History of Giant Swapping in the NBA

By David “Large” Larzelere
I know this list is going to provoke debate in its own right, although that’s not really the point. But here goes anyway, a tentative list of the top ten greatest true centers in NBA history and the number of times they were traded.
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1. Bill Russell – Never traded, career Celtic
2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – Traded once, Milwaukee to the Lakers
3. Wilt Chamberlain – Traded twice, S.F. Warriors to the Sixers, Sixers to the Lakers
4. Moses Malone – Traded four times, Portland to Buffalo, Buffalo to Houston, Houston to Philly, Philly to Washington
5. Shaquille O’Neal – Traded twice, Lakers to Miami, Miami to Phoenix
6. Hakeem Olajuwon – Traded once, Houston to Toronto
7. George Mikan – Never traded, played for the Chicago American Gears and then the Minneapolis Lakers
8. Bill Walton – Traded once, Clippers to Celtics
9. Pat Ewing – Traded once, Knicks to Sonics
10. Nate Thurmond – Traded twice, Warriors to Chicago, Chicago to Cleveland
Only Russell, Mikan and essentially Ewing and Hakeem were never moved in their prime. Kareem – one big trade obviously. Wilt – moved twice, although only one really counts, cause the Warriors had big money problems and just couldn’t afford him (plus they had a young Nate Thurmond). Moses… well, Moses was a curious case, one of the best centers ever and it seemed like everyone gave up on the man too soon. Walton was a strange case too with all the injuries, and Nate Thurmond was almost a Ewing-like situation – he played the majority of his years with the Warriors before getting traded late in his career.
Now turn to some of the guys I know people are thinking should be in my top ten but aren’t. David Robinson - one team, Spurs. Willis Reed - one team, Knicks. Dave Cowens – one team, Celtics. Chief – traded once, Warriors to Celtics. So that tilts the balance a little. If you replace my 8-10 with the Admiral, Willis and Cowens, then seven of your top ten were one-team centers.
My point, though (whatever it is) still stands. Different eras, different times, different players, the fact of the matter is that franchise centers get dealt just like everybody else.↵