Dewayne Dedmon sidelined with left ankle injury

After a flurry of transactions in June and July, things have been relatively quiet for the Atlanta Hawks in recent days. Part of that, of course, is the “dead” period of the NBA summer but, on the bright side, the silence can also be a positive in that the team has largely operated without incident outside of various arena-related announcements. However, the Hawks made some less fortunate news on Tuesday, and it centers on the health of Dewayne Dedmon.

The team announced that Dedmon is currently sidelined with an avulsion fracture in his left ankle, having suffered the injury during a workout on Aug. 27. He is set to be re-evaluated next week and, for the moment (after an MRI revealed the ailment), Dedmon is in a walking boot.

The 29-year-old center enjoyed a breakout season in 2017-2018, posting career-best numbers in scoring (10.0 points per game) and rebounding (7.9 per game). Beyond that, Dedmon developed substantially as a perimeter threat, surprisingly converting 35.5 percent of his attempts from beyond the three-point arc.

With that said, Dedmon was absent from the proceedings for a 19-game period beginning in late November, when he was diagnosed with a left tibia stress reaction. After that health-related hiccup, Dedmon operated in reserve duty for 16 of 17 games before reclaiming his position in the team’s starting lineup for the stretch run.

Training camp is on the horizon, with the Hawks set to convene for Media Day on Sept. 24 and on-court activity set to begin on Sept. 25. Given the stated timetable for re-evaluation, the injury does not appear serious but, at the very least, it isn’t optimal for an established veteran to be dealing with an ailment in September.

Stay tuned.