Trades in the NBA keep getting crazier as each season passes.
Over the past five years, fans have seen several NBA teams go all out in bringing a franchise player to their team, however, several of these trades didn’t pan out as expected.
With that, here are five of the worst NBA trades in recent memory, in no particular order of rank.
(Dis)honorable mention: Ben Simmons to Brooklyn Nets
It’s been one hell of downtrend for Simmons—and honestly, it’s been sad to see.
Rudy Gobert to Minnesota Timberwolves
It’s official. With the Timberwolves already out of the NBA Playoffs, the Gobert trade will go down as one of the worst trades in NBA history.
In case you forgot, the Timberwolves traded Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Leandro Bolmaro, Walker Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt, a pick swap, and four—yes, four—first-round picks for Gobert. The players alone can make a case that this was a fleecing, with some even saying the promising Kessler is already replicating Gobert's production with the Utah Jazz. If you count the picks? That's kissing your future away for someone as pedestrian as Gobert's first year in a Wolves jersey.
While the French center's production did not see a major dip when he moved to Minny, his presence didn’t translate to wins for the Timberwolves. It also didn’t transform Minnesota into being a good defensive team. They were in the playoffs as an 8-seed, after all.
With the three-time Defensive Player of the Year stuck with the Timberwolves for the foreseeable future, it looks like the team will also stay in mediocrity for years to come—unless Anthony Edwards hails a miracle.
Russell Westbrook to Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers probably thought that Westbrook was the perfect piece to add to the LeBron James and Anthony Davis pairing. Safe to say, they were definitely wrong.
Many analysts and pundits have been dismissing Westbrook's style of play as the antithesis to championship basketball, and they said the same thing when Russ got to Hollywood. The Lakers learned that the hard way. Nothing against Russ, but their level of play showed that the fit was awful.
If the Lakers hadn’t traded Westbrook prior to the trade deadline, it's likely that the Purple and Gold could have missed another postseason. Before trading the 2017 MVP, LA had a 25-30 win-loss card. After letting him go, they went on an 18-9 run to make it to the NBA play-in tournament, and then the NBA Playoffs.
James Harden to Brooklyn Nets
The Nets’ big three of Harden, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving seemed destined to win a championship. However, that never happened.
In their two seasons together, the trio only played 16 games together—as each missed time due to injuries and other issues, like Irving's COVID-19 vaccination stance.
In total, the Nets traded away seven picks, two solid role players in Seth Curry and Caris LeVert, and an All-Star in Jarrett Allen for an 80-game rental of Harden. They can only hope that Simmons gets back into All-Star form to offset their losses.
Kyrie Irving to Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks went into win-now mode when they traded for Irving.
There were two scenarios pointed out by analysts on how Kyrie could fit with Dallas. Number one, he and Luka Doncic could become one of the best duos in the league, or number two, the two wouldn't mesh well with each other and Dallas fails to make a breakthrough.
The jury is out on their pairing, but freefalling out of the playoffs is by no means an indication that the deal helped the Mavs.
The worst part about it, especially for the Mavericks, is that Irving will be a free agent this summer. If he bolts out of Dallas, the squad would have traded valuable assets for Kyrie to play only 20 games.
Nikola Vucevic to Chicago Bulls
At the onset, the trade for Vucevic did not look like a bad one for the Bulls. Teams will always go at a chance to land a star.
In three seasons with the four-time NBA All-Star as starting center, however, the Bulls have only made it to the playoffs once. And it was a listless first round exit.
The bad taste left in the mouths of Chicago fans became even more bitter if you look at the Orlando Magic, Vooch's former team and the Bulls' trade partner in this transaction.
The Magic got Wendell Carter Jr., a young center who is now developing into a reliable big man and still has star potential, and two first round picks, one of which became savvy, all-around swingman Franz Wagner. Both Carter and Wagner are part of Orlando's young, treasured core that includes newly-minted Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero, Jalen Suggs, and Cole Anthony.
What trades made it to your list?