Worst trade in American professional sports history?

I have to think Neil was scared that Boogie would walk in a year. The last thing we need was another Aldridge situation.

 

But damn...if all we had to do is give up Ezeli and a draft pick.....

 

You're forgetting Hield. He was the 6th pick in the draft. Who are you trading that's equivalent to Hield?

 

He may have been more afraid that he wouldn't walk. If the Blazers couldn't afford to pay Plumlee, how were they going to pay Boogie at around $30M per year?

 

Havent you heard? All the experts here say you can already write him off as a bust after 1/2 year.

 

Supposedly, though, the Kings' options weren't "trade him for this crappy offer" or "pay him $200 million." There are reports circulating that Detroit offered Drummond. Drummond's not a star/superstar (yet) but he still has that potential and is quite good currently--he would have been a massively better get for Sacramento than Hield and a pick, in my opinion. That's what makes this inexplicable to me.

I did wonder rhetorically in the other thread if the Kings just see Hield as the next NBA superstar and considering Ranadive's love for him, maybe the answer is yes.

 

Hield is small and has mediocre handles, his upside isn't great. The expectations of being traded for Boogie are going to doom him as well.

 

It's not that we couldn't afford to pay Plumlee because Paul doesn't have the money, it's that we couldn't afford to play Plumlee because Plumlee is a role player. We couldn't afford to waste that much money on a guy that is completely one-dimensional.

Boogie is arguably the best center in the NBA, at least offensively.

If you have a chance to sign the best center in the NBA, you take that chance and sign the best center in the NBA.

 

Wasn't the report that Drummond was offered earlier in the season though? I'm guessing they would have jumped at that offer if it was available yesterday.

 

Yea, the ship sailed on Drummond a while ago. Pistons are looking to trade Reggie Jackson now that they are having buyer's remorse and keep Drummond.

 

Yankees trading Babe Ruth to Boston sucked....my least favorite was Andre Miller for Raymond Felton personally but I really hate Felton,, so there's that. I think the Pau Gasol trade was about as lopsided at the time as it gets but they did develop his baby brother eventually

 

I assumed that "earlier this season" still meant like January--my understanding is that it wasn't til December that Van Gundy started to lose faith in a Reggie Jackson/Andre Drummond pairing. It's equally baffling that the Kings would turn it down then and then, at most two months later and perhaps less, be so desperate to move him that they take this deal. And why would Detroit lose interest in the deal--I don't recall anything particular happening with Cousins in the last couple of months.

Supposedly, New Orleans wasn't even answering the phone on a lot of teams. It's like they mostly zeroed in on the Pelicans. Which would strengthen the "Ranadive targeted Hield" theory.

 

Send out $35M per year.

 

Well, sure. It's pretty simple if you just look at the math, but finding lopsided deals for 2-3 players with contracts adding up to those kinds of dollars may not be quite as simple as you imply. There's also the question of how do you get enough other decent players to fill out the roster when your top three guys are eating up $80 million out of an estimated luxury tax threshold of $122 million. Paul Allen might not object to going into luxury tax territory for a shot at a title, but the repeat offender implications of the tax are pretty brutal and no team is going to want to stay in that area very long. Finally, there are the questions of whether Boogie's going to be the missing piece that really makes the Blazers a title contender and whether his well known attitude issues make him the guy you want to take that gamble on.

 

All the other issues are going to be there regardless and there's an argument to be made that Cousins is about the only guy you have a chance to take that gamble on. Less risky superstars are unlikely to be moved and certainly not for what the Pelicans just paid for Cousins.

 

Given what the Pelicans were able to get him for, I'd say that most of the league's GMs were treating him like toxic waste. But we can debate this forever (and probably will until the next big trade dream comes along). It's all moot at this point.

 

very good points, but...
Crabbe + Biebs + Davis + 1st = $37M
for Boogie + expiring
works in principle (though may not work in practice)

#notthatbigofagambleeither

 

True, but who's to say that Sac would be willing to take on those contracts? Would you?

 

Sac has to blow it up...they weren't in the conversation with Boogie...best they both part ways. Lottery, lottery, lottery....this is where they'll be stuck for even longer now