Grading the Trade: Hawks Send Luke Kennard to Los Angeles for Gabe Vincent and a 2nd round pick

What grade do the Hawks deserve for sending Luke Kennard to the Lakers for Gabe Vincent and and a second round pick?

Jan 18, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Gabe Vincent (7) controls the ball against the Toronto Raptors during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

After a stunning trade last night that got them Jonathan Kuminga from the Golden State Warriors, the Atlanta Hawks have made another forward-thinking move. According to ESPN's Shams Charania, the Hawks are trading Luke Kennard to the Los Angeles Lakers for Gabe Vincent and a 2032 second-round pick.

While this is not a move that is going to get a lot of attention, what kind of grade do the Hawks deserve for making this swap of expiring contracts?

Evaluating the Trade

Jan 12, 2026; Sacramento, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Gabe Vincent (7) dribbles the ball against the Sacramento Kings in the second quarter at the Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images | Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

There are some good parts to this trade for the Hawks and there are some bad ones. Let's start with the bad.

In the short-term, this makes the Hawks worse, especially if Vincent can't stay healthy, which has been a problem since he joined the Lakers. Kennard is the better player than he is right now and was playing exceptionally well for the Hawks over the last month or so.

Kennard currently leads the NBA in three-point percentage at 49.7%. Kennard had been in trade talks due to his $11 million expiring contract, so this is another forward-thinking move for the Hawks as they flip him for another expiring contract and they get another second-round pick. The Hawks have made acquiring future seconds a priority at the deadline, as they have added three, one in this trade and two in the trade that sent Vit Krejci to Portland.

Let's talk about the good.

The Hawks are not eating into their future flexibility by making this deal. Vincent and Kennard are virtually on the same contract and both expire this offseason.

If Vincent is healthy, he is a far superior defender compared to Kennard and while not as good of a three point shooter, he can knock them down reliably.

Vincent has played in 29 games this season and is averaging 4.8 PPG and 1.3 APG this season and is shooting 35% from the field and 37% from three.

The Hawks also absorbed Kennard in the $13.1 million trade exception that they created when they moved Bogdan Bogdanovic last season, and they created an $11 million TPE for Kennard that will last until next February. Atlanta may or may not use it, but they have the option to do so.

Grade: C+

I think this move might hurt Atlanta in the short term, but it is reasonable to get a draft pick back if they had no interest in bringing Kennard back after this season. Atlanta is not a contender this season and continues to build for the future by getting the second round pick back (they have eight now to trade) and the trade exception to work. Solid work for Hawks GM Onsi Saleh.