NBA salary cap exercise: What player would every team amnesty?

Atlanta Hawks – Dewayne Dedmon

The Hawks will be entering free agency this summer with one of the most sizable chunks of cap space in the league. After having a team payroll of $114 million this year and struggling to put talent around Trae Young to win immediately the number will plummet to $59 million. The highest-paid player on the team will be Clint Capela, who has yet to play for the team.

While the team does not immediately need more cap space, especially in a summer with a limited free agent crop, chopping off $13.3 million per year over the next two seasons by moving on from a reserve center seems like a shrewd financial decision.

Atlanta brought Dewayne Dedmon back to the team at the trade deadline when the Kings decided to dump his contract, along with two second-round picks, for the expiring deals of Alex Len and Jabari Parker. Dedmon was mediocre in 10 games for the Hawks this season, averaging 8.1 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks. His shooting splits of .393/.222/.875 tell the story of his short time there.

Paying that much money for a player who does not contribute much is the way growing teams can get themselves into trouble. For better or worse Trae Young has made it clear that he wants to win sooner rather than later so having as much cap space as possible to fill out their roster will be essential.

Furthermore, as a team unlikely to win enough to contend the ability to absorb contracts and assets is one of the better ways to build. Center is one of the least valued positions in the current NBA so finding capable reserve centers for significantly cheaper than $13.3 million per season should not be tough.