20 Biggest Superstar Sports Deals That Fell Through
While sports fans have had the pleasure of witnessing plenty of blockbuster moves over the years, we’ve also seen nearly as many fall through in the end.
And with every major near-deal that lands by the wayside comes an endless stream of “what if” scenarios.
The most recent example of such a mega non-deal arose from the NBA, where promising center DeAndre Jordan agreed to contract terms with Dallas to back out and return to the Clippers at the very last minute.
And an even bigger potential power shift was negated in Major League Baseball back in 2003-04, when Alex Rodriguez to the Red Sox seemed like all but a done deal. Instead, the MLBPA rejected the proposed trade and A-Rod landed with, of all teams, the New York Yankees less than two months later.
Of course, the NFL, too, is familiar with deals fallen through, including a trade between Denver and Washington in 1991, which would have sent a quarterback by the name of John Elway east to play in the nation’s capitol.
With these almost-deals in mind, we were inspired to put together a more comprehensive list, specifically spotlighting the 20 biggest sports deals that fell through.
At every turn, we looked for elite players or coaches who were nearly but never traded and who just happened to be a part of some of the most potentially profound and equally impactful what-could-have-been moments in the history of almost-deals.
Sakic the Ranger
1 of 20
Following the 1996-97 season and, more notably, the loss of Mark Messier, the New York Rangers had a giant void to fill.
Enter Joe Sakic, whom the Rangers apparently considered the perfect replacement.
And Super Joe agreed, signing a three-year, $21 million offer sheet with New York, as reported August 7, 1997.
Sakic, however, was technically a restricted free agent at the time, which meant Colorado still had a week to match the offer and retain the center’s services.
Wisely, the Rangers intentionally made a front-loaded offer, making the decision to match an increasingly difficult one for the short-on-cash Avalanche, as detailed by the New York Times’ Joe Lapointe.
But as most know by now, Colorado was committed to Sakic and matched roughly one week later, though Sakic later admitted he had no clue what the Avalanche would do.
We should note, New York soon after turned its attention to Detroit’s Sergei Fedorov, but ultimately missed out on the Russian, too.
As for Sakic, he went on to lead the Avalanche to a second Stanley Cup title in 2001 and starred for Colorado through 2009.
Verlander for Willis
2 of 20
Once upon a time, Dontrelle Willis represented baseball’s best young up-and-coming pitcher. He led the Marlins to a World Series title in 2003 and finished second in Cy Young voting in 2005.
As a result, Detroit seemed at least somewhat rational back in 2006 when it offered Florida Curtis Granderson and some pitcher named Justin Verlander in exchange for the more-than-promising Willis, according to the New York Post’s Joel Sherman.
And with Willis still appearing to be on the rise, the Marlins, believe it or not, rejected the proposal, a move for which Tiger fans are still thankful to this day.
Willis, of course, went on to regress in 2006 before falling apart completely in 2007, while Verlander has earned a Cy Young Award, AL MVP honors and six All-Star appearances since the trade fell through.
Worse yet, the Marlins actually agreed to send Willis to Detroit just one year later but this time added a superstar in Miguel Cabrera to the deal and, instead of getting Verlander in return, received six players who pale in comparison.
DJ to the Mavs
3 of 20
The most recent deal-gone-bad occurred this July, when DeAndre Jordan’s simple change of heart torpedoed the NBA.
On July 3, the 26-year-old center was all but a Maverick, agreeing in principle with Dallas on a four-year max deal worth more than $80 million, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein (via ProBasketballTalk’s Kurt Hellin).
But less than a week later—on July 8, to be exact—despite the reports of his having already made a commitment to Marc Cuban and the Mavs, Jordan experienced a total about-face, ultimately deciding to stay put in L.A. with the Clippers.
Through it all, Dallas was left high and dry—the Mavericks not only lost out on the game-changing Jordan, but in thinking they had him, lost out on their backup options as well—while D.J.’s image took a serious hit, too.
And with the long term in mind, Jordan’s infamous flip-flopping had the NBA talking future policy.
Quinn to Ravens
4 of 20
As Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn continued to fall on 2007 draft day, one team in particular searched for ways to trade up and nab him.
According to Quinn, the Baltimore Ravens had every intention of moving from 29 to 23 and with one goal in mind: drafting Brady Quinn.
