Looking Back at Last Year's Howard-Bynum-Iguodala Trade

Remember on August 10, 2012 when the NBA had one of it's biggest blockbuster trades in a long time? Dwight Howard ended up on the Los Angeles Lakers, Andrew Bynum went to the Philadelphia 76ers, Andre Iguodala was sent to the Denver Nuggets and the Orlando Magic ended up with a few young players and picks.

That trade looks a lot different now. If you are a Magic fan, the chances are you're happier than the fans of those other three teams.

The Trade:

Los Angeles Lakers Receive:

Dwight Howard, Earl Clark & Chris Duhon

When the trade happened it looked like they were the winners. They finally had the center that could possibly lead their team to glory again as his predecessors had done before (Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar & Shaquille O'Neal). The Lakers also added free agent signing Steve Nash and then nothing seemed to work for this Lakers team.

Only five games into the season and already the Lakers had fired Mike Brown and then hired Mike D'Antoni over Phil Jackson. What team could possibly think choosing a guy who never wins playoffs series over a guy who has won 11 rings as a head coach is a good idea?

Injuries plagued the Lakers all season and struggled to make the playoffs. They were able to finish seventh in the West after Kobe Bryant through the team on his back towards the end. All of the minutes that Bryant played in the season is probably what led to him going down with an injury late in the season. In the first round of the playoffs the Lakers were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in four games with Bryant unavailable for the playoffs. A first round exit wasn't exactly the finish anyone expected from the "Lake Show."

Two and a half months later and Dwight Howard is no longer wearing the purple and gold. Both Clark and Duhon are also no longer with the Lakers either, but I'm sure most Lakers fans don't really care. Looking back at this trade, Los Angeles must hate themselves. They gave away a center that wanted to be there for a guy that didn't and never reached the potential that this 2012-2013 team had.

When the Lakers look back at this trade now they must be regretting it. The Lakers failed in the 12-13 season and they took themselves out of the running for any titles for another 2 years. By then Bryant will likely retire and never get the sixth ring that would tie him with Michael Jordan.

When free agency rolled around it didn't appear that the Lakers even had a chance of bringing back Howard. The Rockets were the favorites from the beginning and the Warriors almost swooped in and stole him. The Mavericks and Hawks had almost as much a chance as the Lakers and neither of them were ever really in the picture. The Lakers even stooped to as low as putting up a banner for Dwight in hopes of him not leaving. Since when do the Lakers have to try and convince players to come play at the Staples Center.

By the way the Clippers were able to get their guy. What the hell is going on in Los Angeles?

Grade: D+

While the team didn't live up to expectations, they at least made the playoffs and had some glimpses of hope during the season. Injuries plagued the team more than anything else and they weren't going to win without Kobe Bryant.

Philadelphia 76ers Receive:

Andrew Bynum & Jason Richardson

0. That's the amount of games that Andrew Bynum ended up playing for the Philadelphia 76ers.
12.8 Million. That's how much the 76ers are stuck paying for Jason Richardson total for the next two seasons.

Talk about getting the worst of the deal. The only reason they made this trade was in the hopes that Bynum could be their franchise center. Bynum then gets injured and misses the entire season with an array of problems and the only thing Sixers fans had to bring smiles to their faces was this.

In the 2011-2012 shortened season the Sixers went 35-31 and finished with the eighth best record in the East. The following season they won one less game in a full season and finished with a record of 34-48. Not exactly what anyone expected from the "Illadelph."

The Sixers will likely be a lottery team this year. They'd be lucky to win any more than 30 games with their current roster. They couldn't have screwed up with this trade anymore than they did. In what was supposed to be a trade that helped the Sixers, it was actually a trade that completely killed this team and led them to starting over.

Bynum has now signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers, so he will never end up playing a game for Philadelphia. There really is no way for anyone dealing with the 76ers to actually look at this trade in a positive way. They got worse from the trade and took on a bad contract. I can't think of a trade where a team did so poorly in it. At least the Phillies and Eagles are doing good right? Wait they both still suck too. Sorry Philly.

