The 2009-2010 Los Angeles Lakers
There are few instances in NBA history outside of OKC where one superstar leaves and another stays behind. The Los Angeles Lakers are the best example of this.
In 2004, the Lakers traded Shaquille O’Neal to the Miami Heat, officially handing the keys of the franchise over to Kobe Bryant. So how did the Lakers get back to title contention? First, the biggest difference between Shaq leaving the Lakers and KD leaving OKC is that the Lakers got something back as part of the trade. Lamar Odom was a vital piece to the Lakers back-to-back titles. Even Jordan Farmar, who the Lakers drafted from a pick they got from Miami played a meaningful role in bringing Los Angeles back to NBA relevance.
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During the ’05 season, the Lakers missed the playoffs, finishing just 34-48. This gave them the 10th pick in the 2006 NBA draft, who they used on future All-NBA center Andrew Bynum. The next two seasons, the Lakers would get back to the first round of the playoffs before losing to the Phoenix Suns .
In 2007, the Lakers traded Brian Cook, one of the players from the O’Neal trade, as well as Maurice Evans to the Orlando Magic for Trevor Ariza, the teams starting small forward on the 2009 team. After the ’09 season, Ariza left the Lakers to sign with Houston. However, the Lakers were able to replace him by signing Ron Artest to a five-year deal, and helped propel the Lakers to their second title in as many years.
Of course, the move that ultimately rocketed the Lakers forward was trading for Pau Gasol. Los Angeles surrendered four players (Kwame Brown, Javaris Crittenton, Aaron Mckie, and the rights to Marc Gasol) and two first round picks.
With a core of Bryant, Gasol, Bynum and Odom, the Lakers were able to bounce back from losing O’Neal, getting to the NBA finals three straight years and winning two titles. If Oklahoma City were to replicate the Lakers success, they would need to hit on a major trade without giving away too many assets.