How did Rasheed wind up on that Pistons team?

[Lala870]

I was quickly looking at the wiki page for the trade that send Rasheed from Portland to the Hawks and then subsequently the Pistons back in 2004.

On paper it seemed like a horrible deal for everyone except the Pistons.

Anyone know more about why portland traded Rasheed in the first place and how Detroit landed him for basically scraps? Im sure there is a more detailed/technical explanation as to how this trade was worthwhile for all teams involved.

[cupcakesnake]

No it was definitely wild and stupid, haha.

That Blazers team had been fading for years and becoming the Jailblazers. Sheed was unhappy, and they had a young star at his position in Zach Randolph. I think the Blazers just wanted to shake things up and move on. The Hawks were also looking to shake things up and move on from their own failed era of Jason Terry, Big Dog Robinson, Theo Ratliff, and Shareef Abdur-Rahim. It was like competing firesales.

Detroit had the picks and the salary to become the landing spot for Sheed.

I still want a Rasheed Hawks jersey lol.

[Iwasawitness]

Hindsight is 20/20.

I don't think anyone really regrets their decisions to make said trades. Rasheed was looked at as a decent supporting piece who was letting his attitude and tendency to get technical get in the way of his talent. Even if Portland and Atlanta held onto him... where do you think they were going with him?

Detroit was a different story. They made the ECF last season and definitely had their sights set on something bigger. And PF just so happened to be the spot where they needed an upgrade, a significant one at that. Rasheed, even with his question marks, seemed like the perfect fit. He was a rarity for the NBA at that point as a big who could shoot from three, but he also was a good post player with outstanding post defense (Tim Duncan has gone on record stating that Rasheed was his most difficult matchup) and good rim protection.

The rest is history. Detroit's offense improved with Sheed but what he provided defensively turned them into an all time great defensive team. The BIllups/Hamilton/Prince/Sheed/Ben starting five is considered legendary and for good reasons. Sometimes it's not about how much you can carry a team with your talent, but rather, how well you can fit into an established system in order to maximize their potential. In this case... Sheed fit perfectly.

[Buckeye-NBAFan]

The Nets KG trade reset the trade value for star vets

Before then, guys like KG and Ray Allen and Rasheed Wallace went for 1 1st and maybe a young guy. Now they go for 4 1sts, 3 swaps and some cap relief or young guys

[OhMyGodBecky]

His agent worked the phones well around the trade deadline, or All star weekend then. Didn't want his client in his prime playing for a crap team then (those Hawks lost 69 games the next season)

[Fencer reregistered]

The Nets KG trade reset the trade value for star vets

Before then, guys like KG and Ray Allen and Rasheed Wallace went for 1 1st and maybe a young guy. Now they go for 4 1sts, 3 swaps and some cap relief or young guys

Somewhat overstated.

It's fairly true of Ray Allen, but the pick was #5 overall.

KG went for a lot more than that.

There also was some salary cap weirdness around the Sheed transaction. Boston got a first or so just for facilitating.

[dc]

IIRC, this was was when Joe Dumars was "light years ahead of the game". He took Rodney White #9 overall in 2001.

White was pretty terrible. Instead of holding onto him and hoping he'd pan out, Dumars shipped him to Denver before the start of the 2002 season for a 2004 1st rounder (originally belonging to the Bucks).

So Dumars had this pick in his stash and about 16 months later he shipped the pick to Atl for Rasheed. I think that pick eventually became Josh Smith for the Hawks.

[Infinite Llamas]

The Nets KG trade reset the trade value for star vets

Before then, guys like KG and Ray Allen and Rasheed Wallace went for 1 1st and maybe a young guy. Now they go for 4 1sts, 3 swaps and some cap relief or young guys

I remember as a kid thinking the Webber to Washington trade was wild. Think it was Tom Gugliotta and three unprotected 1st rounders.

[Buckeye-NBAFan]

The Nets KG trade reset the trade value for star vets

Before then, guys like KG and Ray Allen and Rasheed Wallace went for 1 1st and maybe a young guy. Now they go for 4 1sts, 3 swaps and some cap relief or young guys

Somewhat overstated.

It's fairly true of Ray Allen, but the pick was #5 overall.

KG went for a lot more than that.

There also was some salary cap weirdness around the Sheed transaction. Boston got a first or so just for facilitating.

