12. Milwaukee Bucks trade Dirk Nowitzki to the Mavs for Robert “Tractor” Traylor
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The Milwaukee Bucks held the ninth pick in the 1998 NBA draft, and they used it to select little-known German forward Dirk Nowitzki. Later in that draft, the Bucks packaged Nowitzki and Pat Garrity — who they had selected with the 19th pick — to the Dallas Mavericks for power forward Robert “Tractor” Traylor.
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While Nowitzki would go on to become one of the best players in NBA history over the next 18 years (and counting) — winning an NBA championship, a league MVP, and countless other awards — Traylor averaged 4.8 points and 3.7 rebounds per game over his seven-year NBA career. Traylor was never more than a backup on bad teams.
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