5 NBA Trades That Will Greatly Impact 2009-10 Season

Below are 5 NBA trades that will greatly impact the 2009-10 season. By impact we don't necessarily mean wins and losses.

The teams on the positive side of the first three transactions will have their trades judged by whether or not they win an NBA championship. Coming up empty could be end of the line for coaches and general managers, or prompt a change in the home address for a certain superstar.

The final two trades will indeed be measured by wins and losses. For one up-and-coming team they hope to reach the postseason for the first time since 2007-08. For one veteran team they hope to make one last run at a championship.

Trade #1 - The Big Side Kick
June 24, 2009
Cleveland Cavaliers received Shaquille O'Neal.
Phoenix Suns received Sasha Pavlovic, Ben Wallace, 2010 conditional second-round pick and cash considerations.

Before the season started Shaquille O'Neal claimed he hadn't learned the Cavs' playbook. The Big Side Kick was probably joking but even if he wasn't, it really doesn't matter. The Cavs signed O'Neal not to play in the regular season but to help them win the 16 postseason games needed for an NBA championship. To parse it even further, the Cavs acquired Shaq to guard the Orlando Magic's Dwight Howard.

With that being said, O'Neal needs to avoid a devastating injury in the regular season (don't worry if he misses a game or ten). Then he needs to dominate in the post season, and if the Cavs meet the Magic again he needs to slow down Howard.

If he can do those things, and there's no reason he can't, the Cavs will be NBA Champions. If he doesn't you may see LeBron James playing his home games at Madison Square Garden next season.

Trade #2 - The Magic Kingdom Goes Vin-sane
June 25, 2009
Orland Magic received Vince Carter and Ryan Anderson.
New Jersey Nets received Rafer Alston, Tony Battie and Courtney Lee.

Basically the more traditional skill set of Vince Carter replaces the orthodox skill set of Hedo Turkolgu in the Magic's starting lineup. Even at his age, Carter has ability to guard LeBron and Kobe. At any age, Turkolgu does not.

Obviously, all eyes will be on Vin-sanity, but those in the know are raving about power forward Ryan Anderson. Many think he can give the Magic solid minutes down low and be a quality backup to Howard.

The Magic will need to return to at least the Eastern Conference Finals to justify the acquisition of Carter and allowing Turkoglu to leave. Anything less than that could mean the end to the Stan Van Gundy era.

Trade #3 - The Spurs Are Moving On Up
June 23, 2009
San Antonio Spurs received Richard Jefferson.
Milwaukee Bucks received Bruce Bowen, Kurt Thomas and Fabricio Oberto.

Trading for Richard Jefferson makes the Spurs legitimate contenders for the Western Conference crown as this veteran team finally has an athletic scorer in their starting lineup.

This trade would be listed higher, after all Jefferson makes his team far better than either Shaq or Carter, but the fate of the Spurs doesn't rest in his hands.

With the addition of power forward Antonio McDyess, the returning stalwarts of Manu Ginobili, Tim Duncan and Tony Parker, the Spurs have a formidable but precarious starting lineup.

Duncan, and McDyess are no longer spring chickens while Ginobili and Parker are fragile. Health and age are likely to be the Spurs undoing, not Jefferson's play.

Still, the former Arizona star will need to put up consistent numbers if the Spurs really want to make a run at the Lakers.

Trade #4 - Toronto Shoots And Scores
June 9, 2009
Toronto Raptors received Reggie Evans.
Philadelphia 76'ers received Jason Kapono.

July 9, 2009
Toronto Raptors received Hedo Turkoglu (from Orlando), Devean George (from Dallas) and Antoine Wright (from Dallas).
Orlando Magic received cash.
Dallas Mavericks received Shawn Marion (from Toronto), Kris Humphries (from Toronto), and Nathan Jawai (from Toronto).

The Toronto Raptors acquired a slew of good players—Turkoglu, George, Wright and Evans—to go along with power forward Chris Bosh. Better yet, the team was able to jettison the frantic Jason Kapono and the pricey veteran Shawn Marion.

Thanks to playing in the Eastern Conference, the Raptors are now a bona fide playoff team. A postseason appearance, even as an 8th seed, may decide whether or not Chris Bosh remains a Raptor. Meaning in trading for Turkoglu, George, Wright and Evans the team also retained the services of CB4.

Trade #5 - How Bout Those Mavericks!
July 9th, 2009
Dallas Mavericks received Shawn Marion (from Toronto), Kris Humphries (from Toronto), Nathan Jawai (from Toronto) and Greg Buckner (from Memphis).
Memphis Grizzlies received Jerry Stackhouse (From Dallas).
Toronto received a second-round pick and cash.

The two main pieces the Mavs acquired in the above trades were Marion and Buckner. Marion will give the Mavs defense, rebounding and athleticism. Buckner is a quality backup to point guard Jason Kidd who will turn 40 this season.

The Mavs have improved their team from a year ago and seem poised for one more playoff run.

Even so, this veteran team isn't expected to challenge the Lakers for Western Conference superiority. However, if this team can defy the ravages of time (its core is all 30-plus years of age) and make it to the Western Conference Finals, it will be because of this trade.