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Miami Heat legend and NBA Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade offered his thoughts on the team’s recent acquisition of Norman Powell in a trade with the Los Angeles Clippers during the latest episode of his Wy Network show.
Powell, 32, was dealt to Miami last week in a three-team trade involving the Clippers and Utah Jazz. The deal sent Powell to the Heat, while the Clippers acquired forward John Collins from Utah. The Jazz received Kevin Love, Kyle Anderson, and a 2027 second-round pick from the Clippers to complete the exchange.
Powell arrives in South Florida after a standout season in Los Angeles, where he averaged 21.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.2 steals per game on 48.4% shooting from the field and 41.8% from three. Despite being viewed as an All-Star snub, Powell emerged as a consistent scoring presence throughout the 2024–25 campaign.
Dwyane Wade praises Norman Powell’s talent and fit alongside Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro
Wade spoke positively about the move, emphasizing Powell’s ability to contribute alongside the Heat’s current core of Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro.
“Y’all know how good Norman is. He was an All-Star this year out there in the West,” Wade said. “And so, for the Heat to be able to get a player like that with Bam with Tyler, as the one-two options, like, all right, great! All right, let’s go.”
Former NBA player and Wade’s co-host, Dorell Wright, echoed the praise and pointed to Powell’s fit with the Heat’s team identity.
“He’s a Heat culture guy,” Wright said. “He spoke on that when he got traded and talked about him going to Miami that he’s Heat culture. He checks all the boxes. He checks all the boxes for a Heat guy.”
Powell calls Heat trade a “childhood dream,” eyes fresh start after career year
Powell, who previously won a championship with the Toronto Raptors in 2019, addressed the trade in an interview with ClutchPoints’ Zachary Weinberger, calling it a “childhood dream” to play for the Heat.
“When I got the call and said I was traded, obviously it's a shock, because you're not expecting it,” Powell said. “You just had a career year, and you know, you'd like to believe that you're going to think you're going to have some extension talks and things when you're back, but hearing that it was Miami, I was really excited.”
He continued, “They've said amazing things about the city, the fans, the organization, and then just thinking back to like my childhood and being a big fan of Dwyane Wade and watching the Heat growing up and wanting to play for the Heat organization as one of the teams, is a childhood dream that you want to play for. It's definitely a cool full-circle moment for me.”
The Heat are looking to regroup after a 37–45 season that ended with a first-round playoff sweep by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Powell’s arrival adds scoring depth and veteran leadership to a retooled Miami roster that also moved on from Jimmy Butler III in a midseason trade with Golden State.
With Powell joining Adebayo and Herro, the Heat aim to re-establish themselves among the Eastern Conference contenders heading into the 2025–26 season.
