History is against KG & Pierce in Brooklyn

This week's coffee...Roundy's Arabica Sumatra (good & inexpensive, but not bold enough for my liking)
 

Much of the buzz in the basketball world has been around draft grades and the blockbuster trade which sent Garnett & Pierce to the Nets. Let's talk more about this "mega deal" from a historical perspective. Remember, history tends to repeat itself...

Some feel that Boston got the raw end of the deal, because they received some role players along with draft picks in exchange for two future Hall of Famers. Those same people probably think that Brooklyn becomes an instant contender. 

To me, this was an unusual blockbuster deal because the centerpieces were a couple of 35+ year olds, albeit legends. So, this got me thinking the following question: What does history tell us about Hall of Famers being traded after the age of 35?

Below is a pretty complete history of this occurrence - please feel free to let me know if I left out any players. As you'll see, the results have never panned out...but best of luck to KG & Pierce!

Patrick Ewing at 38 (Knicks --> Sonics)

 Seasons as a Sonic: 1
Traded to a bad team? No. '00-01 Sonics rotation included Gary Payton, Rashard Lewis, Vin Baker, Brent Barry 
Team results: 44-38 and no playoffs

Individual results: 9.6 ppg*, 7.4 rpg*, 1.2 bpg*, 43% FG*, 68% FT*, 26 mpg*, 79 games played
Notable Variance vs. previous season: -5.4 ppg, -2.3 rpg, -3.6% FG, -4.6% FT, -6.1 mpg

Memorable?: No.

Following trade, full seasons played before retirement: 2

Hakeem Olajuwon at 38 (Rockets --> Raptors)

 

Seasons as a Raptor: 1
Traded to a bad team? No. '01-02 Raptors rotation included Vince Carter, Antonio Davis, Morris Peterson, Alvin Williams  

Team results: 42-40 and lost first round in playoffs

Individual stats: 7.1 ppg*, 6 rpg*, 1.2 spg, 1.5 bpg, 46% FG, 56% FT*, 22.6 mpg, 61 games played
Notable Variance vs. previous season: -4.8 ppg, -1.4 rpg, -3.4% FG, -6.1% FT, -4 mpg

Memorable?: No.

Following trade, full seasons played before retirement: 1

Shaquille O'Neal at 35 (Heat --> Suns)

Seasons as a Sun: 1 1/2
Traded to a bad team? No. Suns rotation included Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire, Grant Hill, Jason Richardson, Raja Bell
Team results: 63-47 in 1 1/2 seasons, lost in first round of '07-08 playoffs, and no playoffs in '08-09

Individual stats: 16.4 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.4 bpg, 61% FG, 57% FT, 29.7 mpg, 103 games played
Variance vs. last season w/ Heat: +1.6 rpg, +1.9% FG, +15% FT

Memorable?: No. Although Shaq had some individual success with Phoenix, the team only won 1 playoff game.

Following trade, full seasons played before retirement: 3


Shaquille O'Neal at 36 (Suns --> Cavaliers)

Seasons as a Cavalier: 1
Traded to a bad team? No. '09-10 Cavaliers rotation included Lebron James, Mo Williams, Antawn Jamison, Anderson Varejao, JJ Hickson 
Team results: 61-21 and lost second round in playoffs

Individual stats: 12 ppg*, 6.7 rpg*, 1.2 bpg*, 56.6% FG, 49.6% FT, 23.4 mpg*, 53 games played
Notable Variance vs. previous season: -5.8 ppg, -10% FT, -4% FG

Memorable?: No. One season of moderate team success, but marginal individual results from Shaq.

Following trade, full seasons played before retirement: 2

 
 

Gary Payton at 36 (Lakers --> Celtics)

Seasons as a Celtic: 1
Traded to a bad team? No. '04-05 Celtics rotation included Paul Pierce, Antoine Walker, Al Jefferson, Tony Allen, Ricky Davis
Team results: 45-37 and lost first round in playoffs

Individual stats: 11.3 ppg, 6.1 apg, 3.1 rpg, 1.1 spg*, 47% FG, 76% FT, 32.6% 3PT, 33 mpg, 77 games played
Notable Variance vs. previous season: -3.3 ppg, +4.7% FT

Memorable?: No. Good year individually for GP, but team failed in playoffs.

Following trade, full seasons played before retirement: 3

  

 
Dikembe Mutombo at 36 (Sixers --> Nets)

Seasons as a Net: 1
Traded to a bad team? No. '02-03 Nets rotation included Jason Kidd, Richard Jefferson, Kenyon Martin, Kittles
Team results: 49-33 and lost in the Finals

Individual stats: 5.8 ppg*, 6.4 rpg*, 1.5 bpg*, 37% FG*, 73% FT, 21 mpg*, 24 games played
Notable Variance vs. previous season: -5.7 ppg, -4.4 rpg, -.9 bpg, -13% FG, -3.7% FT, -15 mpg

Memorable?: No. Mutombo played a grand total of 34 games (including 10 playoff games) as a member of the Nets and had very little individual success.

  Following trade, full seasons played before retirement: 7

Dikembe Mutombo at 38 (Knicks --> Bulls --> Rockets)

Seasons as a Rocket: 4 (only played 9 games during 5th season)
Traded to a bad team? No. 2004-2008 Rockets rotation included Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady, Shane Battier, Rafer Alston
Team results: Three 50+ win seasons (and a not-so-good 34 win season), but did not win a playoff series in that span.

Individual stats:3.2 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.1 bpg, 52% FG, 73% FT, 15.6 mpg, 267 games played
Notable Variance vs. previous season: N/A

Memorable?: Slightly. Mad props to Dikembe, a true warrior! Very impressive that he was able to stick with a new team for 5 seasons between the age of 38-43! Sad career-ending injury during a playoff game, and unfortunate that Houston couldn't win a playoff series while Dikembe was on the active roster.

                                 Following trade, full seasons played before retirement: 4

A few other Hall of Famers from yesteryear...

Elvin Hayes at 35 (Bullets --> Rockets)
After 7 great seasons in Washington (3 Finals appearances and 1 championship), Hayes was traded back to the franchise that drafted him. Following this trade, the bruising power forward spent 3 seasons in Houston to end his career. His stats quickly declined and the Rockets had a couple bad seasons with one playoff appearance (first round exit).


Artis Gilmore at 37 (Spurs --> Bulls)
Did you know that Hall of Fame center Gilmore played with Michael Jordan? Me neither. After 5 seasons in San Antonio, he was traded to the team where his NBA career began. This second stint in Chicago didn't last long though, as Gilmore was waived after playing 24 games and averaging 4 points per game. He then signed with Boston for the remainder of the season (ending his career) and played an important role off the bench in the Celtics' 1988 playoff run when they were defeated in the conference finals.


Richie Guerin at 36 (Sonics --> Hawks)
This well-rounded shooting guard from the Bronx is remembered by most for playing 7 1/2 seasons for the Knicks. However, I was not familiar with Richie's 6 years as a player-coach. He was first acquired by the Hawks at the age of 31 and was named player-coach during his first full season with the team; two seasons later, his dual role came to a halt because Guerin was selected to play for Seattle in the expansion draft! Instead of playing for Seattle, Richie decided to retire as a player and continue to coach the Hawks. A year later, Richie came out of retirement because he wanted to again be a player-coach for the Hawks; Seattle appeased his wishes and traded Guerin's player contract back to Atlanta. Richie proceeded to coach well (directing his team to the playoffs twice) but played sparingly for two more seasons before hanging up his sneakers for good.



* = Career low stat