The funny part of the Nets-76ers trade was this: the instant reactions. Some are convinced the Nets got fleeced. Some are absolutely certain the Sixers got played. We’ll see. If the Nets ever wind up hoisting an O’Brien Trophy with Ben Simmons in the mix, Thursday will be one of the great days in franchise history. 

Trades can do that. Even more so than key free-agent signings, there is something about a great trade that echoes through the years, across the generations. All nine of our teams have had at least one trade that helped define their history. Here are the very best ones for each: 

Babe Ruth from the Red Sox for $125,000 (Dec. 26, 1919): The granddaddy of them all. You may say this shouldn’t count as a trade since the only thing the Red Sox received in return was a deep stack of dead presidents, but that’s how a lot of deals got done back in the day, out of solvency. The Yankees may have won just four of their 28 championships with Ruth on the roster. But he changed everything. And the trade changed everything. 

Donn Clendenon from the Expos for Steve Renko and three minor leaguers (June 15, 1969): This one just edges out the Gary Carter deal from the Expos prior to the 1985 season — mostly because without Clendenon there would have been no World Series championship in 1969, no Miracle Mets, and the entire narrative of the franchise would have been different. Clendenon provided leadership and right-handed power during the Mets’ amazing run, and was the MVP of the ’69 World Series after hitting three home runs with a slash line of .357/.438/1.071. 

Dave DeBusschere from the Pistons for Walt Bellamy and Howard Komives (Dec. 19, 1968): As axis-shifting as the Ruth deal was for the Yankees, this was even more important for the Knicks for a simple reason: Without this deal, hatched by GM Eddie Donovan, the Knicks might well be still waiting for a first NBA title in their 76th year of existence. DeBusschere’s impact on the Knicks was immediate and it was lasting, and there are two banners to show for it. 

Jason Kidd (with Chris Dudley) from the Suns for Stephon Marbury, Johnny Newman and Soumalia Samake (July 18, 2001): The Nets had descended to nothingness in the Jersey swamps until Kidd showed up and immediately transformed them into the NBA’s most electrifying show. Out of nowhere, the Nets were in back-to-back NBA Finals and Kidd finished as runner-up for MVP in 2002. Kidd had promised the day of the trade to make the Nets relevant, and that drew chuckles. By June 2002, nobody was laughing anymore. 

Mark Messier (with Jeff Beukeboom) from the Oilers for Louie DeBrusk, Bernie Nicholls, Steven Rice and David Shaw (Oct. 4, 1991): I mean … we can pretend there’s another contender here (maybe if Phil Esposito had won the Cup in 1979? Maybe), but when a man delivers the franchise’s only Stanley Cup since 1940, it’s damn near impossible to have that debate with a straight face. 

Butch Goring from the Kings for Billy Harris and Dave Lewis (March 10, 1980): The Islanders had already acquired a reputation as regular-season demons and playoff gaggers, and were in danger of forfeiting another year of promise. Then Goring showed up and provided an instant jump-start, one that lasted for four years of endless good times as Nassau Coliseum. 

Scott Stevens from the Blues for Brendan Shanahan (Sept. 3, 1991): Technically this was a “transfer” as compensation for St. Louis signing Shanahan. Call it whatever you like, Stevens became the face (and the muscle) of three Stanley Cup champions. If you wanted to beat the Devils in those days, you had to beat Stevens. And good luck to you. 

Eli Manning from the Chargers for four draft picks, notably Philip Rivers and Shawne Merriman (April 24, 2004): You don’t see a lot of impact trades in the NFL, and the Giants did wind up giving San Diego quite a haul. But if you see the two shiny Lombardi Trophies at Giants headquarters, it’s hard to argue with the results. 

Curtis Martin from the Patriots for two draft picks (March 20, 1998): Technically, you could suggest Joe Namath, since the Jets did trade up in the AFL draft, but in the wild-west AFL, Namath was going to wind up in New York one way or another. Martin was Bill Parcells’ chef’s kiss to New England, signing him away with a poison-pill deal that cost the Jets a first and a third. They happily took the trade-off.

You know who has to be laughing inside, at least a little bit, watching what’s happened to the Nets the last two years? Kenny Atkinson.

Another Winter Olympics, another opportunity for biathlon to move up the rankings as America’s national pastime by the boards. 

One of the best guys to ever wear the Mets uniform, Jeff Innis, was buried Friday in Alpharetta, Ga. More than 600 mourners attended, from all walks of Innis’ life, to celebrate, as Jay Horwitz says, “Jeff’s deep humility and his gigantic sense of humor.”

So you’re telling me the original “Law & Order” is making a comeback and the great Jack McCoy is going to be in on it? Deal me in.

Sal L. Lamander: There was a young man with a beard/To his teammates he wasn’t endeared/His contract was maxed/But Kyrie’s not vaxxed/So he blew town while Brooklyn fans jeered. 

Vac: I bow in the presence of greatness.

John Countryman: Your column about the “what ifs” brought back memory of Del Shofner dropping a perfect Y.A. Tittle pass in the end zone in the second quarter in the 1963 title game. It would have given NYG a 14-0 lead. The pain never dies, though the four subsequent championships helped! 

Vac: That was just 59 years ago. Man, I love sports. 

@bigronhfd67: Bottom line: the Nets traded one quitter for another. Whichever one decides to give a damn more will determine who “won” this trade. 

@MikeVacc: That says it all in 23 words just about as well as a 700-word column could. 

Dennis Zielinski: Jake from State Farm notwithstanding, if I see Dr. Dave Chokshi one more time, I may pull an Elvis and shoot the TV. 

Vac: He seems like a very nice man and I’d definitely want him as my family doctor, I think. But, yes. His 15 minutes are up.