After Giannis trade to Miami, here are Florida sports' biggest trades ever

[ASFN Admin]

Welcome to Miami!

Giannis Antetokounmpo will soon receive a warm welcome to the Miami Heat. The 10-time All-Star and two-time league MVP comes to South Florida from the Milwaukee Bucks, where he led them to their first NBA championship in half of a century. The Heat traded Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis and a massive package of draft picks for Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis.

This isn't the first massive trade the Heat, or any other Florida pro teams, have made throughout history. Here we will take a look at the top three trades from each Sunshine State representative for the NFL, NHL, NBA and MLB:

Miami Marlins​

Gary Sheffield from Padres (1993)​

Trade: Marlins acquired Gary Sheffield and Rich Rodriguez for Trevor Hoffman, Andres Berumen and Jose Martinez.

Impact

• Foundation for 1997 championship core
• Sheffield became the franchise's first superstar.
• He was a centerpiece of the 1997 World Series team.

Dontrelle Willis from Cubs (2002)​

Trade: Marlins acquired Dontrelle Willis, Julian Tavarez, Ryan Jorgensen and Jose Cueto from the Cubs for Matt Clement and Antonio Alfonseca.

Impact

• 2003 World Series Championship
• Willis exploded onto the scene in 2003, winning NL Rookie of the Year.
• He went 14–6 with a 3.30 ERA and became a key piece of the Marlins' championship rotation.

Ugueth Urbina from Rangers (2003)​

Trade: Marlins acquired Ugueth Urbina for Adrian Gonzalez, Ryan Snare, and Will Smith.

Impact

• Urbina stabilized the back end of the bullpen during the stretch run and postseason.
• The Marlins paid a steep price (future star Adrian Gonzalez), but the move directly addressed a championship need.

Tampa Bay Rays​

Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett from Twins (2007)​

Trade: Rays acquired Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett and Eddie Morlan for Delmon Young and others.

Impact

• 2008 American League pennant
• Tampa Bay went from last place in 2007 to the World Series in 2008.
• Garza became a frontline starter and won ALCS MVP.
• Bartlett solidified shortstop and became part of the club's core.

Chris Archer from Cubs (2011)​

Trade: Rays acquired Chris Archer, Robinson Chirinos, Brandon Guyer and Sam Fuld for Matt Garza.

Impact

• Sustained playoff contention (2013–19)
• Archer developed into a two-time All-Star and staff ace.
• He helped keep the Rays competitive after their first World Series era.

Tyler Glasnow, Austin Meadows and Shane Baz from Pirates (2018)​

Trade: Rays acquired Tyler Glasnow, Austin Meadows and later Shane Baz for Chris Archer.

Impact:

• 2020 American League pennant
• Glasnow became the ace of the 2020 World Series team.
• Meadows was an All-Star and middle-of-the-order bat.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers​

Keyshawn Johnson from Jets (2000)​

Trade: Tampa Bay gave up two first-round picks.

Impact:

• Helped transform the offense and was a key contributor to the 2002 Super Bowl champion.
• Johnson became the No. 1 receiver the Bucs lacked during their late-1990s contender years.
• He posted a franchise-record 106 catches in 2001 and led the Super Bowl team in receiving.

Jon Gruden from Raiders (2002)​

Trade: Tampa Bay sent two first-round picks, two second-round picks and cash to Oakland for coach Jon Gruden.

Impact:

• Super Bowl 37 Champions (2002)
• Gruden arrived and immediately led Tampa Bay to its first Super Bowl title.

Jason Pierre-Paul from Giants (2018)​

Trade: Tampa Bay acquired Jason Pierre-Paul and a draft pick from New York.

Impact:

• Foundation of the 2020 Super Bowl defense.
• Immediately became the Bucs' best edge rusher.
• His leadership and pass-rushing were crucial to the defense that won Super Bowl 55.

Jacksonville Jaguars​

Calais Campbell from Cardinals (2017)​

Trade: Free-agent signing rather than trade, but if you're limiting to acquisitions, this is arguably the biggest roster move of the Jaguars' modern era.

Impact:

• 2017 AFC Championship Game appearance.
• Campbell set a franchise record with 16.5 sacks in a season.
• He transformed the defense into the famed "Sacksonville" unit that came within minutes of reaching the Super Bowl.

Marcell Dareus from Bills (2017)​

Trade: Jaguars acquired Marcell Dareus for a sixth-round pick.

Impact:

• 2017 AFC Championship Game appearance.
• Jacksonville's run defense improved dramatically after his arrival.
• He solidified the defensive front during the team's best season since the 1990s.

Miami Dolphins​

Paul Warfield from Browns (1970)​

Trade: Miami sent a first-round pick to Cleveland.

Impact:

• Warfield became a Hall of Fame receiver.
• He helped power three straight Super Bowl appearances and two Super Bowl championships. Community discussions among Dolphins fans still place it among the greatest trades in franchise history.
• He helped lead Miami to one of the best regular seasons in franchise history.

