Norman Powell discusses fresh start with Bulls on day Heat falls to Magic in Vegas
As the Miami Heat fell to 1-1 at Las Vegas Summer League with a 93-88 loss to the Orlando Magic at UNLV’s Pavilion on Saturday afternoon, former Heat guard Norman Powell spoke about his fresh start with the Chicago Bulls just a few miles away.
With the Heat limited in how much it could offer in free agency to bring back Powell following the trade for two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and veteran forward Bobby Portis, Powell signed a two-year deal worth $45 million to join the Chicago Bulls in free agency this summer.
“Did I want to return to Miami? Yeah, I did,” Powell said to a group of Chicago-based media in Las Vegas on Saturday. “But obviously, it’s a business. They made their decisions and made their moves and things happen. And it is what it is.”
Powell downplayed the fact that the second year of his contract with the Bulls is not guaranteed.
“I go in every situation wanting to be where I’m at and help win,” Powell said. “Looking at the business of it, I’ve been around so long that it crossed my mind. But I’m focused on being in the moment.”
Powell’s time in Miami lasted only one season after the Los Angeles Clippers traded him to the Heat last summer. According to a league source, the Heat opted to move on from Powell and didn’t push to try to create more room under the first apron to re-sign him.
But Powell’s time in Miami was one he will always remember for a few reasons, as he made his first NBA All-Star Game and celebrated the birth of his first child during his lone season with the Heat.
Powell, 33, closed his only season with the Heat with averages of 21.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 47% from the field and 38% from three-point range last regular season. He finished just short of surpassing his single-season career-high of 21.8 points per game.
“It solidified that to myself that I can play at this level, more so than anything,” Powell said when asked Saturday about the significance of making his first NBA All-Star Game with the Heat last season. “And it just like shut everybody else up that said that it wasn’t even possible. But for me, it was just another milestone that I wanted to get checked off the list.
“I didn’t want just one All-Star, I want multiple All-Stars. And obviously my career path and different things, roles and things that I’ve had to play, it is what it is. I wanted to win as well, so I’m not going to sacrifice winning just to try to achieve something individually. I want to win championships, I want to be in the playoffs every single year, I want to compete for something. But the opportunity came for me to finally step into the role and the player that I’ve always saw myself being able to do, and I’ve been able to take advantage of that opportunity.”
But Powell dealt with nagging injuries during the final few months of this past season, as he missed 13 of the Heat’s 26 games following the All-Star break. He was sidelined for seven games because of a right groin strain, one game because of left calf tightness, four games because of an illness and one game because of right groin soreness.
Now, Powell is off to the rebuilding Bulls.
“I’m just really excited for coming to a new city, a new chapter and just being a part of something that could be very special,” Powell said.
“I know where I’m at in my career. Obviously, the whole focal point is winning and wanting to get back to that championship stage. But just looking at the opportunity that was in front of me, that’s going to allow me to be able to play my game of basketball how I want to play it and be able to help pass on knowledge.”
Here are other things to know from the Heat’s day in Las Vegas on Saturday:
▪ With guards Ryan Conwell and Tre Donaldson given the day off on the back end of the summer league back-to-back set, the Heat opened Saturday’s contest with a starting lineup of Jahmir Young, Trevor Keels, Tre White, J’Vonne Hadley and Vlad Goldin.
None of the players in the Heat’s summer starting lineup on Saturday are signed to contracts by Miami for next season, with Goldin a restricted free agent after receiving a two-way contract qualifying offer from the Heat last month.
Conwell and Donaldson played in each of the Heat’s first four summer league games, including Friday’s win over the Milwaukee Bucks to begin Las Vegas Summer League, before sitting out Saturday’s contest.
▪ Keels and Young, who are both now unrestricted free agents after ending last season with the Heat, were the Heat summer league team’s best players on Saturday.
Keels, who closed last season on a two-way contract with the Heat, finished with a game-high 32 points on 12-of-19 shooting from the field and 6-of-10 shooting on threes, four rebounds and two assists. He started the day 6 of 6 from the field and 3 of 3 from three-point range. Miami did not extend a qualifying offer to Keels this offseason.
Young, who ended last season on a standard deal with the Heat, closed with 27 points on 8-of-23 shooting from the field and 3-of-11 shooting on threes, one rebound, six assists, three steals and one block. The Heat declined the team option in Young’s contract for next season last month.
▪ The Heat contingent sitting courtside for Saturday’s summer league game included head coach Erik Spoelstra; assistant coaches Chris Quinn, Eric Glass, Malik Allen and Octavio De La Grana; vice president of play programs Alonzo Mourning; and Portis.
▪ The National Basketball Coaches Association announced Saturday that former Heat assistant coach Bob McAdoo is the recipient of the 2026 Tex Winter Assistant Coach Lifetime Impact Award.
McAdoo served as a Heat assistant coach for 19 years under Pat Riley, Stan Van Gundy and Erik Spoelstra. McAdoo is currently a Heat community liaison.
“Bob McAdoo is one of the true giants of our game,” J.B. Bickerstaff, the Detroit Pistons coach and NBCA President said in a statement. “A Hall of Fame player, a champion, and an exceptional coach, Bob has impacted generations of players through his knowledge, humility, and passion for teaching. His influence can be seen in the many players, coaches, and the Heat organization that he helped elevate throughout his coaching career.”
McAdoo is also in the Basketball Hall of Fame as a player. He won three consecutive NBA scoring titles from 1974-1976, earned five straight NBA All-Star selections, and won the 1975 NBA MVP award. McAdoo also won NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1982 and 1985.
“I am grateful, honored and humbled to have been selected by the NBCA Selection Committee for the 2026 Tex Winter Assistant Coach Lifetime Impact Award,” McAdoo said in a statement. “One never receives this type of award by oneself. I’d like to thank my wife Patrizia and family for all their love and support. I will be forever grateful to Pat Riley who took me on as an assistant coach for a fantastic NBA journey together. Thanks also to the Arison Family and the Heat organization who have made an impact on my life both professionally and personally.”
McAdoo was presented the award at halftime of the Heat’s summer league game on Saturday.
▪ The Heat now has a day off before playing its third of at least five Las Vegas Summer League games on Monday against the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Pavilion (8 p.m. on WPLG Local 10 and Prime). Only the two teams that make the championship game playing a sixth game.
