NBA Trade Grades: Atlanta Hawks reacquire Dewayne Dedmon, send out Jabari Parker
By Phil Watson
NBA Trade Grades: Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks were part of Tuesday’s blockbuster four-team, 12-player trade, acquiring big men Clint Capela and Nene from the Houston Rockets, and now are hoping a return to the ATL can re-energize Dewayne Dedmon, who was a massive disappointment after signing a $40 million free-agent deal with the Sacramento Kings last summer.
Dedmon is in his seventh NBA season after coming to the NBA as an undrafted free agent in 2013 out of USC. The journeyman had stints with the Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers as a rookie before landing with the Orlando Magic and becoming a rotational player in parts of three seasons there.
He became a part-time starter for the post-Tim Duncan San Antonio Spurs in 2016-17 before signing a two-year deal with the Hawks in 2017. With Atlanta, first under Mike Budenholzer and later under current coach Lloyd Pierce, Dedmon was given license to launch from deep and he did so frequently.
After attempting one 3-pointer in his first four seasons, Dedmon shot 35.5 percent on 2.3 attempts per game over 62 games in 2017-18 and upped those numbers to career-highs of 38.2 percent on 3.5 attempts a night in 64 games last season.
Dedmon has a career average of 6.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, but over his two seasons with the Hawks averaged 10.4 points and 7.7 rebounds a night.
But his experience in Sacramento went south almost immediately. He was moved to the bench in last October after starting the Kings’ first four games and aside from an 18-point night at Philadelphia on Nov. 27 did little to distinguish himself.
By the time Marvin Bagley III returned from a thumb injury in mid-December, Dedmon had already disappeared behind Richaun Holmes and Harry Giles on the depth chart, taking 11 DNP-Coach’s Decisions in a 13-game span from Dec. 8-31.
Things came to a head on Jan. 2 when Dedmon was fined $50,000 by the NBA after making public comments to the Sacramento Bee about his desire to be traded.
Sam Amick of The Athletic (subscription required) first reported on Jan. 10 about Atlanta’s interest in reacquiring Dedmon, but as recently as Jan. 27, the Kings were reportedly open to the idea of a reconciliation with the 30-year-old big man, according to Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee.
The Hawks also get two second-round picks in the trade, with a 2020 selection from the Rockets that currently projects to be at No. 52 overall and a 2021 pick from the Miami Heat.
This could be a nice follow-up acquisition for the new-look Hawks, who will come out of this deal with an open roster spot just a day after waiving Chandler Parsons‘ expiring contract to free up space to take on Capela and Nene.
That is if a return trip to Atlanta can help Dedmon reclaim his shooting stroke. Dedmon averaged just 5.1 points and 4.9 rebounds in 15.9 minutes per game across his 34 appearances with Sacramento, shooting only 40.4 percent — a career-low — overall and making just 19.7 percent of his 2.1 deep balls per night.