Grade: F

They gave away their best player, traded for a guy that didn't play a game all season for them and got stuck with an overpriced player that nobody wanted. Good Job!

Denver Nuggets Receive:

Andre Iguodala

"Iggy" to the Nuggets was a trade that really helped Denver this season. I know that Iguodala is no longer with the Nuggets as he has signed with the Golden State Warriors, but this trade wasn't bad for them at all.

Injuries plagued the Nuggets for a majority of the season and Iguodala was one of the few guys on this team that was on the court on a consistent basis. He was the leader of a team that ended up with the three seed in the playoffs somehow and if it wasn't because of so many injuries they might have actually advanced in the playoffs.

This trade was really a rental for Denver as they only had him for the season, but they have to know that they did better than LA and Philly. Their team made it to the playoffs and the player they received was the main reason for it. They didn't give up too much in the trade either outside of losing Arron Afflalo and a first round pick so they have to keep their chins up.

This team has a future with Ty Lawson, Kenneth Faried and Danilo Gallinari so they have to look forward to their future. If Javale McGee can become a little less of a headcase and Wilson Chandler can stay healthy they will be fine without Iguodala this season. They will still be a playoff team without him, just not as good.

Grade: B

They were a much better team due to the addition of Iguodala. Even though he didn't stay with the team he gave the Nuggets a real chance during last season. They also didn't lose too much in the trade either.

Orlando Magic Receive:
Arron Afflalo, Al Harrington, Nikola Vucevic, Moe Harkless, Josh McRoberts & Christian Eyenga
3 1st Round Picks (2014 Nuggets (or Knicks), 2017 Lakers (Conditional) & Future 76ers (Conditional))
2 2nd Round Picks (2015 Lakers & 2017 Lakers (Conditional))

The Magic traded away Dwight Howard because he wanted nothing to do with playing for them anymore. This happened only a short while after he extended his contract after being questioned about whether or not he was going to stay all season long. I think he just felt guilty about leaving even though it was all he wanted to do. You can only go to Disney World so many times before you get sick of the rides I guess. (I've been twice and I'm terrified of heights so roller coasters aren't exactly my cup of tea.)

If you really look at it, Howard did Orlando a favor. By extending his contract for another season and then saying he wanted to leave, he allowed the Magic to actually get something for him. I know they hate him in Orlando now and will probably hate him for a long time, but he actually helped give this team a future through the trade.

If you look at what they gave up, they really did an excellent job in this trade. They were able to get rid of Howard and three players that they didn't want in Duhon, Clark and Richardson. They made it so that if they were going to get rid of their key player, they were going to get rid of guys they didn't want and stack up on young talent and draft picks.

Of the four guys they still have on their roster from the trade, the only one that isn't really a part of the team's future is Al Harrington. Harrington didn't play all that much for Orlando last year and will likely see even less minutes this year. Eyenga was released before the season started and McRoberts was traded during the season.

When you look at the other three players they received, Orlando has to be happy. Afflalo ended up being the Magic's best scorer last year as he averaged 16.5 points per game. Mo Harkless ended up putting up relatively good numbers in his rookie campaign as he scored eight points and had four rebounds per game. But the key piece in the trade was Nikola Vucevic. That's right Vucevic. One of those foreign centers actually playing up to what Fran Fraschilla said about him.

I think it was halfway through last season when I finally realized who this dude was. Vucevic went from being a guy I hadn't really heard of to a double-double machine. He finished the year starting in all 77 of the 77 games he played in and averaged 13.1 points and 11.9 rebounds per contest. Not bad numbers from a guy playing in his second season.

This team won't likely compete this season so a lottery pick is on the horizon. They likely won't be ready next year either but three years from now this team could be moving up in the Eastern Conference. With the young pieces they received in this trade in Harkless and Vucevic and the addition of Oladipo they could be a pretty good team in the future. Another early pick in this year's draft could really set them up. Now they just have to get rid of Jameer "remember when people thought St. Joe's was good" Nelson.

Grade: A-

Traded away the guy that didn't want to be there. Ended up getting rid of a guy they didn't want. Added two young studs and a bunch of draft picks. The Magic once again have a future.