“Here’s something that a lot of people don’t know,” said Quinn in an NFL Network interview, via BaltimoreRavens.com. “During that [No. 22] pick, I was on the phone with the Baltimore Ravens the entire time. So, I was talking to Ozzie Newsome, Brian Billick and Rick Neuheisel.”
Of course, as Quinn also accurately recounts, with roughly a minute left of the clock, the Cleveland Browns traded up to No. 22 and snagged him, completely foiling Baltimore’s master plan.
And Ravens fans should be happy.
If not for the Browns, Baltimore would have landed Quinn at No. 23 and, as a result, wouldn’t have had a need at quarterback when the 2008 draft rolled around.
But with Quinn going to Cleveland, that wasn’t the case, inspiring the Ravens to select one Joe Flacco the very next year.
Since then, Flacco has led the Ravens to a Super Bowl championship and cemented himself as Baltimore’s franchise quarterback while Quinn has become nothing more than a journeyman backup.
Between stealing Cleveland’s team and dodging Brady Quinn, where Baltimore be without the Browns?
Suns Snag Rodman
5 of 20
With time running out on the Bad Boy Pistons, Detroit looked to shake things up a bit in September 1993.
To do so, they nearly came to terms with the Phoenix Suns on a major deal, sending the mercurial Dennis Rodman their way while receiving small forward Richard Dumas and players to be determined later in return, according to the New York Times.
But before the deal could be finalized, the Pistons discovered that Dumas was an active participant in an after-care program for substance abuse and, as a result, decided to avoid all risk and back away.
And even though Detroit eventually managed to move Rodman, the elite forward ultimately starred for the Spurs rather than the Suns.
Browns Eye Harbaugh
6 of 20
In this portion of our athlete-driven discussion, we come now to our first and only deal—or non-deal—involving a coach.
As most football fans remember, back in January 2014—after getting turned down by more coaches than they’d like to remember or admit—the Cleveland Browns hired Mike Pettine to serve as lead man.
What most people don’t know, however, is that at one point in time the forever-forgettable Browns actually had a deal in place with San Francisco for the rights to head coach Jim Harbaugh.
According to ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio, the two teams came to a verbal agreement that meant to send Harbaugh to Cleveland and multiple draft picks back San Francisco’s way.
And as the story goes, it was Harbaugh, not one of the two teams, who eventually nixed the trade.
Lindros to New York
7 of 20
While the Quebec Nordiques technically selected Eric Lindros with the first overall pick in the 1991 NHL draft, the top talent never signed with or played for the team.
Instead, Lindros demanded a trade. And, stuck with a top pick that proved unwilling to negotiate, the Nordiques eventually had no choice but to oblige.
Yet what happened next was anything but expected, as SNY Rangers Blog detailed.
On June 21, 1992, Quebec agreed to a deal with New York, reportedly sending Lindros to the Rangers in exchange for John Vanbiesbrouck, Tony Amonte, Doug Weight and Alexei Kovalev.
Unfortunately for New York, on the very same day, the Nordiques also agreed to a trade with Philadelphia, receiving Ron Hextall, Steve Duchene, Kerry Huffman, Peter Forsberg and Mike Ricci in return.
As a result, two teams—both New York and Philly—laid claim to Lindros.
To settle the bizarre conflict, the NHL made Larry Bertuzzi the deciding arbitrator.
And, on July 1, he came to a conclusion.
According to Bertuzzi, the Flyers and Nordiques shook hands at 10:30 on June 20, a mere 80 minutes before the Nordiques came to terms with the Rangers. As such, Philadelphia was granted the rights to Lindros, even though it appeared Quebec preferred the deal with New York.
Lindros went on to star for Philly over the next eight seasons before—wait for it—joining the Rangers. That said, he was also 81 minutes away from joining New York a whole nine years sooner.
Rivera for Wells
8 of 20
Mariano Rivera isn’t just considered the greatest closer of all time; he’s thought of as one of the all-time great Yankees, too!
His tenure in New York, however, nearly ended before it ever really began, back when Rivera was still toiling around in the minor leagues.
The year was 1995 and the future Hall of Famer was still set on becoming a full-time starter. The Yankees, at the time, had their eyes on Detroit starter David Wells and, when New York GM Gene Michael asked the Tigers what they’d want in return, Rivera’s name appeared on the list.
