Carmelo Anthony wanted nothing else to do with Coach George Karl or the Denver Nuggets and the feeling was mutual.  On February 11, 2011 Carmelo was traded to the Knicks for players, draft picks and cash. NBA Champion and Finals MVP Chauncey Billups was the other most notable player in the deal. He ended up missing the 2011 playoffs with an injury and was sent to the LA Clippers that same year. Carmelo bounced around a few more times and is currently with the Portland Trailblazers.

In 2011, Chris Paul was the superstar point guard for the New Orleans Hornets and 5-time NBA champ Kobe Bryant was still at the helm for the LA Lakers. The NBA was just getting back to business after a lockout and the Lakers were poised to acquire Paul, until then Commissioner David Stern vetoed the trade.  The league owned the Hornets at that time and felt the players received for Paul were not comparable.  Kobe never won another championship while Chris Paul flourished with the LA Clippers- though they never got past the second round of the playoffs.  No one knows what would’ve happened if they had played together over that span, but we imagine it would’ve been awesome to watch.

James Harden is an elite scorer and one of the best players from this decade. He also came off the bench for the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012. At the time, OKC had superstar players Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook; as well as shot blocking phenom Serge Ibaka.  Harden would come in to restl Westbrook and feast on opposing team’s backups. During the 2012 NBA free agency OKC couldn’t (wouldn’t?) come to terms with Harden who wanted 60 million over 4 years (they offered 55.5 million) so they traded him. OKC received players and picks from the Houston Rockets. The Rockets received a future scoring champ and NBA MVP.  OKC eventually parted ways with Westbrook, Durant, and Ibaka as well. For just 5 million more they might have won a championship.

Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce were NBA champions and superstars in their own right. They had the pedigree and a winning history, but in 2013 they were two ball players whose best years were behind them.  Five years removed from an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics, they were traded to The Brooklyn Nets for 3 future picks and 6 players including veteran Jason Terry who won an NBA Championship with the Dallas Mavericks.  Paul, Garnett, nor Terry played 2 seasons with the Nets before moving on.

Who would’ve thought the quiet guy with the weird laugh and the cornrows would go on to be one of the best two way players of the decade? Clearly not the Pacers. They traded the future 2X Finals MVP, 2X Defensive Player of the Year, and 2X NBA champion, on draft night for PG George Hill. 

This was a trade between four teams - The Los Angeles Lakers received Dwight Howard, Earl Clark and Chris Duhon. Howard spent one salty season with the Lakers, averaging 17 and 12.  Coach Mike Brown got fired, Kobe got injured and LA was swept in the first round of the playoffs. Howard ended up going to Houston Rockets as a free agent. The Denver Nuggets received Andre Iguodala, who ended up at Golden State Warriors the very next season.  The Philadelphia 76ers received Andrew Bynum, who missed the entire season with a knee injury and Jason Richardson who also didn’t play. A complete disaster of a trade with many moving parts and absolutely no winners.