Forty-five, compact and with a shaved head, Powell looks something like a Marine sergeant crossed with a hip-hop star. He’s known for his rough, tough, in-your-face training philosophy, which can stretch even giants to new heights. But while most elite trainers have their heads in the NBA, Powell is just as immersed in the players who are far from the spotlight of everyone except … a breed of intense parents. We’re talking about kids, of course, ages 4 and up, whom Powell trains just as hard as he does the pros — so they might be pros themselves one day. Powell’s method is controversial but apparently effective: Whether he’s training a 7-year-old peewee or a 25-year-old all-star, Powell tries to stimulate game-time intensity, curses usually included. 

Powell’s mantra? “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” Other than that, he insists, “there is no Jerry Powell way. There is the right way and the wrong way.”

Why I should care about... (Fill in the blank)?

This guy.  Because All Stars.  Because almost March.  Because ramping up.  Because Sunday morning read.

.....medical condition, Powell, who worked for years in a sanitation department, describes a difficult childhood. Of his surgery, he says, “I could have died.”

Dramatic, perhaps, but today, some 14 years later, there’s a long roster of people who are grateful he lived. Like King James, as in, yes, LeBron, the basketball great. Or for that matter, a host of other NBA stars from Kevin Durant to Paul George to Danny Green, who praises Powell’s ability to adapt to different players’ styles “and break down their strengths and weaknesses.” Though he’s not a household name, Powell is a big deal in the ranks of both men’s and women’s professional basketball leagues — the power behind the power — and one of just a handful of truly elite basketball trainers. No, they won’t be taking bows during today’s NBA’s annual All-Star Game, but they are the ones who know how to push the best through hours of footwork and sprints and shots so that the public can be awed by these stars’ graceful three-pointers and gleaming deltoids. 

Heh. Ok, updated title. 

Seems so obvious now ...

Thank you!

Happily! He has a good story.