In 1999, the Toronto Raptors had a deal in place to send Tracy McGrady to the Sixers, who were eager to get the trade done since Allen Iverson needed another superstar next to him.

However, the Raptors got cold feet and backed out of the trade after Stephen A. Smith broke the news:

Yes this is true https://t.co/40WiC5p09I — Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) April 4, 2020

Can you imagine how lethal the Sixers would have been with prime Iverson and prime McGrady? It’s safe to say Philly would have captured at least one championship, maybe more, with AI and T-Mac leading the way.

We can’t fault Stephen A. Smith because of this. He was just doing his job as a reporter. However, as a Sixers fan, it has to be difficult to know that Philly was this close to having two of the best players in NBA history in one backcourt.

The Raptors wound up trading McGrady to the Orlando Magic in August of 2000, and the rest is history. T-Mac went on to have a Hall of Fame career, as did Iverson. Unfortunately, neither guy was able to win a championship during their career.

McGrady finished his NBA career with averages of 19.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists. Iverson, meanwhile, racked up averages of 26.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 6.2 assists. He won the 2001 regular season MVP award and led the Sixers to the Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers, where Philly ended up losing in five games to Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal.