1) Rick Barry to Oakland Oaks (ABA), 1967
2) Rick Barry to Warriors, 1972

It lacked the pomp and circumstance of “The Decision,” but Barry’s lower-case “d” decision in 1967 is perhaps still the most shocking free agent move in NBA history. Fresh off winning a scoring title and leading the Warriors to the NBA Finals, the then 23-year-old Barry signed with the cross-town Oakland Oaks of the nascent ABA. Barry claimed that he was unhappy with his Warriors contract but he soon after found financial complications much more prevalent in the rebel league. After sitting out a season due to the Warriors suing for breach of contract, Barry led the Oaks to the 1969 ABA title. The franchise then moved across the country that offseason to Washington, D.C., disillusioning Barry, who preferred to stay in the East Bay. It also turned out that the ownership claim promised to Barry by original Oaks owner Pat Boone was essentially worthless, just as Barry was watching NBA contract amounts rise exponentially in comparison to his ABA one. Barry signed a new contract with the Warriors but it couldn’t take effect until 1972. So he played out three more ABA seasons, one with the Washington Capitols and two with the New York Nets, before returning to the NBA.

3) Cazzie Russell to Lakers, 1974

Though he doesn’t appear on our list, Oscar Robertson is just as notable to this topic as all the players who do. Two years before Curt Flood challenged baseball’s reserve clause, Robertson sued the NBA in 1970 claiming that a planned merger with the ABA would restrict player autonomy. Robertson eventually won and in the process managed to delay the merger by six years, but by then he was retired anyway. It did pave the way for NBA free agent, albeit initially in a restricted form that was just glorified trades. Teams could sign players on the open market but would have to compensate the former team in some manner. Russell was the first big name to take advantage of the new landscape. His budding star career with the Warriors had been upended by Rick Barry’s 1972 return, while the Lakers desperately needed back court scoring in the wake of Jerry West’s retirement. The Lakers signed Russell and the Warriors received a first round pick in return, which they eventually used on Robert Parish. Russell struggled in Los Angeles with injuries and was waived after just three seasons.

4) Moses Malone to 76ers, 1982

Some tweaks were made to free agency after the 1976 ABA merger that set a less strict though still limited set of options for player movement. Some All-Star level players took immediate advantage, like Gail Goodrich signing with the Jazz in 1976 and Jamaal Wilkes going to the Lakers a year later. But this was all lead up to the biggest NBA signing in the era before unrestricted free agency. Malone had joined the ABA as a teenager and his rights or contract had been owned by five different ABA or NBA franchises by the time he was 21. He finally settled with the Rockets post-merger and earned league MVP honors in ’78-’79 and ’81-’82. But after a first round playoff loss in 1982, followed by the Maloof family negotiating a franchise sale to Texas businessman Charlie Thomas that summer, Malone took the opportunity to bail. He signed an offer sheet with the 76ers for a sum that the new Rockets owner had no interest in matching. While Houston received Caldwell Jones and a first round pick as compensation, Malone earned both league MVP and Finals MVP in leading the 76ers to the ’82-’83 title.

5) Tom Chambers to Suns, 1988

During collective bargaining negotiations in the summer of 1988, Suns general manager Jerry Colangelo reportedly looked at Sonics owner Barry Ackerly and stated “you’re going to lose Chambers.” This is because the “right of first refusal” clause was amended to allow free agents with seven or more years of experience to sign with another team un-restricted. Of the 13 players immediately eligible, Chambers was easily the most desirable, 29-years-old and coming off his debut All-Star appearance. Colangelo swooped in immediately and signed Chambers to a five-year contract, worth over $9 million per year, an amount with which the Sonics could not compete. Chambers eventually went down as a Suns franchise legend,, making three All-Srar appearances and helping them reach the 1993 NBA Finals. The next big free agency move that summer was another Suns legend, Walter Davis, who signed with the Nuggets in the wake of Chambers’ Phoenix arrival. Other notable signings included Moses Malone leaving the 76ers for the Hawks and Kurt Rambis leaving the Lakers for the Hornets.