Apparently, any Rivera-included price was simply too high for Michael and the Yanks.
“I never said yes,” Michael remembered to the New York Daily News’ John Harper (via River Avenue Blues’ Benjamin Kabak). “And right about that time, Mariano’s velocity in the minors jumped to 95-96. I didn’t believe it when I saw our report, but I checked it out with scouts from other teams who were there, and it was true. At that point there was no way I was trading him.”
But shortly after the deal with Detroit broke down, Wells was sent to Cincinnati, which only reignited New York’s interest.
And according to the New York Times’ Murray Chass (via Kabak), George Steinbrenner called then-Reds GM Jim Bowden one Saturday night and offered both Jorge Posada and Rivera for Wells in return.
Luckily for New York, Bowden apparently preferred a 23-year-old Oriole named Curtis Goodwin and, as a result, sent Wells to Baltimore rather than New York.
Still, though, on two separate occasions, the Yankees were an eyelash away from parting with a young Mariano Rivera.
Pippen for Kemp
9 of 20
If this deal had gone through, Scottie Pippen would have moved to Seattle in June 1994.
At the time, less than a year removed from The Jordan Era: Part 1, the Chicago Bulls were in discussions with Seattle over a potential exchange of Pippen for 24-year-old All-Star Shawn Kemp.
But after careful consideration, the SuperSonics pulled Kemp’s name off the trade market, unless you ask Jerry Krause, who remembers the Bulls deciding to keep Pippen.
Either way, Chicago emerged victorious from this particular non-trade.
As it turns out, Kemp had pretty much hit his peak by ’93 and was in Cleveland playing for the Cavs by ’97. Meanwhile, Jordan returned to Chicago near the end of ’95 and teamed up with Pippen to win not one, not two but three more NBA titles!
Marshall Nearly a Pat
10 of 20
If you believe what Brandon Marshall told ESPN back in May 2015, then the talented wideout was nearly traded to New England prior to the 2014 football season.
According to Marshall’s interview on the Carmen and Jurko Show (via the Chicago Sun-Times’ Adam Jahns), there was tension between he and the Bears “on the contract stuff” and he “could have played for the Patriots last year [in 2014].”
Instead, the Bears signed the outspoken star to a three-year extension worth $30 million. But roughly one year later, Marshall predictably wore out his welcome and was traded to the Jets rather than the Pats.
Barkley to Laker Land
11 of 20
So here’s how the story goes, according to Sir Charles:
As Barkley himself remembers it, for a short period of time, he was a Laker back in 1992.
“I got traded to the Lakers one day, and the Sixers retracted the deal,” Barkley told Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch.
Apparently, three hours after Barkley’s agent gave the burly forward a call to inform him he’d be moving to L.A.—which, by the way, he celebrated with “a couple of drinks at lunch”—the Sixers decided to go back on their word, nixing a trade that was to net them James Worthy and Elden Campbell, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Bob Ford (via Deitsch).
Interestingly, despite the drinks and letdown, Barkley suited up for Philadelphia the very same night and actually “played pretty well.”
After all, he was just “excited to get the hell out of Philly.”
And get out of Philly is exactly what he did. On July 17, 1992, the Sixers finally pulled the trigger, sending Sir Charles to Phoenix while receiving Jeff Hornacek, Tim Perry and Andrew Lang in return.
Moss for Rodgers
12 of 20
All the way back in 2007—which, it’s worth noting, marked a certain Green Bay legend’s 17th year in the league—Packer quarterback Brett Favre badly wanted more help and urged management to make a run at controversial wideout Randy Moss, according to the Bay Area News Group’ Jerry McDonald.
At the time, Moss was simply getting by in Oakland, playing for a Raiders team that had next to no hope.
And most, including Favre, knew what Moss could still do if paired with the right signal caller.
Meanwhile, Oakland was in desperate need of a quarterback of their own, making Green Bay—who had a certain Aaron Rodgers just sitting on the bench—the perfect trade partner.
Of course, the deal never went down, but probably would have if not for two interconnected variables.
First, the Packers reportedly wanted more for Rodgers than just Moss, including multiple draft picks, according to McDonald. And second, while the Raiders no doubt had a huge need at the QB position, they were far from desperate. Armed with the upcoming draft’s top overall pick, Oakland was happy to assume JaMarcus Russell would do just fine.
