe's mother died four days before he played in the state championship.

High school career

Powe attended

Oakland Technical High School Oakland Technical High School, known locally as Oakland Tech or simply "Tech", is a public high school in Oakland, California, United States, and is operated under the jurisdiction of the Oakland Unified School District. It is one of six compre ...

along with former

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

running back

Marshawn Lynch Marshawn Terrell Lynch (born April 22, 1986) is an American actor and former professional American football, football player who was a running back for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "Beast Mode", he spent the majori ...

, where he averaged 27.4 ppg, 14.2

rpg RPG may refer to: Military * Rocket-propelled grenade, a shoulder-launched anti-tank weapon **''Ruchnoi Protivotankoviy Granatomyot'' (Russian: ''Ручной Противотанковый Гранатомёт''), hand-held anti-tank grenade laun ...

and 3.1 bpg as a senior. With Powe in the roster, Oakland Tech won the CIF Oakland Section Championship and also reached the CIF State Championships in 2002 and 2003. He was named a first-team Parade All-American and the Gatorade California Player of the Year during his senior year. A highly rated prep star, Powe was selected to play in the

McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American multinational fast food chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese chain Mixue Ice Cream & Tea. Brothers ...

game and became the first Oakland Tech athlete to have his number retired by the school.

College career

Powe played

at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, for the Golden Bears from 2003 to 2006. Although he was present for three seasons, he did not play in his sophomore year (2004–05) due to a serious knee injury.Cal sophomore Powe to test draft - NBA - ESPN
/ref> During his freshman season, he was named the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, leading the conference in rebounding. Questions abounded about whether Powe would return to form following his knee surgery, but he worked hard and rehabilitated to become a dominant force on the interior as he continued to improve his game. He produced 20.5 PPG and 10.1 RPG while leading Cal to a 20–11 record and a berth in the NCAA tournament. Powe was named California's most valuable player during a banquet in April 2006. Powe, who also was selected Cal's

MVP MVP most commonly refers to: * Most valuable player, an award, typically for the best performing player in a sport or competition * Minimum viable product, a concept for feature estimating used in business and engineering MVP may also refer to: ...

as a

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...

in 2004, averaged 20.5 ppg and 10.1 rpg to become just the sixth player ever to pace the Pac-10 Conference in both categories. Named a second-team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

, the U.S. Basketball Writers and

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, he was chosen to the All-Pac-10 First Team for a second time in 2006.

Professional career

After his junior year, Powe decided to enter his name in the

2006 NBA draft The 2006 NBA draft was held on June 28, 2006, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. c ...

. Powe was selected by the

in the second round as the 49th overall pick. The Nuggets subsequently traded him to the

. After playing for the Celtics summer league team, Powe was signed by the team to a 3-year contract. Although Powe did not reach the sum of 14 in his per game points, rebounds, and assists necessary to guarantee the second year of his contract, that second year became guaranteed when Boston did not waive him by July 1, 2007. Powe had a similar hurdle of 16 for the sum of the three statistics to guarantee the third year of his contract ( 2008–09).

2006–07 NBA season

Powe played as a fourth string center behind Kendrick Perkins, Brian Scalabrine and Michael Olowokandi in his rookie season. After a rash of injuries submarined Boston's playoff chances, Powe received a limited opportunity to showcase his skills. He proved himself a capable defender who could alter shots and provide interior rebounding. On January 12, 2007, Powe made the most out of his 25 minutes and registered a career-high 12 rebounds against the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

. On April 10, 2007, he scored 19 points against the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

. Powe finished the 2006–07 campaign averaging 4.2 points and 3.4 rebounds in just over 11 minutes per game.

2007–08 NBA season

On January 29, 2008, Powe had a breakout performance that took place in

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

against the

Heat In thermodynamics, heat is energy in transfer between a thermodynamic system and its surroundings by such mechanisms as thermal conduction, electromagnetic radiation, and friction, which are microscopic in nature, involving sub-atomic, ato ...

, as he effectively filled in the blank of the absent main contributors

Kevin Garnett Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Big Ticket," Garnett is considered one of the greatest power f ...

and

Ray Allen Walter Ray Allen Jr. (born July 20, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. Allen played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a play ...

, scoring 25

points A point is a small dot or the sharp tip of something. Point or points may refer to: Mathematics * Point (geometry), an entity that has a location in space or on a plane, but has no extent; more generally, an element of some abstract topologica ...

and grabbing 11

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

en route to a 117–87 blowout victory. He also scored his career-high 27 points in the last game of the season against the

New Jersey Nets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

on April 16, 2008. One of his most notable performances of the season came in Game 2 of the

2008 NBA Finals The 2008 NBA Finals was the NBA Finals, championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2007–08 NBA season, 2007–08 season and conclusion of 2008 NBA playoffs, the season's playoffs. A best-of-seven playoff series that was ...

against the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

on June 8, 2008, as he scored 21

, which included several dunks and 13 free throw attempts in only 15 minutes of play in front of a crowd chanting his name en route to a 108–102 Celtics victory.

2008–09 NBA season

On March 13, 2009, Powe started in place of the injured

, scoring a career-high 30 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking a career-high 5 shots, in a 102–92 Celtics victory over the

. Powe spent the end of the season attempting to recover from a right knee strain. He returned in time for the playoffs, only to tear the ACL and meniscus in his left knee in Game 2 of the first round against the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

. Powe continued to play on the torn ACL for three minutes before being taken out. His season ended with the knee injury, and had successful surgery to repair the injury on May 5, 2009. On August 2, the

offered Powe an offer sheet worth two years and $1.8 million. On August 11, 2009, Powe and the Cavaliers agreed in principle to the deal with an option on the second year. On August 12, 2009, he officially signed the deal.

2010–11 NBA season

On February 24, 2011, Powe was waived when the

needed to clear their roster capacity after making two trades.Free agent Leon Powe signed by Memphis Grizzlies - ESPN
/ref> He had just recovered from surgery to repair the torn meniscus in his right knee which had kept him sidelined for six weeks. Over a week later, Powe signed for the rest of the season with the

Basketball post-career

In 2014, Powe was hired by the Celtics as community ambassador.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

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Playoffs

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References

External links

* *
Leon Powe Fan SiteThe Making of Leon PoweVideos of Leon Powe on mReplay.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powe, Leon 1984 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Atléticos de San Germán players Basketball players from Oakland, California Boston Celtics players California Golden Bears men's basketball players Cleveland Cavaliers players Denver Nuggets draft picks McDonald's High School All-Americans Memphis Grizzlies players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Power forwards Oakland Technical High School alumni