Atlanta Hawks Open Roster Spot by Trading for Chandler Parsons

The Atlanta Hawks traded away two players in return for Chandler Parsons of the Memphis Grizzlies, opening up a roster spot and saving a sliver of cap space in the roster.

Atlanta Hawks General Manager Travis Schlenk continues to make proactive moves in the 2019 offseason by shifting bad contracts around in order to both fill out the roster and open up roster spots.

First, Schlenk traded away franchise stalwart Kent Bazemore to the Blazers for Evan Turner. Now, a whopping three (awful) contracts that were signed in the cash-heavy 2016 free agency were traded for each other involving the Hawks.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski originally reported the deal:

While this might immediately seem like a puzzling move, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution provided a succinct reason why the Atlanta Hawks made this deal:

Indeed, another open roster spot is likely the reason why this deal was made, and if the Hawks opt to waive the final year of Parsons’s deal, which is a real possibility one would think, another roster spot could be opened up.

With that in mind, what sort of players would the Hawks be looking for to fill those spots? Well, one player that immediately springs to mind is NBA legend Vince Carter, who would be able to return for his “farewell tour” as a member of the Atlanta Hawks, which would certainly be beneficial for the team in the short- and long-term.

Beyond that, trading away both Solomon Hill and Miles Plumlee means the team is rather thin in the frontcourt (especially at the center position) so a bargain center signing might also be in the cards for the Atlanta Hawks going forward.

One notable restricted free agent who could be on the team’s radar is Jordan Bell, previously of the Warriors. Golden State has almost no cap space left after sign-and-trading for D’Angelo Russell and re-signing Kevon Looney in the frontcourt, so Bell is almost assuredly on the way out.

Keep it locked to Soaring Down South for plenty more coverage of the offseason from the perspective of the Atlanta Hawks.