The 2024 NBA trade deadline is on Thursday, and contenders throughout the league are working overtime to add potential upgrades to get an advantage over the competition for the impending postseason push. These movements might have an instant impact. Other times, the significance of deals is revealed over time as players and teams adapt.
Here’s a quick look at six recent transactions that fueled NBA championships:
- Raptors acquire Kawhi Leonard. 2019: Toronto defeats Golden State 4-2. Impact of trade: Seeking a change of scenery from San Antonio, Leonard was transferred to the Toronto Raptors in the 2018 summer in a deal that included Danny Green, who joined his old Spurs colleague in Toronto for another championship run.
Leonard’s defining moment occurred in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals against Philadelphia, when he made the game-winning basket over Joel Embiid at the buzzer. That ball bounced four times off the rim before dropping as the NBA’s first buzzer-beater in a Game 7.
Leonard and the Raptors went on to defeat Golden State 4-2 in the NBA Finals, becoming the first player to win Finals MVP for a team from each conference.
- Raptors acquire Marc Gasol from Memphis at the February trade deadline for Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, C.J. Miles, and a 2024 second-round selection, leading to a 4-2 victory over Golden State Warriors.
At the time, Raptors coach Nick Nurse thought the big man would be “a settling force” when the team reached the playoffs.
Despite coming off the bench to begin his stint, Gasol started all 24 games of the Raptors’ championship run, averaging 9.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks. In the Finals, he averaged 12 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, including a postseason-high 20 points in Game One.
- Anthony Davis to the Lakers. 2020: Los Angeles wins 4-2 over Miami. Trade impact: Davis’ 2019 trade to Los Angeles, like the Leonard drama in San Antonio, started after a stalemate between the player and the company, which ultimately led to Davis seeking a trade.
Davis was acquired by the Lakers from the New Orleans Pelicans in return for a bounty of players, picks, and cash. The big forward rewarded Los Angeles’ efforts by winning the 2020 NBA championship with LeBron James in Orlando.
Davis scored 34 points in his first Finals appearance, and 32 in Game 2, as the Lakers defeated Miami 4-2 to win their 17th championship. Davis averaged 27.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game during the postseason.
- Andrew Wiggins to the Warriors. In February 2020, the Warriors traded D’Angelo Russell, Jacob Evans, Omari Spellman, and a 2021 first-round selection to Minnesota in exchange for Andrew Wiggins, a protected 2021 first-round pick, and a 2021 second-round pick.
The move would not produce benefits until two seasons later.
Wiggins started 71 games for Golden State in his first full season (2020-21), before putting together a breakout season in 2021-22 that earned him his first and only NBA All-Star nomination.
During Golden State’s 2022 championship run, Wiggins ranked second on the team in minutes and fourth in points, and he frequently faced the most difficult defensive assignments on the perimeter against elite players like Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum.
- Jrue Holiday To Bucks 2021: Milwaukee beats Phoenix 4-2.
Trade impact: For the second consecutive season, New Orleans traded a star player who would lead his new team to a championship, sending out Holiday ahead of the 2020-21 season.
Milwaukee had the league’s best regular-season record the previous two seasons, but they fell short in the playoffs. The Holiday deal was a game changer for both the club and the player, who was competing against a true title contender for the first time.
Holiday’s sixth playoff berth came in 2021, with Milwaukee. Previously, the two-way guard has only advanced to the conference semifinals. He helped the Bucks win the NBA championship in 2021 by averaging 17.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 8.7 assists.
- Aaron Gordon to Nuggets. 2023: Denver triumphs over Miami. 4-1
Trade impact: Denver acquired Gordon, the fourth overall pick in the 2014 draft, from the Orlando Magic at the 2021 trade deadline for Gary Harris, R.J. Hampton, and a first-round pick.
Gordon, once a versatile forward for the Magic, might play a more defined position in Denver with two-time Kia MVP Nikola Jokic and top guard Jamal Murray. Gordon started 75 games in his first full season (2021-22), which included five games in the first round of the playoffs versus Golden State.
In his second year in Denver, Gordon won a championship. In 20 playoff games last season, he averaged 13.3 points, 6 rebounds, and 2.6 assists.
