NBA Lookback: 5 Lopsided Trades From The 2000s

The 2017 offseason was one of the most historic summers in NBA history.

29 teams had to figure out the best way to either match the firepower of the Warriors or fast-track their descent into the lottery places and luck out with some early draft picks. This resulted in several superstar trades, as All-NBA talents Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Paul George, Jimmy Butler and Kyrie Irving initiated moves to other organizations to go up against Golden State.

It was mostly bereft of transfer debacles of the kind that the noughties were notorious for. Looking back, it was a summer full of deals when both teams achieved their short-term goals and set themselves up for long-term title contention. More activity is expected this offseason as well in the wake of the Dubs' back-to-back title wins, and hopefully, teams can take some lessons from the previous decade and do business more in line with the summer of 2017.

In this article, we take a look at the 5 worst trades made in the 2000s:

#5 Tracy McGrady to the Rockets

Tracy McGrady won 2 scoring titles with Orlando

Tired of carrying a mediocre franchise, T-Mac stated that he would exercise the opt-out clause on the final year of his 6-year, $67.5 million deal at the end of the 2004-05 season. Orlando did not want to lose him for nothing in the same manner that they lost Shaq in 1996.

Thus, trade talks were initiated with the Houston Rockets, sending McGrady, Juwan Howard, Tyronn Lue and Reece Gaines from the Magic in exchange for Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato.

While Tracy continued his dominant play for the Rockets in his first season, Steve Francis' play regressed severely. Francis ended up leaving the franchise in his second season without making another All-Star team (he had 3 successive appearances with the Rockets).

#4 Baron Davis to the Warriors

Davis at the 2004 All-Star game photoshoot

In the NBA Trade Hall of Shame, this trade should rank right up there among the worst exhibits in history. The Hornets traded their franchise player for pennies on the dollar, and these pennies never even materialized as anything beyond rotation guys.

Speedy Claxton, a 5'11" point guard, moved to the 76ers following his lone full season with the Hornets in which he averaged 6.8 points per game. Dale Davis never played for the Hornets, getting waived and moving on to the Pacers instead.

Davis, meanwhile, had a memorable time with the Warriors. He led the league in steals during the 2006-07 regular season. In addition, he was the best player on the 'We Believe' Warriors, who upset the Dallas Mavericks in the first round 4-2, despite having won only 42 games in the regular season in contrast to the Mavericks' 67.

#3 Vince Carter to the Nets

Vince Carter with the Eastbay Funk Dunk in the 2000 Dunk Contest

After failing to make the playoffs in the 2003-04 season, the Raptors were having a tumultuous offseason. That summer commenced with the firing of General Manager Glen Grunwald and the entire coaching staff, and the appointment of Rob Babcock and Sam Mitchell as the GM and the head coach respectively.

At the start of the 2004-05 season, Mitchell often benched Carter in the 4th quarter with the intention of instilling a new team philosophy, which the latter took obvious exception to. He demanded a trade to a winning situation, and these demands were met by the front office who dealt him to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Alonzo Mourning, Aaron Williams, Eric Williams and two first-round draft picks.

Mourning never played for the Raptors, getting waived and moving back to the Miami Heat. Aaron and Eric Williams found themselves out of the league not long after, and the Raptors used up those draft picks on Joey Graham and Renaldo Balkman.

No, these two aren't in the league today either.

#2 The Shaquille O'Neal trade

O'Neal and Bryant

The greatest 1-2 punch of all time was split in half when the Los Angeles Lakers decided not to cope with Shaq's wage demands, instead trading him away in the final year of his deal to the Miami Heat.

The big man was still the best center in the league at that time, although Hall of Fame assistant coach Tex Winter noted that in the 2004 NBA Finals, "Shaq defeated himself against Detroit. He played way too passively. He had one big game ... He's always interested in being a scorer, but he hasn't had nearly enough concentration on defense and rebounding."

The Lakers ended up getting some good pieces back from the Heat in the form of Lamar Odom, Caron Butler and Brian Grant in addition to a 2006 first-round pick and a 2007 second-round pick. But they wasted them all away with the exception of Odom, who stayed as a crucial component of their 2008, 2009 and 2010 Finals runs.

Shaq, meanwhile won an NBA title within 2 years of leaving the franchise, although he never got back to the heights as a dominant player which he touched with the Lakers.

#1 Lakers trade Caron Butler away for Kwame Brown

Caron Butler and Kobe Bryant

One of the pieces the Lakers acquired in the Shaquille O'Neal trade was Caron Butler. The third-year player had had a down season for the Heat in 2003-04, but in his only season with the Lakers, he regained the form that he displayed when he made the All-Rookie team in 2002-03.

Butler had averages of 15.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.4 steals per game on 44.5% shooting from the field. These are starter-caliber numbers at the small forward position for any player. But the Lakers wanted a center to fill in following Vlade Divac's retirement at the end of the season.

Of all the players they could've traded for, they ended up getting the biggest #1 draft pick bust of all time in Kwame Brown. For acquiring Brown, a 'bonafide scrub' to put it in Stephen A Smith's words, the Lakers also had to give up Chucky Atkins.

Caron Butler ended up making 2 All-Star game appearances with the Wizards and followed that up with an NBA championship on the deep Mavericks roster in 2010-11. He's had a great career, whereas Brown's struggles contributed to Bryant demanding a trade from the franchise in 2007.