In the NBA, stars drive everything. To win a championship, you need at least one star player, and ideally you have two or three. Because of that, as quickly as one star player is traded, we immediately begin looking for who’s next.
Often, these players come from downtrodden franchises. Places where players have lingered long past any hope of a championship remains. These players are often in the middle of their careers, under contract for at least two to three more seasons and, most importantly, true difference makers. On occasion, they’re slightly older, but with plenty left in the tank to put a team over the hump.