"It's a shock" - Norman Powell shares honest reaction to trade from Clippers after career year

The Miami Heat lost their best player last season, and they needed to get creative to find someone to pick up the scoring slack. They reached out to the LA Clippers to work out a deal that got them Norman Powell.

Powell is fresh off his best season, proving to be a great fit next to Kawhi Leonard and James Harden. He also didn't see the trade coming.

“Honestly, I didn’t know what to think at first," Powell said on Wednesday, via South Florida Sun Sentinel's Ira Winderman. "I mean, it’s been a crazy last couple of weeks, just from talking to (Clippers president of basketball operations) Lawrence Frank in my exit meeting and what they were telling me.”

He didn't think the team was going to move him after he posted career-best numbers across the board.

“When I got the call and said I was traded, obviously it’s a shock, because you’re not expecting it. You just had a career year,” Powell said.

Powell averaged 21.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.2 steals and 3.0 3-pointers in 32.6 minutes per game last season. He also had 48/41/80 shooting splits, making a case for an All-Star selection.

Norman Powell is a huge Dwyane Wade fan

While he didn't see the trade coming, Norman Powell welcomed the possibility of playing for one of the teams he grew up rooting for.

He's a confessed Dwyane Wade fan, going on the record on social media to say that he wanted to emulate his playing style.

Even though he thought he was going to stay in California, he's embracing the chance to play in South Beach and carry Wade's torch in Florida.

“Hearing that it was Miami, I was really excited,” Powell said on Wednesday, via South Florida Sun Sentinel's Ira Winderman.

“And then thinking back to my childhood and being a big fan of Dwyane Wade and watching the Heat growing up and wanting to play for the Heat organization as one of the teams as a childhood dream that you want to play for, it’s definitely a cool, full circle moment for me.”

He will likely step into a big role in Erik Spoelstra's offense, with Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo as the other potential leading scorers.

And while his chances of winning another championship might not be as big in Miami, he could be in for an even bigger year, numbers-wise.