Ausar Thompson for Lillard

Would Detroit trade Thompson for 5 1sts, Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams? Maybe close I guess, but I'd take the later.

KG was 2 1sts and AL Jefferson. The equivalent today is the KD trade, which was quite a bit more.

There were definitely some crazy trades in the 90s, but I think the Darko pick (even though he turned out to be a bust) was the final straw on trading away too many potential lottery picks, then the Nets opened up the flood gates again.

[cpower]

back in the days GM just making random trades. there is no advance data and metric for them to look at whether one player is good or if will work out or not.

[MrGoat]

The Jail Blazers were kind of a mess and many of the players on it were viewed as cancers at the time, Sheed included. Shareef Abdur Raheem and Theo Ratliff wasn't a terrible haul for him at the time. Shareef had recently been an All Star and Theo had been in the DPOY race

The Hawks also got the pick that became Josh Smith when they traded him a few days later

[Capn'O]

I guess the shine hadn't completely come off of the Abdur-Rahim diamond yet?

He was one of the test cases that the numbers don't always match the impact. His numbers often exceeded 'Sheeds and for a minute he was regarded as a similar class of player. He was not a similar class of player.

[SelfishPlayer]

That was an era in time when GMs didn't care how good a trade would make the other team. Today GMs care, so you have a bunch of GMs that have zero impact before getting fired because they are more afraid of losing a trade than they are of NOT improving the team.

[Iwasawitness]

back in the days GM just making random trades. there is no advance data and metric for them to look at whether one player is good or if will work out or not.

I think Dumars had a very specific reason for picking up Sheed. They needed to improve their offense and he was able to do just that. But more importantly, he made what was already a great defense a legendary one. He knew what he was doing here.

[ropjhk]

That was an era in time when GMs didn't care how good a trade would make the other team. Today GMs care, so you have a bunch of GMs that have zero impact before getting fired because they are more afraid of losing a trade than they are of NOT improving the team.

Not sure if that's really true. Even back then GMs were hesitant to trade with teams in their conference and even more so with teams in their division because it could improve their rivals. Trades still happened but all else being equal trading with a team in the other conference was always preferable.

[Karate Diop]

Uh... why is nobody mentioning how disruptive Rasheed was and how his trade value was non-existent?

Funny how narratives change over time...

Edit: other than MrGoat

[Frank Dux]

The Nets KG trade reset the trade value for star vets

Before then, guys like KG and Ray Allen and Rasheed Wallace went for 1 1st and maybe a young guy. Now they go for 4 1sts, 3 swaps and some cap relief or young guys

It’s pretty crazy how stars used to get traded for little value in the past. Pau Gasol was traded to the Lakers basically for a solid young prospect(Javaris Critt), a euro project(Marc Gasol), and two late firsts that might as well have been 2nd rounders. Critt obviously never panned out and got caught up in the gang banger lifestyle.

the Grizzlies got extremely lucky that euro prospect panned out. Otherwise that was a completely terrible deal. You’d never see a guy that good get moved these days without like 4 first rounders + pick swaps.

[Cavsfansince84]

Sheed was seen as a bit of a malcontent and problem child who was around 30 and hadn't even been an all star in years. So its not like his trade value was that high. His overall talent was sort of underappreciated as well(due in part to the stigma that came from being part of the jailblazers).

[dennythedino]

I guess the shine hadn't completely come off of the Abdur-Rahim diamond yet?

He was one of the test cases that the numbers don't always match the impact. His numbers often exceeded 'Sheeds and for a minute he was regarded as a similar class of player. He was not a similar class of player.

Atlanta drafted Pau Gasol and traded him to Memphis for Shareef Abdur-Rahim.

They put Abdur-Rahim with another "All-Star" in Glenn Robinson, a young Jason Terry, and a guy who averages 3 blocks a game in Ratliff. And they're still only a 35-win team in a historically crappy Eastern Conference.

[SelfishPlayer]

That was an era in time when GMs didn't care how good a trade would make the other team. Today GMs care, so you have a bunch of GMs that have zero impact before getting fired because they are more afraid of losing a trade than they are of NOT improving the team.

Not sure if that's really true. Even back then GMs were hesitant to trade with teams in their conference and even more so with teams in their division because it could improve their rivals. Trades still happened but all else being equal trading with a team in the other conference was always preferable.

Joe Johnson and Chauncey Billups getting traded during their rookie season would never happen today.