The highest-regarded sports agent in the basketball industry, Rich Paul, with clients like LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Draymond Green, recently placed Norman Powell in the same tier as the 2026-likely All-Star guard, Austin Reaves. However, fans of the LA Clippers saw no difference between the two veterans in 2024-25, and a year later, they are being compared similarly.
"The best 2 guards [are] on the Olympic team. Norman Powell isn’t on the Olympic team. Does that mean that [he] is not a really good 2 guard? No… I would say Norman Powell is in that tier 2 with Austin Reaves."
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 11, 2025
— Rich Paul 🤔pic.twitter.com/qhS4vStsz4
Paul’s point of view is pure and transparent, as Powell and Reaves are not his clients. They are both signed to different, well-known agencies unrelated to Klutch Sports.
Thus, Paul is 100% correct. Clippers fans hear the sound of hard work paying off when Powell gets respect like this, as his production never suggested a gap in tiers with Reaves; both have just progressed at the same level for different teams.
Norman Powell and Austin Reaves equally deserve the 2026 All-Star nod
Rich Paul had Norman Powell and Austin Reaves in his tier-two composition of shooting guards. They are not quite the number one options at their positions, like Devin Booker, Donovan Mitchell, and Anthony Edwards, yet they are still very good and deserve props for their miraculous years.
Reaves, this season for the 17-7 Los Angeles Lakers, is averaging 27.8 points, 6.7 assists, and 5.6 rebounds, shooting 50.3% from the floor and 36.9% from three.
In comparison, Powell is averaging 24.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.4 assists, shooting 50.0% from the field and 43.6% from beyond the arc; the Miami Heat are currently 14-11.
These numbers make it easy to envision Paul’s thought process. He sees two guards, both with winning records and putting up All-Star numbers. Reaves’ averages are better overall, but they are neck and neck.
Reaves is essentially guaranteed to picked. Though he would be a starter in the ordinary season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Doncic have those spots covered, as they are dominating out of this world as MVP candidates, playing the same position in the same conference.
Moreover, fans of the LA Clippers remember Powell’s 2024-25 all-star campaign vividly. His first appearance in the game should have been last season; he got snubbed.
However, the plot will grow once Powell receives the selection this season, as it is Steve Ballmer and the LA Clippers' turn to have their arena used for All-Star weekend. This will add insult to injury, as the Clippers did not properly value one of the best two-guards in the NBA.