Top 5 NBA Trade Deadline Deals of the 2000s

(Jason DeCrow/AP)

5. Bulls Trade Ron Artest, Ron Mercer, Brad Miller, and Kevin Ollie to the Pacers for Travis Best, Norm Richardson, Jalen Rose, and a 2002 2nd Round Pick(Lonny Baxter.)

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This is the Ron Artest trade. Brad Miller and Jalen Rose were probably the biggest names in the deal at the time, but Indiana acquiring a young Artest was crucial to their impressive run in the mid-2000s. At the time, Artest was seen as a gritty, high energy defensive player who was still developing. Despite averaging 15 PPG for Chicago, they decided to add veteran scorer Jalen Rose to their roster in an attempt to bolster their squad for the Playoffs. Thankfully for Indiana, Artest would develop into one of the best on-ball defenders of all time. Ron was the poster child for the hard-nosed, defensive mentality that earns a player minutes in the league. He would go on to appear in his only All-Star Game in 2004 as a member of the Pacers and also win Defensive Player of the Year that same season. This trade is the reason Indiana was a feared force in the East for the better part of the 2000s and part of the reason we got to see the “Malice at the Palace.”

4. New York Knicks acquire Carmelo Anthony

(Justin Lane/EPA)

I’m not going to type out all the details of this trade because it's prosperously convoluted. So check it out right here.

(basketballreference.com)

The New York Knicks were a meddling franchise throughout the late 2000s, and throughout many other time periods. They were, and always will be, one of the biggest markets in basically and owner James Dolan was desperate to acquire a star that could accomplish two things; win games and get butts in seats. The Knicks had a solid mix of young players and veteran talent, but they also had something much more important. They already had the eye of Denver Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony. New York had struggled to attract big stars to their team for years and now one of the best young scorers in the league was begging to go there. On February 22nd, 2011, during the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities, Carmelo Anthony was given his wish to become a Knick. The Knicks received a package revolving around Danillo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler in exchange for Anthony and veteran point guard Chauncey Billups. This kicked off a Nuggets rebuild that would extend through the first half of the 2010s. This trade isn’t higher on the list because the Knicks never truly capitalized. Throughout the 7 years Anthony was in New York, the Knicks failed to make the Eastern Conference Finals even once. It is rare that you can get a franchise changing player in the middle of the season, but when he is begging to leave and tells you exactly where to trade him, it seems more accomplishable.

3. Phoenix Suns trade Isaiah Thomas to the Boston Celtics for Marcus Thornton and a First Round Pick(Skal Labissiere)

(slamonline.com)

Talk about another fleece by Danny Ainge. The Celtics were only a season removed from blowing up their long time core of Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett and starting over. They had completely torn the house down and started fresh with new Head Coach Brad Stevens. After a year of being bad, the Celtics were able to pick guard Marcus Smart with their 6th overall pick. Boston was slightly better the next year and even looking to make a push towards the Playoffs. At the time, they literally didn’t have a starting point guard. The Celtics were starting forward Evan Turner at the 1 spot after dealing long time Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo to the Mavericks. At the trade deadline, Danny got the point guard he wanted. The Phoenix Suns had too many point guards on their roster, and were not a particularly successful team. It was known they would most likely have to pick their favorite out of Eric Bledsoe, Goran Dragic, and Thomas. The Suns surprisingly chose Bledsoe and moved IT to the Celtics for veteran bench shooter Marcus Thornton. I don’t think the Suns, or the Celtics, expected what would happen next. Thomas turned into an MVP caliber player for Boston. He would become a beloved leader of the team and lead them to 2 Eastern Conference Finals during his tenure. During the 2016-17 season, Thomas finished Top 5 in MVP voting while averaging 28.9 PPG for the Cs. Boston turned an aging shooter into an MVP candidate at the deadline and shaped their future with one move.

2. Golden State Warriors trade Monta Ellis, Kwame Brown, and Ekpe Udoh to the Milwaukee Bucks for Andrew Bogut and Stephen Jackson

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On paper, this doesn’t seem like a big trade or big implications. For the players in the trade, it actually didn’t have huge implications on either team. But it's the backstory and the lore of this trade that makes it infamous. At the time, the Warriors were beginning to shake out of a pit of mediocracy they had dug for themselves. Golden State had not been relevant since the “We Believe” Warriors of the mid-2000s. By the beginning of the decade, Golden State was mix-matched with veterans and young players who didn’t really fit well together. They were running a two guard lineup with their veteran scorer Monta Ellis and young, exciting shooter Stephen Curry. Curry was only entering his 3rd year in the league and many questioned his ability to remain healthy. Curry only played 26 of the 82 games during the previous season due to ankle injuries dating back to high school. The Warriors knew they needed more size and defense to be able to compete and they knew they needed to break up their backcourt. Ellis had been with the team longer, but was entering the tail end of his run. Curry was the fresh, new face, but was unproven and lacked durability. When the Warriors proposed the trade to Milawuakee, they were willing to give up Brown, Udoh, and either Curry or Ellis, with the Bucks being able to choose between the two guards. In an All-Time blunder, the Bucks went with the proven scorer in Ellis. Monta only lasted 2 seasons with the Bucks and failed to average 20 points in either campaign. The Warriors story is well known. They held onto the greatest shooter in the history of the sport and coasted their way to multiple Championships on Curry’s back. One mistake by the Bucks cost them a multiple time MVP and First-Ballot Hall of Famer, but at least Ellis had a nice mid-range jumper.

1. Memphis Grizzlies trade Pau Gasol and a 2010 2nd Round Pick(Devin Eubanks) to the Lakers for Kwame Brown, Javaris Crittenton, Marc Gasol, Aaron McKie, a 2008 First Round Pick(Donte Green), and a 2010 First Round Pick(Greivis Vasquez)

(slamonline.com)

The ole brother for brother trade comes in at #1. The Lakers were a middle of the pack team during the middle of the 2000s. Following the departure of Shaq, LA was the Kobe Bryant show for a few years. This resulted in many of Kobe’s greatest scoring performances, but not as many wins in the record book. The Lakers were bounced from the 2007 Playoffs in the First Round by Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns and were in fear of losing Kobe. Kobe had already requested a trade to the Chicago Bulls a few years earlier, but that request was sorted out. The Lakers started the 2007-08 season much the same way as the last. They were a solid team with a record of 28-16, but not many people viewed them as contenders over the Suns, Spurs, and Hornets. This all changed on February 1st, 2008. The Lakers traded their starting Center Kwame Brown, bench pieces Crittenton and McKie, and the rights to international player Marc Gasol for Marc’s brother, NBA All-Star Pau Gasol and a pick. Pau immediately boosted the Lakers and was the best teammate Kobe had had since Shaq. Pau was exactly what the Lakers needed. He could score in many different ways, was tenacious on defense, and could pass the ball like a guard. Gasol showed himself to be one of the very best bigmen in the league once he got to LA and helped the Lakers make it all the way to the Finals. The Lakers would lose that first year to the Celtics, but Pau would go on to win 2 Championships with the Lakers and establish himself as an All-Time great for the franchise. Like I eluded to earlier, it is rare to get a true star player at the deadline. It is even more rare to get an All-Time Great and a Championship needle mover like Pau Gasol.