Los Angeles Lakers: Best trade in team history with the Orlando Magic
By Jason Reed
The Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic have been trade partners three times.
In an ongoing series here at Lake Show Life, we are breaking down the best trade that the Los Angeles Lakers have ever made with every other NBA franchise. Today, we break down the best trade that the Lakers have ever made with the Orlando Magic.
The Lakers and Magic have been trade partners three times, with all three trades occurring in the last 13 years.
The latest trade between the two teams was the Lakers trading a future second-round pick and cash for Talen Horton-Tucker. The biggest, but not best, trade that the two sides have made was the original trade for Dwight Howard, which as we know, did not go as planned.
That trade involved four teams and a total of 16 players after draft picks. The best trade is neither of these trades and instead, it is the first trade that the Lakers ever made with the Magic.
The Los Angeles Lakers’ best ever trade with the Orlando Magic:
In November of 2007, the Los Angeles Lakers traded for a player who would become a key role player in the team’s first of two consecutive championships. While Trevor Ariza’s best days statistically came after his stint in LA, the young forwards impact on the 2008 and 2009 teams that reached the NBA Finals is undeniable.
Ariza played in all 82 games, starting 20 of them, in the 2008-09 season and averaged 8.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. He was a great two-way player for the team that could contribute on both ends and was one of the important playoff role players that can help decide a series.
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He started all 23 games that the Lakers played in the 2009 NBA Playoffs and saw his numbers go up as a result. Ariza averaged 11.3 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in those playoffs while shooting 47.6 percent from beyond the arc. His three-point shooting was essential to the team.
He scored 20 or more points twice in those playoffs and was particularly good in the final three games of the NBA Finals. He averaged 14.7 points and seven rebounds, playing an average of 42.2 minutes in those final three games.
Ariza produced for the Lakers far more than Cook and Evans would have and while his tenure in Los Angeles was short, it was still impactful and he will always be remembered by Laker fans because of his contributions.
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His performance in the playoffs netted him a five-year contract with the Houston Rockets and he has jumped around from team to team and been a valuable role player ever since.