Norman Powell is making the rest of the league look foolish. With the way Powell has looked through the first month of the season, there are a lot of teams that have to be regretting their decision not to explore a trade for the veteran guard during the offseason.
Instead, the Heat took advantage, and Powell is now widely considered the steal of the offseason.
To say that Powell has been fantastic this season would be a massive understatement. With Tyler Herro out during the first month of the season, Powell helped power the Heat to an 11-6 start to the year. He still is the team's leading scorer and has been thriving in Erik Spoelstra's new offensive system that is predicated on pace and space.
It's almost as if the Heat's front office knew that Powell would be a great fit in Spo's new offense. During the first 17 games of the season without Herro, the team's best offensive player on paper, the Heat didn't miss a beat. In fact, they were much better to start this year on the offensive end of the floor than at any point last season.
Sure, much of that credit is going to fall on Spo's lap, and understandably so, but there's no question that Powell deserves some of that love too.
The Clippers practically gave Norman Powell away
The fact that the LA Clippers were practically begging teams to take Powell off their hands just a few months ago is absolutely absurd. In retrospect, this could end up being a huge mistake for LA, especially considering how much they've struggled so far this season.
In total, the Clippers traded Powell to the Heat (in a three-team deal) for John Collins. The move also gave them the financial flexibility to sign Bradley Beal after he agreed to a buyout with the Phoenix Suns.
That move has been a net negative for the Clippers so far and has brought tremendous dividends for the Heat.
LA has the look of a team that is going to finish nowhere near playoff seeding in the Western Conference, and the Heat are right in the thick of the playoff race in the East. In fact, at the moment, the Heat is the third seed in the conference with a 12-6 record.
And Powell has been instrumental in the Heat's unexpected success so far this season. If he keeps this level of play up through the rest of the season, the regret across the league is naturally going to continue to grow.