(Mandatory Credit: Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images)
The Miami Heat were unquestionably one of the league’s most active teams this summer.
They also improved as much as most other teams.
Coming off four straight play-in berths, Miami changed the trajectory by acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo in late June — in addition to veteran big man Bobby Portis, plus sharpshooters Klay Thompson and Tim Hardaway Jr. It also drafted sharpshooting guard Ryan Conwell, and signed free agent center Nick Richards, effectively adding more big man depth.
The plethora of new faces is a good change for the Heat, given the results from the last few seasons. It’s even better when one of those new faces is a perennial MVP candidate in the middle of his physical prime. In totality, Miami will be swapping out five of its top-9 scorers from a season ago, including two of their top-4.
One of them — Norman Powell, who’s now with the Bulls — endorsed the new-look Heat in a recent video with Neon, a popular streamer.
“Anytime you get a generational talent like that it automatically puts you into contention,” Powell said. “We had a lot of battles against Milwaukee when I was in Toronto. He’s a generational player, so it’s about how the team they have around them and how they mesh and come together.
“They got some dawgs. Shoutout my man [Davion Mitchell], and [Bam Adebayo]. They gonna be good. I’m excited to see how it all comes together. They signed [Klay Thompson]. That’s a good pickup for them. They made some good moves.”
Norman Powell believes the Heat got WAY BETTER with the Giannis trade:
“Anytime you get a generational talent like that it automatically puts you into contention. He’s a generational player… They got some dawgs. Shoutout my man D Mitch. Off night and Bam. They gonna be good.… pic.twitter.com/wkqK9KbgpJ
— Heat Central (@TheHeatCentral) September 12, 2026
Miami elected not to bring Powell, their leading scorer, back this offseason. He averaged 21.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists on 47.0 percent shooting and 38.0 percent from 3-point range. Powell led the Heat in made threes (156) with the third-most made shots.
Evidently, Powell signed a two-year, $45 million deal with the Bulls in July. There were rumors that the Heat were interested in a reunion, but Powell later revealed that the organization never came to the table to make a formal offer.
Powell’s return to Miami will be on Dec. 21, and his reception will likely be mixed. The former Heat All-Star didn’t leave a massive footprint in his lone year in the 305, but one big enough to draw a mixed reaction, for whatever it’s worth.
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