Norman “Bucks Killer” Powell has a long history of killing the Bucks. This is not an unusual phenomenon; every team has a player who just randomly goes of on them all the time for no reason, though the Raptors seem to have more than the league average. Thon Maker (so happy he’s gone he’d probably be sulking due to not playing much even as the Bucks looked poised to make the finals because he thinks he’s some sort of good player even though he sucks) used to be that player for the Bucks against the Raptors, and all evidence to this point has shown that Powell is that player for the Raptors against the Bucks. Just a recap of what he’s done:
-As a five year old, pointed at a TV that was showing a Bucks game and asked “why is that team wearing such ugly jerseys?”.
-Was drafted by the Bucks in the 2015 draft. ESPN didn’t show it, but he could clearly be seen saying “I hate the god-damn Bucks man why are they doing this to me”. He then turned to his agent and immediately demanded a trade to a team that didn’t have Jason Kidd as its head coach.
-They must have listened to him, because he was then immediately traded along with the first-rounder that became OG Anunoby for Greivis Vasquez. I don’t think anyone besides Bucks fans were really aware the Vasquez was even on that team; that’s how bad the trade was. Powell and Anunoby are semi-productive role-players while Vasquez was pure booty flakes. I can’t believe the Bucks are this close to the Finals only a few years after such a disastrous trade. Not even joking, that’s often the type of trade that kills franchises.
-In his rookie season, dropped 17 on the Bucks in a 20-point Raptors win while Bucks fans wondered why they hadn’t just kept him. That wondering is still going on today.
-This is the big one: in the 2016-17 playoffs, Powell helped the Raptors eliminate the Bucks in the first round by missing only one three the ENTIRE series. He was 10 for 11 from deep, and had a huge 25-point game in game 6. Bucks fan’s angst over Powell was at its highest point during and after that game.
-And now he’s scored 14 despite Nick Nurse not believing in playing him during the second round. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him become the starter, but I’m praying that doesn’t happen. Who knows what could be unleashed if Powell is allowed to unleash his full hatred against the Bucks? Maybe the Raptors could even win a game.