After finding themselves at the center of offseason conversations for most of the last two decades, the Miami Heat had a somewhat underwhelming summer in 2025.
The Heat let free agent sharpshooter Duncan Robinson depart for the Detroit Pistons in a sign-and-trade deal, bringing back Simone Fontecchio and a trade exception. Miami also retained Davion Mitchell, a throw-in piece from the team’s midseason Jimmy Butler trade who flourished in South Beach.
Miami’s biggest move, however, was its three-team deal for former LA Clippers combo guard Norman Powell. The Heat offloaded veteran forwards Kyle Anderson and Kevin Love to the Utah Jazz. The Clippers flipped cash considerations and a 2027 second-rounder to Utah, who also nabbed a trade exception. LA brought back forward John Collins from Utah.
Powell is a significant upgrade over any of Robinson, Anderson or Love, and will bring back some of the on-ball creation and scoring Miami lost when Butler forced his way to the Golden State Warriors last year. But Powell is no Jimmy Butler.
For now, this Heat squad is a bit stuck in the mud. With Powell joining incumbent sometime All-Stars Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, Miami is too good to miss the postseason. But the team also doesn’t seem to necessarily have a path towards true title contention without a more major roster shakeup.
In a new piece, Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report pitches just such a possible deal for the Heat – along with bold trade proposals to reshape all 29 other NBA franchises, too.
Swartz suggests that one not-quite-superstar, oft-hurt two-time All-Star forward Zion Williamson, could be the exact kind of reclamation project to cure what ails the Heat.
Although he has struggled to stay healthy amidst questions of his commitment to fitness and some troubling off-court rumors, the 6-foot-6 Duke product is still just 25, and still has incredible upside. He’s the kind of masterful scorer and unstoppable physical presence that Adebayo, Herro and Powell are unlikely to ever become.
Swartz posits that Williamson, who has noticeably dropped some weight ahead of the 2025-26 season, is the exact kind of bold superstar swing that it may behoove 80-year-old Heat team president Pat Riley to take.
Williamson’s Pelicans are going nowhere fast, as they seek to pick up the detritus of a doomed 21-61 run in 2024-25.
Health has been a long-running deterrent to Williamson’s success in the league. He has played just 30 or fewer games in four of his six NBA seasons. Last year, he did produce when healthy – but he missed 52 regular season games and plunged his team into the lottery. Williamson averaged 24.6 points on 56.7 percent shooting from the floor and 65.6 percent shooting from the charity stripe, 7.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.9 blocks a night.
