The Miami Heat agreed to a three-team trade with the Los Angeles Clippers and Utah Jazz on Monday that will bring a premier offensive player to Miami. Guard Norman Powell, who averaged a career-high 21.8 points per game with the Clippers across 60 games in the 2024-25 campaign, is the newest member of the Heat organization.
The Heat had to part with two veteran players in order to add Powell to the fold, though. Forwards Kevin Love and Kyle Anderson will be shipped to the Utah Jazz. Anderson spent little more than a cup of coffee in Miami after he was acquired in the Jimmy Butler trade, but Love spent two-plus seasons with the Heat and was a member of the squad that made a surprise run to the 2023 NBA Finals.
Love took to X and had a golden response to the trade that moved him from Miami to Utah.
Never thought I’d be a math problem. Welcome to the NBA.
— Kevin Love (@kevinlove) July 7, 2025
Love has been traded at the NBA level before and knows that the league is a business as well as anyone.
While Love is being dealt to the Jazz, folks maybe shouldn’t expect him to stick around for any significant period of time. NBA insider Jake Fischer reported on Monday morning that Love is “certainly a buyout candidate in Utah.”
Kevin Love is certainly a buyout candidate in Utah.
— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) July 7, 2025
Love makes little sense as an on-court fit in Utah, as the Jazz seem to be in a full-fledged rebuild and look far away from being a competitive team in a tough Western Conference. There are playoff contenders on the open market who could benefit from acquiring a player with Love’s skill set.
The Los Angeles Lakers stick out as a highly appealing destination for Love. First off, he would be able to team up with forward LeBron James once again after the two helped the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first title in franchise history in 2016. Not only that, but the Lakers would be wise to solidify their depth in the frontcourt even after inking a big man who was a No. 1 overall pick, Deandre Ayton, to a two-year deal.