Some Win, Some Lose: How Trades Break or Make Teams

Welcome to Buckets and Riches — where NBA stars don’t just shoot threes, they stack Gs. From tunnel fits worth mortgages to endorsement empires and crypto hiccups, we break down how basketball’s elite earn it, flex it, and sometimes… brick it. 🏀💸

The latest edition of our newsletter covers:

• Nets’ $200M Mistake That Built the Celtics

• The $141M Asset Houston Let Walk for Draft Dust

• Houston, We Have a Problem

💸Money Mismanagement

The $200 Million Mistake: Brooklyn’s Trade That Built Boston’s Empire

In 2013, the Celtics traded Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry to the Nets, a move that irrevocably altered the fate of both franchises.

Pierce and Garnett, at 37 and 36 years old at the time, were both well past their prime. That didn’t stop Mikhail Prokhorov, who bought the Nets in 2010, from attempting to make a splash by adding two future Hall of Famers.

The team had just relocated from New Jersey to Brooklyn the previous year, so many viewed this move as a way to fill the Barclays Center with recognizable names. The biggest problem, though, was that the Nets gave up three first-round draft picks (2014, 2016, and 2018) and a pick swap (2017). Both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the core of the team that won the 2024 title for Boston, came from those picks.

The deal ruined the Nets. They finished five games worse with Garnett and Pierce than they did the previous season. They were then dispatched in five games by the Miami Heat in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Pierce, who had only one year left on his contract when the trade occurred, left Brooklyn after a season, signing with the Wizards. Garnett was traded to the Timberwolves, the team he began his career with, at the trade deadline the following year. The Nets bottomed out, winning a combined 69 games over three seasons from 2016-18.

The trade was just as disastrous for Brooklyn from a monetary standpoint, at least in the short term. They paid more than $90 million in luxury tax after adding Pierce and Garnett’s salaries, a record at the time. They had the league’s highest payroll, too.

Head coach Jason Kidd moved to the Milwaukee Bucks after one season with Pierce and Garnett. Billy King, the general manager who made the trade, was relieved of his position in 2016.

Prokhorov sold the team to Joseph Tsai in 2019. Despite having steered the Nets into being one of the worst teams in the league, he profited immensely, buying the team and a share of the Barclays Center in 2009 for just under $400 million and selling it for $2.35 billion a decade later.

The Celtics used the 2013 trade as an inflection point for the franchise. They’ve reached the conference finals six times since then, reaching the Finals twice and winning one championship.

Boston sold for a record $6.1 billion earlier this year (a number that was recently topped by the Lakers’ $10 billion sale), and even after their recent trades, they still have Brown and Tatum. Will they keep that dynamic duo intact, or will Brad Stevens attempt to replicate Danny Ainge’s blockbuster from over a decade ago?

💸 Moneyball Moments

Kyle Korver Was Once Traded for a Copy Machine

In 2003, the New Jersey Nets drafted Kyle Korver as the 51st pick and sold him to the 76ers for $125,000. What did they do with the money? Buy a copy machine. Years later, Korver joked, “That copier broke.” Meanwhile, he hit 2,450 career threes and made one All-Star team. One team got office supplies, while the other got an elite shooter in the trade.

💰Bag Fumbled

Houston, We Have a Problem

Harden wasn’t just one of the best players in the league during his tenure with the Rockets; he was one of the most popular. In 2018, 2019, and 2020, the Rockets ranked among the top 10 in jersey sales. Their position plummeted following Harden’s departure.

The Rockets fell outside of the top 10 when it came to team merchandise and couldn’t crack the top 15th in jersey sales. Not only did fans not want to rep Rockets merch, but they also didn’t want to watch them play.

In the 2017-18 season, the Rockets averaged 17,900 people per game. That number increased to 18,058 per game in the 2018-19 season. Following the 2019-20 season, which eliminated home games due to COVID-19, Houston’s standing with the fans dropped significantly, averaging just 15,584 in attendance following the Harden trade.

The lack of fan support resulted in the loss of millions. Of course, they saved money on their tax bill, but the team’s profit margins weren’t as high. The brand, which is Harden, brought plenty of fans and big names into the Toyota Center.

Award-winning rap artist and Houston native Travis Scott became a big endorser of the team and especially of Harden. Harden’s stature within pop culture was among the biggest of all superstars in the league. That wasn’t easily replaceable.

It took the Rockets three-and-a-half years to build back up. Even though they weren’t winning, they were building back up. They used their picks to either recruit talent or trade for them, landing them their first playoff appearance since 2019.

Even though the Warriors got the better of them, they have a lot to look forward to, especially with Kevin Durant now on their roster. The playoff run filled the Toyota Center back up, but KD will bring eyeballs every night.

Houston understands that the Harden saga could’ve gone better. That mistake cost them years in NBA purgatory. Although things aren’t like what they once were, there is still light at the end of the tunnel.

🏀 Shot Clock Back: NBA Stat of the Year

The first recorded NBA trade (back when it was the BAA) happened in January 1948. The Providence Steamrollers traded Leo Mogus to the Baltimore Bullets for Ed Sadowski. It was a simple player-for-player swap—no picks, no cash, no copy machines. Just the beginning of a now billion-dollar transaction game.

📚Also Worth Reading

• “$100 Million Per Year”: 1x NBA Champ Brings Up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Potential Extension While Discussing Contract Values

• ESPN Insider Explains How Lakers’ $10B Sale Almost Confirms NBA Expansion Teams Are Coming

• 15 Years After Selling His Stake in Lakers for $29M, Magic Johnson Expresses Renewed Interest in NBA Ownership