Boy, were they wrong!
Dreaming of South Beach
13 of 20
On not one, but two occasions, Hakeem Olajuwon was involved in rumors linking him to the Miami Heat.
In fact, if not for either of them coming to fruition, Olajuwon would have never won a title with the Rockets.
It all went down in 1992, when a disgruntled Olajuwon seemed to want out.
“If you have a disgruntled and unhappy superstar and there are irreconcilable differences, then a trade nearly always happens at some point,” the superstar’s agent, Leonard Armato, told the Sun Sentinel’s Robes Patton.
According to Patton, the first rumor had Olajuown moving to Miami in exchange for Rony Seikaly, Glen Rice and Steve Smith.
The second rumor, which Miami denied, included both Rice and Smith in the deal, with Houston parting with Seikaly, Sleepy Floyd and Grant Long.
In the end, Houston held on to The Dream and won titles in ’94 and ’95 as a result.
Bonds to Atlanta
14 of 20
Before Barry Bonds broke records in a San Francisco uniform, the do-it-all outfielder was a star for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
In fact, Bonds was nearly never a Giant at all.
Back in 1992—just nine months before becoming a free agent and signing with San Fran—Bonds was set to join the already-dominant Atlanta Braves.
According to then-Braves GM John Schuerholz, the deal was all but done.
“I was euphoric,” Schuerholz wrote in his book, Built to Win (via the New York Times’ Murray Chass). “Barry Bonds was a Brave!”
To be precise, Atlanta was set to receive Bonds in exchange for Alejandro Pena, Keith Mitchell and a prospect to be named later.
But on the day the deal was to be announced to the world, Schuerholz instead had a gut-wrenching conversation with Pittsburgh GM Ted Simmons.
Simmons explained to Schuerholz that his manager—Jim Leyland—was distraught when he learned the team was dealing his best player and, as a result, the trade had to be tabled.
According to the legendary Atlanta exec, it was both the first and last time he had a trade partner back out of an agreed upon deal.
And while Bonds was a Brave for all of 15 hours, he was a Pirate the next season and a Giant when it mattered most (from 1993 to 2007).
Still, a deal that could have and arguably should have been, but wasn’t, may have changed baseball forever.
Certainly Schuerholz thinks so: “It might have changed the course of baseball history in a number of ways,” he argues. “Though Barry couldn’t have produced more division titles for us, might he have powered us to another World Series title or two? Would he have developed into the same prolific home run hitter he became in San Francisco after his move to the Giants?”
Kobe Eyes Bulls
15 of 20
It seems somewhat hard to imagine now, but all the way back in 2007, Kobe Bryant demanded the Lakers trade him.
His No. 1 landing spot at the time: the Bulls.
“Chicago was my No. 1 choice,” explained Bryant in a recent Grantland Basketball Hour.
According to the now Laker for Life, he was supposed to land in Chicago with L.A. taking back some combination of Luol Deng, Tyrus Thomas, Ben Gordon and Joakim Noah in return.
But when Bryant threatened to veto any deal including Deng, according to then-ESPN reporter Chris Sheridan—fearing any such trade would too greatly weaken his future team—the deal with Chicago fizzled.
Instead, the Lakers decided to hang onto Kobe, later added Pau Gasol and went on to win championships in both 2009 and 2010.
Detroit Dodges Bullets: Part 1
16 of 20
Throughout the history of the Detroit Red Wings, one would be hard pressed to find a player who was more valuable than Steve Yzerman.
In truth, though, the guy who led the Red Wings to three Stanley Cup championships almost spent a majority of his career somewhere other than Detroit.
Before Yzerman and the Red Wings broke through in ’97, the legendary center was considered talented but flawed—anything but a winner.
And so with said image in mind, Detroit management began shopping Yzerman around in 1995 and quickly found a willing trade partner in the Ottawa Senators.
In fact, Grantland’s Sean McIndoe detailed how a deal that would have sent Yzerman to Ottawa in exchange for center Alexi Yashin was actually agreed to in principle before Detroit ownership stepped in to veto it at the very last moment, according to “one rumor at the time.”
