NBA Trade Grades: Hawks bring back Dewayne Dedmon from Kings

The Atlanta Hawks are bringing Dewayne Dedmon back from the Sacramento Kings for Jabari Parker and Alex Len. Here are NBA Trade Grades for both sides.

After agreeing to acquire Clint Capela in a four-team trade Tuesday night, the Atlanta Hawks apparently weren’t done on the center front.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Hawks have agreed to bring back center Dewayne Dedmon, sending Jabari Parker and Alex Len to the Sacramento Kings in the process.

The Hawks will also acquire two second-round picks in the exchange, per Wojnarowski: one in 2020 and another in 2021. While it remains to be seen which picks those are just yet, we know enough about the basic framework of the deal to hand out some NBA Trade Grades.

Sacramento Kings

This isn’t a bad deal for the Kings, to be fair; it’s just one that indicates how misguided and poorly-run the franchise can be at times.

In defense of Sacramento, turning the extra two years and $26.6 million left on Dedmon’s contract after this season (with the final year being non-guaranteed) into Alex Len’s expiring contract and Jabari Parker’s $6.5 million player option is a smart trade-off. With Bogdan Bogdanovic approaching restricted free agency, freeing up extra cap space could be key this summer, and make no mistake about it: re-signing him should be the priority.

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However, we also can’t ignore the classic “KANGZ” aspect of all this, which traces back to last summer, when the Kings signed Dedmon and Trevor Ariza to lucrative contracts … only to deal them months later.

The Ariza move similarly brought on expiring deals to free up cap space for re-signing Bogdanovic in free agency. They were never going to get much for a 30-year-old Dedmon and didn’t have to take on any bad contracts in order to unload him. Those are small victories in and of themselves.

However, we can’t just ignore the initial damage that brought on this form of damage control, especially when the damage was self-inflicted and not too long ago. Attaching two second-rounders — even in a deal that unloads an unused player — just adds to the regret of inking Dedmon to that three-year deal in the first place.

Grade: B-

Atlanta Hawks

There are plenty of additional Kings second-rounders for Atlanta to choose from in this deal, but no matter where they end up, landing two second-rounders and bringing back Dedmon to the place where he enjoyed the best seasons of his career is a win for a Hawks team that wants to fortify its frontcourt.

Adding Capela gives Atlanta the rim protector it needs alongside John Collins at the 4, but Len wasn’t really the answer as a starter or as a backup 5. Dedmon, who averaged 10.4 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game on 37.2 percent shooting from 3 in two seasons with the Hawks, is a much better fit for this season and the short-term beyond.

As an experienced, defensive-minded big who can also spread the floor, Dedmon will fill his role well even as he gets older, especially in a place where he’s prospered the most during his time in the NBA.

Parker filled in well for Collins when he was injured, but the Hawks would much rather have a capable backup 5 for an extra season or two rather than watch Parker opt out of his deal or worse — opt in. Getting Trae Young help in the form of capable NBA veterans is the goal now, and this move is another step in the right direction there.

Grade: B+