NBA's Top 15 Championship-Causing Trades of All Time

Trades are one of the main ingredients in constructing a NBA championship team.

For example, if the New York Knicks didn't pull off a trade for Earl Monroe in 1971, there's a chance they might not have won it all in 1973. Monroe and Walt Frazier formed a nice backcourt in the Big Apple.

And if the Detroit Pistons had not traded for Ben Wallace in the summer of 2000, they might not have captured a title in 2004. Wallace's tough defensive presence was a major reason that the Pistons were able to overpower the Lakers in the finals.

Here is a list of the top 15 trades in NBA history that have resulted in teams winning at least one championship.

15. Pistons Acquire Aguirre

In the middle of the 1988-89 season, the Detroit Pistons traded Adrian Dantley to the Dallas Mavericks for Mark Aguirre.

The move helped Detroit finally capture a championship in 1989 after losing in the conference finals in 1987 and the finals in 1988.

With the addition of Aguirre, the Pistons also won the title in 1990 over Clyde Drexler's Portland Trail Blazers.

14. All the Pistons Need Is Rasheed

At the trade deadline during the 2003-04 season, the Pistons knew that they needed to add the final piece of the puzzle to capture their first title since 1990.

In response, GM Joe Dumars made a brilliant three-team trade with the Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics, acquiring All-Star Rasheed Wallace, who had played just one game for the Hawks.

Detroit went on to win the title that season over the heavily favored Lakers, who were led by the "Big Four" of Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, Karl Malone and Gary Payton.

13. Bulls Steal Rodman from San Antonio

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25 Mar 1994: Dennis Rodman #10 of the San Antonio Spurs watches from the bench during the game against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. Mandatory Credit: J.D. Cuban /Allsport

The loss of Horace Grant to Orlando via free agency created a hole in the power forward slot for the Chicago Bulls.

To fill the void, the Bulls acquired rebounding machine Dennis Rodman from the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for backup center Will Perdue.

Rodman would go on to play a huge role in helping the Bulls win three consecutive titles.

12. Shaq Heads to South Beach

After the 2003-04 season, the Lakers decided to rebuild around Kobe Bryant and traded Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler and Brian Grant.

Upon arriving to Miami, O"Neal promised Heat fans that he would bring them a title. And staying true to his word, O'Neal paired with Dwyane Wade and led the Heat to a championship in 2006 against the Dallas Mavericks.

11. The Big O Joins Alcindor in Milwaukee

The Cincinnati Royals shipped Oscar Robertson to the Milwaukee Bucks for Flynn Robinson and Charlie Paulk following the 1970-71 campaign.

Robertson paired with young superstar Lew Alcindor, now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to lead the Bucks to the 1971 title.

10. Clyde Reunites with Hakeem in H-Town

The Portland Trail Blazers sent Clyde Drexler and Tracy Murray to the Houston Rockets for Otis Thorpe midway through the 1994-95 season.

As a Rocket, Drexler teamed with Hakeem Olajuwon, who he had played with for the University of Houston, and led the Rockets to their second consecutive title by sweeping Orlando in the 1995 NBA Finals.

9. McHale Lends a Helping Hand to His Former Team

On July 31, 2007, Minnesota Timberwolves general manager and former Boston Celtics star Kevin McHale traded Kevin Garnett to the Boston Celtics for Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Sebastian Telfair, Gerald Green, Theo Ratliff and two future first-round picks.

Garnett would join Paul Pierce and Ray Allen to steer the Celtics to the title in 2008, the team's first championship since 1986, when McHale wore the green-and-white.

8. Lakers Turn Kwame Brown into Pau Gasol

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LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 27: Pau Gasol #16 of the Memphis Grizzlies drives against Andrew Bynum #17 and Shammond Williams #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on March 27, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowled

Kobe Bryant won three consecutive NBA championships in the early 2000s playing alongside powerful big man Shaquille O'Neal.

After Shaq was traded, the team had a difficult time advancing past the first round of the playoffs.

Enter Pau Gasol.

The Lakers acquired the Memphis Grizzlies' big man in a February 2008 trade that included Kwame Brown and Pau's little brother Marc.

L.A. ended up losing in the Finals a few months later, but ended up winning back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010 with the Kobe-Gasol one-two punch.

7. Philly Receives an MVP Center

In 1982, the Houston Rockets signed and traded Moses Malone to the Philadelphia 76ers for Caldwell Jones and a 1983 first round pick.

Malone wound up winning his second consecutive Most Valuable Player Award and teamed up with Julius Erving to lead the Sixers to the 1983 championship.

6. Vlade for a High School Kid?

Jerry West shocked Laker fans in the summer of 1996 when he dealt starting center Vlade Divac to the Charlotte Hornets for the draft rights to high school star Kobe Bryant, who was the 13th pick in the draft.

Trading Divac helped clear up cap space to sign free agent Shaquille O'Neal. O'Neal and Bryant formed a dynamic one-two punch that led the Lakers to three straight titles from 2000-2002.

Kobe later became one of the greatest players in NBA history and led the team to two more titles in 2009 and 2010. 

5. Kareem Gets His Wish, Heads to Hollywood

In 1975, Milwaukee Bucks All-Star center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar requested a trade to either the New York Knicks or Los Angeles Lakers.

Kareem got his wish as the Bucks shipped him to the Lakers for Elmore Smith, Brian Winters, Dave Meyers and Junior Bridgeman in one of the most lopsided trades in sports history.

Abdul-Jabbar didn't let the Lakers down as he teamed with Magic Johnson to lead the Lakers to five championships in the 1980s.

4. Golden State Gives Boston Two-Thirds of the "Big Three"

At the 1980 draft, the Celtics traded the No. 1 and No. 13 picks to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for the third overall pick and Robert Parish.

The Warriors took Joe Barry Carroll and Rickey Brown, while the Celtics chose Minnesota star Kevin McHale.

McHale and Parish ended up teaming with Larry Bird to form arguably the league's greatest frontline. The "Big Three" lead Boston to championships in 1981, 1984 and 1986.

3. Chicago Finds Michael a Buddy

In the 1987 NBA Draft, the Chicago Bulls selected Olden Polynice with the eighth pick and immediately traded him to Seattle for the fifth overall pick, Scottie Pippen.

Pippen would team with Michael Jordan to form one of the greatest duos in league history and lead the Bulls to six titles in eight years.

Sure, Jordan is the most responsible for those trophies, but without Pippen's strong defense and playmaking, the Bulls wouldn't have ruled the 1990s. 

2. Shipping out Goodrich Brings in Some Magic

In 1976, longtime Laker Gail Goodrich signed with the New Orleans Jazz and in order to compensate, the Jazz traded away two future first-round picks and a second-round pick.

The Lakers ended up winning the top pick in the 1979 draft and selected Michigan State's Earvin "Magic" Johnson.

With Magic running the point in L.A., the "Showtime" Lakers won five titles in the 1980s, including his rookie season in which he was named Finals MVP after recording 42 points and 15 rebounds.

1. Hawks Help Create a Celtics Dynasty

In the 1956 draft, the St. Louis Hawks drafted Bill Russell with the second overall pick and then traded him to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Cliff Hagan and Ed Macauley.

Russell developed into one of the NBA's greatest players of all time and led the Celtics to an unheard-of 11 championships, including eight straight.