Norman Powell was pretty good as a Portland Trail Blazer. He played just 67 games, but he shot nearly 39% from 3-point range and averaged 18 points per game. Unfortunately, Powell never truly fit alongside Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum — three offensive-minded guards who struggle on the defensive end is a tough thing to make work.
So Powell was dealt down the West Coast to LA when the Blazers began their rebuild in earnest. In his first few seasons there, he was mostly the same version of himself that the Blazers witnessed during his tenure in PDX. Then, in 2024-25, he became a borderline All-Star... Sort of out of nowhere!
Now, in his first month with the Heat, Powell still looks like that star, causing the Heat to realize that Powell might genuinely be this good. The Blazers were never able to come to that realization because, simply, Powell was never this good in Portland!
Norman Powell has become the star he never was in Portland
Granted, he was never this level of star anywhere until his final year with the Los Angeles Clippers, and he's continued that late-career surge in Miami, averaging 25 points per game to this point.
Last year, Powell was a big part of the Clippers offense, but the unut struggled outside of his and James Harden's individual success. This year, Powell is a focal point of the Heat offense that's leading the league in points per game at 123.9. A lot of those points come from Miami's blistering pace, but the points are coming nonetheless.
The wildest part might be that Miami acquired Powell for an even less inspiring package than the Blazers got years ago! And that was before Powell's career second wind. The Heat got him for some middle-bench veterans and a future second-rounder. At least the Blazers got a young player in their Powell deal. A bad young player, but a young player nonetheless! Why do front offices give Powell away for free? Explain it to me like I'm five, please.
I'll never fault Joe Cronin for his fire sale a few years ago. The team had to pick a direction, and Cronin made it happen. Powell's breakout a few years later could never have been expected — it's still kind of shocking, to be honest.