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The Los Angeles Clippers are replacing Norman Powell with John Collins in a three-team trade involving the Utah Jazz and Miami Heat, according to Shams Charania of ESPN.
Collins will be joining Ivica Zubac in the Clippers' frontcourt, while Powell heads to the Eastern Conference and will join the Heat in the final year of his contract. The Jazz are adding Kevin Love, Kyle Anderson, and a 2027 second-round pick from Los Angeles as part of this three-team trade.
BREAKING: The Clippers, Jazz, and Heat pull off 3-team deal that shakes up both conferences 👀
Norman Powell ➡️ Heat
John Collins ➡️ Clippers
Kevin Love ➡️ Jazz
Kyle Anderson ➡️ Jazz pic.twitter.com/tgrOZW76Sa— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 7, 2025
Powell had been in trade discussions for the Clippers since their season ended. Although he had a career year in Los Angeles, the team had been aggressively seeking frontcourt help next to Zubac and to alleviate pressure off All-Star Kawhi Leonard, who is constantly battling injuries.
Before the 2025 NBA Draft, the Clippers and Jazz were discussing a trade that involved both Collins and Powell, league sources told ClutchPoints. Utah was attempting to find another team to take on the final year of Powell's contract, but discussions faded.
The two sides remained in conversation with one another, and Miami emerged as a landing spot for Powell in recent days.
As a result, a decision to trade Powell was made, and the Clippers added Collins, a player they have long coveted at the power forward position.
Powell registered his best season in the NBA this past year with the Clippers, averaging 21.8 points and 3.2 rebounds per game while shooting 48.4 percent from the floor and 41.8 percent from 3-point range. He will immediately supply the Heat with much-needed perimeter scoring help next to Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo in the final year of his contract.
Clippers' next steps after adding John Collins
While the Heat had previously been linked to former All-Star Bradley Beal as a potential buyout option, that no longer appears to be the likeliest of possibilities given their financial situation. By trading Love and Anderson to the Jazz, Miami is now hard-capped at the first tax apron and has little room to operate.
Pat Riley and his team are no longer able to utilize their full mid-level exception without sacrificing other talents on the trade market, which likely takes them out of the running for Beal. ClutchPoints reported late Sunday evening that Beal and the Suns were progressing on a buyout, with the Heat named as his top suitor.
The Clippers were another team listed as a suitor for Beal, and their odds of landing him upon being bought out by Phoenix have grown. It is a very real possibility that Steve Ballmer and Lawrence Frank add not just Beal, but future Hall of Fame point guard Chris Paul, who recently hinted at the 2025-26 season being his last.
This trade with the Heat and Jazz gives the Clippers another chance to contend at the highest level possible with athleticism and skill at every position before hitting 2026 free agency hard for another max-level player. Collins is a really solid player coming off a great season in Salt Lake City, and he should be able to contribute immediately in a pick-and-roll-heavy offense led by James Harden.
Over the last two seasons in Utah, the 27-year-old athletic forward averaged 16.5 points and 8.4 rebounds per game while shooting 53.0 percent from the floor and 38.2 percent from 3-point range. He will immediately slide into a starting role next to Zubac in the frontcourt.
Other teams had been rumored to be pursuing Collins, who held a small trade market this offseason. The Los Angeles Lakers held exploratory conversations with the Jazz in which Collins' name came up, and the Detroit Pistons were also rumored to have a level of interest in him. No trades ever materialized between the two teams and the Jazz.
As part of this three-team trade, the Clippers are now about $7 million below the first tax apron and can still utilize about $5 million from their mid-level exception for a player like Beal on the free-agent market. Since they took on salary, the Jazz created a $26.6 million traded player exception for themselves that can be utilized down the line.
The Jazz have been busy this offseason. In addition to trading Collins to Los Angeles and waiving veteran guard Jordan Clarkson, Utah also dealt Collin Sexton to the Charlotte Hornets for veteran center Jusuf Nurkic. Love and Anderson are the latest additions to Salt Lake City, as both players won't be there long.
While Anderson could be flipped for future value at the trade deadline, Love appears to be a likely buyout candidate for the Jazz before the 2025-26 season.
