Sometimes midseason moves and late additions to rosters smack of desperation and the urge for a team to do something, anything.

But there are those occasions when they make their presence felt.

A trade deadline deal sent sweet shooting Lou Williams from the lowly Lakers to a Houston team trying to crack the upper echelon of contenders and wasted no time making an impact, nailing 7-for-11 behind the 3-point line in his first game with the Rockets. He’s shooting 21-for-42 and averaging 24 points per game as the Rockets enter Wednesday night’s game at L.A. against the Clippers (10:30 ET, ESPN). The former Sixth Man of the Year joins this season’s likely leader for the award, Eric Gordon, to make a Rockets team that was already difficult to guard more potent.

The Cavaliers are now stirring Deron Williams and Andrew Bogut into the mix of the defending champions after being cut loose in Dallas and Philadelphia.

Will the additions have an impact? A look back shows seven top players that definitely made a difference: