Great story on espn.com about Lakers reserve forward Josh Powell (pictured left). Powell has not played very much this year but when his number is called he is always ready to go. Teammates love his preparation and attitude in practice. Here are some excerpts from the article:Now in his second season with the Lakers after spending the first three years of his career with four different teams, Powell has carved out a niche in Los Angeles as a vocal leader even though he is the ninth or 10th man in coach Phil Jackson's regular eight-man rotation.
In his short time with the Lakers, he's become fast friends with Bryant, who can just about count on one hand the amount of teammates he considers personal friends in his 14 seasons in the league.
"We both have a passion to work hard and to practice hard," Bryant said. "I think it started there and it grew from there."
Said Powell: "It's great. I think the biggest thing why we are close is because the hunger and the passion for the game that me and him both have. Granted, the skill level might be different, but you can't -- as far as heart and desire and things like that -- like, I'm up there. And everybody knows that. People can look at that and be like, 'That's my guy.'"
Bryant isn't just about practice, however. He's about performance. And he knows that Powell is capable of helping the team win ballgames.
"He has so much talent," Bryant said. "He can help us out so much. It's just that this team has so much depth. Every time he's had an opportunity to step in and perform, he's performed extremely well. Last year when Lamar [Odom] was out for a stretch, he stepped in in Houston and had a huge game, stepped in in San Antonio and had a huge game. He's extremely professional. Doesn't complain. Doesn't whine. He just comes out and works hard every day."
According to Powell, he doesn't give 100 percent or 110 percent, he gives "200 percent." It's that drive that turned him from a player whose framed portrait in the Lakers' practice facility shows him making a pass around Utah's Kyrylo Fesenko -- scrub against scrub in meaningless minutes -- to a player whose first career 3-pointer came in Game 1 of the 2009 NBA Finals.
"I think it's good for guys to watch," Bryant said. "Jordan [Farmar] and Shannon [Brown] and some of the other guys, because Josh is always ready. His number's not called. He can easily be playing, but most of the time his number's not called. When it is called, he's ready to go."
Powell hasn't been used as much this season as he was last season. His minutes have dipped from 11.7 to 8.7 per game and along with the decrease in playing time his points and rebounds per game have trended down from 4.2 and 2.9 per game, respectively, to 2.6 and 1.7.
While the numbers don't support it, Powell is just as important to the team and he's improving as a player.
"He's amazing," Odom said. "His work ethic, his persistence doesn't go unnoticed. It's too bad that he can't … that you guys don't really get to see it. We see it every morning. He's amazing.
"His skill level is high. He's gotten better even handling the ball and his range is all the way out to the 3-point range. He's in shape. He's a pro, man."
Bryant and Derek Fisher are the Lakers' official co-captains, but Powell takes on a distinct leadership role of his own.
"I think [he's a leader] because of how he carries himself, what he does and what he brings to us in practice," Odom said. "At 10 in the morning, when some guys are tired, Josh will wake your butt up. Because he will ram you. He will make the extra effort to go get the offensive rebound and so on and so on. He's going to get his. I can't wait to see it."
