Norman Powell to Heat, John Collins to Clippers, Love to Jazz in Reported 3-Team Trade

Norman Powell has been traded for the third time since the 2020-21 season.

The Los Angeles Clippers traded the guard to the Miami Heat in a three-team swap that includes the Utah Jazz, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.

Veteran forward John Collins is going from the Jazz to the Clippers, while Kevin Love, Kyle Anderson and a 2027 second-round pick from L.A. are on their way to the Jazz.

Powell's future now comes under an immediate spotlight, as he's only under contract through the 2025-26 season.

On the eve of free agency in June 2023, NBA insider Marc Stein reported that the Clippers were exploring trades for Powell and Marcus Morris Sr. after waiving Eric Gordon saved them $110 million in luxury tax (h/t HoopsHype). NBA insider Jake Fischer also reported at the time that many around the league believed Powell was available.

While the Clippers instead decided to keep Powell over the past two seasons, he's finally on the move again now.

Powell spent the first five years of his career with the Toronto Raptors, but he's been traded three time since. The Raptors sent him to the Portland Trail Blazers during the 2020-21 season, and the Trail Blazers traded him to the Clippers during the 2021-22 campaign.

Despite bouncing between teams, the 32-year-old Powell has taken another step as a scorer in recent years. He averaged a combined 17.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 47.8 percent from the field and 40.7 percent from deep over four seasons from 2019-20 through 2022-23. He then shot a career-high 43.5 percent from deep in 2023-24 and averaged a career-high 21.8 points per game this past season.

Outside shooting is what made him particularly valuable to potential suitors when it became clear the Clippers were attempting to move him. That ability should allow him to take advantage of the space created by Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo in Miami, just like he did with Kawhi Leonard and James Harden in Los Angeles.

While Powell won't completely alter the Heat's trajectory, he can catch fire from deep and pour in 20 or more points on any given night. He is also a playoff-tested veteran with 91 postseason games in his career, some of which came when he won a championship in 2019 with Toronto.

If he lives up to expectations, he will be an important offensive piece for the Heat as they attempt to make a run in the Eastern Conference.