6) Horace Grant to Magic, 1994

Just the 1988 collective bargaining agreement was expiring and a new deal was in negotiation, the Orlando Magic tested the limits of the salary cap. They signed Grant to a six-year contract worth $23 million, with a twist. In order to remain under the salary cap, the first year of the contract was for only $160,000, after which an escape clause would be triggered. That would allow Grant to re-sign with Orlando under completely new regulations, assuming the newest collective bargaining agreement was in place. The NBA rejected the deal on the grounds that Grant was getting paid too far below market value in that first season for the contract to be valid (the league rejected a similar deal for Chris Dudley with the Trail Blazers that same summer). Grant and the Magic were subsequently able to work out a viable contract, for around $17 million over five years. It ended a successful but tumultuous tenure with the Bulls for Grant, which included three championships but also a disgruntled final season that left Bulls management accusing their power forward of faking injuries.

7) Shaquille O’Neal to Lakers, 1996

LeBron James has passed him as the greatest player ever to sign with a new team in his prime but no free agent has ever led to as many titles as O’Neal with the Lakers. It’s still not definitive why O’Neal left Orlando for Los Angeles in 1996. Perhaps it was the Orlando newspaper poll where fans voted that he was not worth the contract the Magic were offering him. Perhaps it was that offer from Magic owner Rich DeVos, which O’Neal considered a low ball. Or maybe Hollywood was always predestined for a player with a burgeoning entertainment industry career. It was most likely some combination of all of the above that led O’Neal to sign what was then the most lucrative contract in NBA history, $120 million over seven years. Between that signing and the trade for rookie Kobe Bryant a week earlier, the Lakers formed the foundation of their next dynasty, which would win three consecutive titles starting in 2000. Bigger NBA contracts have been agreed to since this one but only two (Chris Webber and Rashard Lewis) were for players signing with a new team.

8) Jim McIlvaine to SuperSonics, 1996

Despite averaging just 2.1 points and 2.5 rebounds per game for the Nets in his first two NBA seasons, McIlvaine landed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the SuperSonics. We can assure you that this seemed preposterous at the time. To fans, yes, but especially to Seattle star Shawn Kemp, who was set to make just $3.7 million in the ’96-’97 season under his then current contract. The five-time All-Star had signed a team friendly deal with the Sonics back in 1994 and now was looking for recourse. He sat out the first three weeks of training camp before returning to the team, seemingly under protest. Over the next two seasons, McIlvaine barely improved on his prior two campaigns, averaging 3.5 points and 3.7 rebounds for the Sonics before getting traded to the Nets. Kemp had another terrific season in ’96-’97 but when Seattle couldn’t repeat as Western Conference champs, he was traded in the subsequent offseason to the Cavaliers. Kemp got his desired massive contract from Cleveland, $98 million over seven years, but his career quickly flamed out and he was essentially washed up by age 31.

“Players greater than James may eventually come and go in the NBA, but it’s hard to imagine anyone will ever change the league with a free agency decision the way he did in 2010.”

9) Chauncey Billups to Pistons, 2002

There wasn’t much fanfare when Billups hit the open market in 2002. Despite being a third overall pick in 1997, Billups had already been under contract with five teams in his first four seasons, getting traded from the Celtics to the Raptors to the Nuggets to the Magic, and then signing with the Timberwolves. He had something of a break out late in the ’01-’02 season, filling in for an injured Terrell Brandon as Minnesota’s starting point guard. It was enough shown by Billups for the normally free agency averse Joe Dumars and the Pistons to target him intensely. The then 25-year-old signed for six years and approximately $35 million with Detroit, an incredible return on investment for the franchise. Just one season later, the Pistons were champions and Billups was Finals MVP. He eventually made three All-Star appearances for the Pistons and was All-NBA twice. Billups got a solid payday from the Pistons in 2008, signing a contract for around $12 million per year, but was soon after traded back to the Nuggets.