But what seems like a completely ridiculous notion today—that Detroit actually thought it was better off with Alexi Yashin than with Steve Yzerman—was, believe it or not, a part of reality less than 20 years ago.
Detroit Dodges Bullets: Part 2
17 of 20
It’s worth noting the Red Wings came equally close to making a similarly catastrophic mistake roughly 12 years after the close call with Yzerman, according to McIndoe.
In 2007, to be exact, while holding an expiring contract with no new deal in site, the Red Wings looked to move Pavel Datsyuk.
Rather than lose the Magic Man for nothing, Detroit seemed happy to trade with New Jersey in an effort to land Scott Gomez, who was coming off an impressive 84-point season.
But in the end, the Wings again came to their senses before any real damage could be done.
Gomez signed with the Rangers while Detroit inked Datsyuk to a seven-year deal, just in time to see him become one of hockey’s truly elite assets.
A-Rod to the Sox
18 of 20
Just weeks after a devastating loss to the New York Yankees in the 2004 ALCS, the Boston Red Sox were within an eyelash of evening the score.
Or so they thought, as ESPN’s 30 for 30 detailed.
At the time, Boston and Texas had a firm agreement in place; Texas was set to receive Manny Ramirez, Nomar Garciaparra and Jon Lester while the Red Sox would land Alex Rodriguez, Magglio Ordonez and Brandon McCarthy.
The two teams even managed to resolve the $179 million hang-up that was A-Rod’s contract, with the superstar infielder agreeing to rework his deal and take less just to make the trade happen.
With a reduced Rodriguez salary in place, both parties were happy enough to sign on the dotted line.
There was just one more obstacle remaining. The MLBPA had to approve the transaction and do so within the parameters of the CBA.
But after close consideration, the union rejected the proposal, arguing that a pay cut for A-Rod would “impact the financial futures of so many players coming after him.”
To make matters worse, it was the Yankees who were ready and waiting, with fists full of cash, to clean up the valuable wreckage.
With an injured Aaron Boone, New York was in need of a third baseman and, to the surprise of many, convinced Rodriguez to play the position alongside Derek Jeter at short.
From there, the rest was easy. In return for A-Rod and $67 million, the Rangers were set to receive Alfonso Soriano and either Joaquin Arias or Robinson Cano. Unfortunately for Rangers fans, they chose Arias.
Still, at the time, it seemed as though no one lost out quite as much as the Sox, who not only failed to sign A-Rod but watched as he fell into the laps of their biggest rival.
Elway to the Capitol
19 of 20
While the end to John Elway’s career was something magical, it wasn’t all good.
An elite quarterback, Elway was expected to win but was still without a title. Bronco Nation was firmly on Elway’s case by 1991, the quarterback’s ninth season in the league.
After all, the Hall of Famer didn’t win his two Super Bowls until ’97 and ’98, his final couple of seasons in the league.
So in ’91, on the heels of missing the playoffs the previous year, the Denver Broncos seriously considered trading Elway.
At the time, the Washington Redskins made the perfect partner, equally displeased with the inconsistent quarterbacking of Mark Rypien.
According to then-Washington GM Charley Casserly (via the Washington Post’s Rick Maese), Denver seriously considered trading Elway to the ’Skins, but only if the deal included Pro Bowl offensive tackle Jim Lachey.
Unfortunately for Redskin fans, Casserly considered Lachey off limits and shot the deal down.
And even though Rypien led Washington to a Super Bowl victory in 1992, he was basically done after that, while Elway—the guy the Redskins could have had—went on to become a nine-time Pro Bowler and two-time world champion.
Paul to LA
20 of 20
It was December 8, 2011, and the Los Angeles Lakers and New Orleans Hornets were less than 24 hours away from finalizing a deal that would make teammates out of Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant.
According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the trade was actually going to include three teams, with Houston landing Pau Gasol; New Orleans welcoming Lamar Odom, Kevin Martin, Luis Scola and Goran Dragic to town; and LA receiving Paul.
But less than one hour after the three teams agreed to terms, NBA commissioner David Stern shocked the world and did the unthinkable: He nixed the deal!
The decision seems to bother Bryant to this day.
And, to make matters even worse, Paul still ended up playing in L.A. Instead he went on to star for the emerging, popular and dynamic Clippers, alongside the likes of Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.
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