Ricky Williams from Saints (2002)​

Trade: Miami acquired Williams for multiple draft picks.

Impact:

• 2002 AFC East title.
• Williams rushed for 1,853 yards and won the NFL rushing title in 2002.

Tyreek Hill from Chiefs (2022)​

Trade: Miami sent five draft picks to Kansas City.

Impact:

• Immediate offensive transformation.
• Hill posted historic receiving numbers in Miami.
• The Dolphins became one of the NFL's most explosive offenses and returned to playoff contention.

Miami Heat​

Shaquille O'Neal from Lakers (2004)​

Trade: Miami acquired Shaquille O'Neal for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, Brian Grant and draft picks.

Impact:

• East's best record in 2005, won the NBA title one year later.
• O'Neal finished runner-up in MVP voting in his first Heat season.
• The Shaq-Dwyane Wade partnership delivered the franchise's first NBA championship in 2006.

LeBron James from Cavaliers (2010 sign-and-trade)​

Trade: Officially completed as a sign-and-trade.

Impact:

• The acquisition instantly made Miami a championship favorite.
• 2011 NBA Finals appearance.
• The Heat reached four straight Finals and won two championships.

Jimmy Butler (2019 Sign-and-Trade)​

Trade: Acquired from the 76ers in a four-team sign-and-trade.

Impact:

• In his first season (2019–20), Miami went from missing the playoffs the previous year to reaching the NBA Finals.
• Became the face of the franchise and led Miami to Finals appearances in 2020 and 2023.

Orlando Magic​

Anfernee Hardaway from the Warriors (1993)​

Trade: Orlando drafted Chris Webber first overall, then traded him for No. 3 pick Penny Hardaway and future first-round picks.

Impact:

• 1995 NBA Finals appearance.
• "Penny" immediately formed an elite duo with Shaquille O'Neal.
• Helped Orlando reach the playoffs five times in his seven seasons.

Tracy McGrady from Raptors (2000)​

Trade: Sign-and-trade involving a first-round pick.

Impact:

• McGrady became a two-time scoring champion.
• He carried Orlando to multiple playoff appearances and turned the franchise into a contender despite a limited supporting cast.

Vince Carter from Nets (2009)​

Trade: Orlando acquired Vince Carter and Ryan Anderson for Rafer Alston, Tony Battie and Courtney Lee.

Impact:

• 2010 Eastern Conference Finals.
• Carter helped Orlando remain among the NBA's elite following its Finals run.
• The Magic won 59 games and returned to the conference finals in his first season.

Florida Panthers​

Roberto Luongo from Islanders (2000)​

Trade: Florida acquired Roberto Luongo and Olli Jokinen for Mark Parrish and Oleg Kvasha.

Impact:

• Luongo became the greatest goaltender in franchise history.
• He gave the Panthers an elite foundation for nearly a decade and remains one of the most important acquisitions the franchise ever made.

Sam Reinhart from Sabres (2021)​

Trade: Florida acquired Sam Reinhart for goalie prospect Devon Levi and a first-round pick.

Impact:

• Key contributor to consecutive Stanley Cup teams.
• Reinhart developed into one of the NHL's elite scorers.
• He scored the decisive goal in Game 7 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final, arguably the biggest goal in Panthers history.

Matthew Tkachuk from the Flames (2022)​

Trade: Florida acquired Matthew Tkachuk for Jonathan Huberdeau, MacKenzie Weegar, Cole Schwindt, and a first-round pick.

Impact:

• Tkachuk immediately changed the team's identity, leading Florida to the 2023 Stanley Cup Final in his first season.
• The move became the catalyst for the franchise's first Stanley Cup.

Tampa Bay Lightning​

Mikhail Sergachev from Canadiens (2017)​

Trade: Tampa Bay acquired Mikhail Sergachev for Jonathan Drouin.

Impact:

• Foundation of the 2020 and 2021 Stanley Cup champions.
• Sergachev became a top-pair defenseman and a critical piece of the championship blue line.

Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller from Rangers (2018)​

Trade: Tampa Bay acquired Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller for Libor Hajek, Brett Howden, Vladislav Namenstnkov at the trade deadline.

Impact:

• Helped fuel multiple deep playoff runs and the back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021.
• McDonagh became Victor Hedman's ideal defensive partner.
• He played a huge role in shutting down opponents during both championship runs.

Blake Coleman from Devils (2020)​

Trade: Tampa Bay acquired Blake Coleman for Nolan Foote and a draft pick at the 2020 trade deadline.

Season Impact:

• 2020 Stanley Cup championship.
• Coleman formed the famous "Gourde-Goodrow-Coleman" third line.
• That trio became one of the biggest matchup advantages during Tampa Bay's Cup runs.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Giannis trade now among biggest trades in Florida sports history

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