10) Gilbert Arenas to Wizards, 2003
11) Carlos Boozer to Jazz, 2004

They called it the “Gilbert Arenas provision” but it could have just easily been named after Boozer. The two potentially eponymous players both inspired a 2005 collective bargaining agreement clause regarding second round draft picks. It started with Arenas, who was named Most Improved Player in ’02-’03 after a breakout season with the Warriors. A restricted free agent, Arenas could be retained by the Warriors as long as they equalled the contract from any other team. But when the Wizards offered $65 million, Golden State was helpless to match due to salary cap regulations, and lost their rising star. As for Boozer, his rookie contract with the Cavaliers ran through ’04-’05 due to a team option. General manager Jim Paxson made a supposed handshake agreement with his young power forward, agreeing to waive the team option. In return, Boozer promised to re-sign with Cleveland for $41 million over six years. Instead, Boozer got a bigger offer from the Jazz and took it, with no recourse for the Cavaliers based on the then free agency rules. To prevent these situations in the future, the “Arenas” provision in the 2005 CBA limited the amount of money that could be offered to restricted free agents who were drafted in the second round. This allows their drafting team to more easily keep their services.

12) Steve Nash to Suns, 2004

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban would later call it the biggest mistake of his career but his reasoning in letting Nash go made sense at the time. Nash was 30 years old, had an injury history, and seemed to have reached the peak of his skills under legendary coach Don Nelson. Dallas had suffered a disappointing first round exit in the 2004 playoffs and a roster shake-up felt necessary. Nash signed with the Suns for six years and $65 million, a bargain in retrospect. Nash thrived under coach Mike D’Antoni in Phoenix, winning back-to-back MVPs in his first two seasons with the team. After finishing 29-53 in ’03-’04, the Suns won 60 games in ’04-’05 and reached the Conference Finals in three of the next six seasons. Not only did the Nash signing turn things around in Phoenix, it also spearheaded a new up-tempo offense renaissance across the league. Cuban and the Mavericks did ok for themselves too, replacing Nash by trading for Jason Terry, who was a key part of their 2006 NBA Finals appearance and their 2011 title run.

13) LeBron James to Heat, 2010
14) LeBron James to Cavaliers, 2014

His 2010 relocation to South Beach was technically a sign-and-trade but our house policy is that when you announce your intentions on national television, we count it as free agency. Players greater than James may eventually come and go in the NBA but it’s hard to imagine anyone will ever change the league with a free agency decision the way he did in 2010. It completely altered the way fans, players, owners, and the media perceived free agency, player-owner power balances, and the marketing of the sport’s top talent. It proved that players finally had bargaining power on their side in a way that early pioneers like Oscar Robertson could only dream of, and kicked off the era of the NBA “superteam.” James then completely changed everything again in 2014, returning to Cleveland as a free agent. He went more low key this time, at least by his standards, announcing his decision in a Sports Illustrated article. Say what you will about his decision making off the court, but James delivered on his promise of championships in both Miami and Cleveland, forever changing the prospects of those franchises.

15) Kevin Durant to Warriors, 2016

When LeBron James took the “easy way out” by joining Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Heat, one player continually pointed to as a counterexample was Durant. Just a few days after James’ Miami announcement, Durant quietly signed a five year extension with the Thunder, keeping him with the small market franchise through ’15-’16. A lot happened in those five years, cresting in the Thunder losing a devastating Conference Finals series in 2016 against the Warriors, who were subsequently defeated by the Cavaliers, now once again featuring James. In a “can’t beat ’em, join ’em” decision that made James’ South Beach relocation seem quaint by example, Durant signed with those already seemingly unstoppable Warriors. It worked out well for Golden State and Durant, who won back-to-back Finals MVPs in 2017 and 2018, securing his place amongst the all-time greats. Considering his mercenary status since, it’s likely that Durant has no regrets about leaving Oklahoma City behind.