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10 Best NBA Trades of all Time: 2023 Edition

The best NBA trades have shocked us, transforming franchises from irrelevance to genuine contenders. 

Best NBA Trades

Throughout basketball history, there have been trades that have rebuilt struggling teams to relevancy, and others that have vaulted teams to championships. 

There are a heap of trades that could’ve made this list. Let’s take a look at our 10 best NBA trades of all time. 

10. Carmelo Anthony to New York Knicks

In a three-way deal between the Nuggets, Knicks, and Timberwolves, the prize of the deal was Anthony. He went to the Knicks along with Chauncey Billups, Anthony Carter, Sheldon Williams, and Corey Brewer.  

Other big names in the deal were Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler. Although it was one of the best NBA trades of all time, and the Knicks improved with Anthony on the team, they only won one playoff series in his seven seasons in New York. 

Losing significant players in the deal prevented the Knicks from putting a strong supporting cast around Anthony. After leaving the Knicks in 2017 Anthony has made stops in Oklahoma City, Houston, Portland, and Los Angeles.

9. Kyrie Irving to Boston Celtics

Only a season after Irving helped the Cavaliers to an NBA title, they shipped him to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Ante Zizic, and Jae Crowder.  

The Cavaliers also received the Nets draft pick, which turned out to be Collin Sexton. As for Thomas, a once dynamic player, he was never the same after the trade. 

Irving went on to average 24 points in two all-star seasons with the Celtics following one of the best NBA trades of all time, before moving onto the Brooklyn Nets.

8. Kawhi Leonard to Toronto Raptors

Kawhi Leonard developed into a star while with the Spurs, averaging over 20 points per game in both 2015-16 and 2016-17. 

After injuries limited Leonard to nine games in 2017-18, Leonard and the Spurs failed to see eye to eye and he was traded in the offseason to the Raptors in exchange for DeMar DeRozan.

Although Leonard played only one season in Toronto, he led the team to their first NBA title, averaging 26.6 points per game before moving to the Los Angeles Clippers.

7. Dennis Rodman to Chicago Bulls

There’s no question that Rodman was an offensive liability, but he more than made up for it during a Hall of Fame career with his defense and rebounding, and is one of the best power forwards of all time. 

After a playoff loss to the Houston Rockets while playing for the Spurs, Rodman was traded to the Bulls for center Will Perdue. Already a great team in the middle of the Michael Jordan era, Rodman helped the Bulls to three more NBA championships. 

Rodman did his part after one of the best NBA trades of all time, leading the league in rebounding seven times and was named Defensive Player of the Year twice.

6. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to Los Angeles Lakers

Abdul-Jabbar was arguably the most dominant force in the NBA in the early 1970s, leading the league in scoring twice and four times averaging over 30 points per game.

He didn’t feel he fit in Milwaukee, both culturally and socially, despite winning an NBA championship with the Bucks in 1971, and having one of the best NBA finals shots of all time with his signature skyhook in Game 6 of the 1974 NBA Finals. 

During the summer of 1975, the Bucks sent Abdul-Jabbar to the Lakers for Junior Bridgeman, Brian Winters, Elmore Smith, and Dave Meyers following a trade request. 

While Bridgeman and Winters became key contributors for the Bucks, the Lakers got the best of the deal. Abdul-Jabbar played 14 seasons in Los Angeles, winning the MVP twice and five NBA titles. 

He retired as the all-time leading scorer in NBA history, was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995 and is even a popular choice to replace the Jerry West NBA logo.

5. Kobe Bryant to Los Angeles Lakers

Kobe Bryant was a standout at Lower Merion High School (PA) and was drafted by the Hornets as a 17-year-old with the 13th overall pick. They selected him specifically to trade him to the Lakers for center Vlade Divac. 

Although Bryant had enormous potential, drafting a player directly out of high school was considered a big risk at the time. The deal turned out to be one of the best NBA trades of all time. 

Bryant became one of the best shooting guards of all time as the Lakers went on to win five titles with Kobe, who also won the league MVP in 2007-08. 

He retired in 2016 and tragically passed away in a helicopter crash in 2020. Bryant was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame later that year and is one of the best NBA players of all time.

4. Oscar Robertson to Milwaukee Bucks

Robertson was a ten-time All-Star with the Royals, and was the first player to average a triple-double in a season. 

Issues with coach Bob Cousy as well as salary demands were major reasons for Robertson’s moving to the Bucks in one of the best NBA trades of all time.

In return, the Royals got Flynn Robinson and Charlie Paulk. Milwaukee got an absolute steal, with Robertson teaming up with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and winning the franchise’s first NBA title in 1971. 

Robertson played his final four NBA seasons in Milwaukee and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1980.

3. Wilt Chamberlain to Los Angeles Lakers 

Chamberlain was a three-time NBA MVP over his first ten seasons in the NBA, leading the league in scoring seven times and in rebounding seven times. 

Although not as dominant a force by the late 1960s, he was still among the best in the NBA. When contract talks with the 76ers reached a standstill, Philadelphia traded Chamberlain to the Los Angeles Lakers for Archie Clark, Jerry Chambers, and Darrall Imhoff. 

The Lakers were already loaded with talent with superstars Jerry West and Elgin Baylor, meaning Chamberlain’s offensive output diminished. 

He still averaged over 20 points in three of his five seasons with the Lakers and led the league in rebounding four times. Chamberlain won his second NBA title in 1972 with the Lakers and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1979.

2. LeBron James to Miami Heat

Like Kobe, Lebron James was selected out of high school as the first overall pick by the Cavaliers in 2003. A seven-time all-star by the age of 25, James was traded by the Cavaliers to the Miami Heat in exchange for two first-round picks and two second-round picks.

James joined stars Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in what was one of the best NBA trades of all time. The trio won back-to-back NBA Championships in 2011-12 and 2012-13. 

Following his stay in Miami, James headed back to Cleveland in 2014 and then to the Lakers in 2018, winning a title with each of those franchises.

1. Bill Russell to Boston Celtics

Bill Russell was a collegiate star at the University of San Francisco before being selected by the St. Louis Hawks with the second pick in the 1956 NBA draft. 

He was traded on draft day to the Boston Celtics for Cliff Hagan, who hadn’t played a single game with the Celtics due to service in the military. 

St. Louis took down Boston in the 1958 NBA Championship, but the Celtics dominated in years to come with Russell leading the way. 

The Celtics went on to win 11 championships in Russell’s 13 seasons, including nine in the 1960s. Bill Russell is known as one of the best NBA players of all time and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1975.

Matt Ieriko

Matt Ieriko is a freelance writer who’s evolved his lifelong passion for sport into the creation of WolfgangSport.com in 2020 – an American sports blog covering the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, MLS and more. As an Australian, he’s always been fascinated with the cultural differences and global significance of sports in America.

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