News broke Monday morning on a three-team trade that sends Norman Powell to the Miami Heat. From missing out on flashier names in trade discussions, the Heat have received a valuable player at a reduced price, making this an excellent deal for Miami.

The Heat agreed to these terms with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Utah Jazz:

• Heat received: Norman Powell
• Clippers received: John Collins
• Jazz received: Kevin Love, Kyle Anderson, 2027 second-round pick from LAC

For Heat fans, this is the best deal they could have signed off on.

After the Jimmy Butler deal to Golden State midseason, the Heat lost their identity. For so long, this team was on the back of Dwyane Wade until he retired. Butler came in and made Wade County his home, igniting a fire under his teammates and thriving until his relationship with the front office soured. With that situation being broken beyond repair, Butler’s trade to Golden State signified the end of an era and the Heat weren’t clear about that era, except for Tyler Herro’s emergence as a first-time All-Star.

While Herro’s improvement was encouraging, the Miami Heat know this offense can’t solely ride on Herro. Asking Bam Adebayo to be the second-scoring option forces him to scale back on his defensive intensity, taking away from his greatest strength to the team.

Miami’s need for a legitimate scoring option next to Tyler Herro was plain as day.

The Heat didn’t acquire Kevin Durant, who ultimately went to the Houston Rockets, and there aren’t many scorers and major impact players left this offseason. Honestly, there weren’t many choices to begin with.

The Heat also wants to be a major player in next year’s free agency. Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Zach LaVine, De’Aaron Fox, Mikal Bridges, and Chet Holmgren are all scheduled to be free agents in 2026. Keeping cap space free to pursue one of these free agents will be vital for next year, when the likelihood of the team’s current construction making a deep playoff run seems farfetched.

Enter Norman Powell.

Powell is 32 years old and comes to South Beach in the final year of his deal. Powell is due $20.4 million this year, which isn’t a lot by any means, but he will be up for a bigger contract next year if he continues to elevate his production on the floor.

Powell averaged a career-high of 21.8 PPG last season with the Clippers and really helped the team in Kawhi Leonard’s absence. But his biggest asset to the team could also be on the heels of Duncan Robinson signing with the Detroit Pistons, as Powell shot 41.8% from 3-point range last season as opposed to Robinson’s 39.3%. For Robinson to be highly regarded as a 3-point shooter, the Heat might have upgraded Robinson’s position… and then some.

That “then some” comes from Powell’s work ethic on the floor. Powell isn’t just a 3-point shooter, and while his stats don’t reflect it, he can do anything on the floor to succeed.

Powell instantly inserts himself into this offense as a third scoring option, but as the season progresses, he might be the Robin to Tyler Herro for this year. After all, Powell and Herro are the only two players on next year’s Heat team who averaged more than 20 points a night last year.

The Heat will have the option, based on Powell’s fit in Heat culture and the free agency next season, whether to commit to Powell long-term or have the freed-up space to pursue someone else. A year in a Heat uniform gives the team a better trial period, rather than trying to acquire Powell next offseason as a last resort.

For what the Heat gave up, it was next to nothing. Kyle Anderson was acquired in the Jimmy Butler trade, and while he received praise in the locker room for his work ethic, he was never going to be the third scoring option in Miami.

The Heat also let Kevin Love go. Love had a difficult season personally, with his father Stan passing away in April. There were also rumblings that Love wasn’t happy with the Jimmy Butler drama this season and how that went down. Love was supportive of his former teammate and insinuated on social media that he was on Team Jimmy as that saga unfolded.

Overall, to get a player who scored above 20 points per night last year for Love’s 5.3 PPG and Anderson’s 6.7 PPG without giving up any draft capital is an absolute steal for Miami.

Kudos to the Heat for a job well done.