SACRAMENTO, Calif. _ The NBA has fined Kings center Dewayne Dedmon $50,000 for making a public trade request in a recent interview with The Sacramento Bee.
The NBA announced Thursday that Dedmon had been fined for "public statements detrimental to the NBA and its teams."
Dedmon discussed his desire to be traded before Sunday's game against the Denver Nuggets, telling The Bee: "I would like to be traded. I haven't been playing, so I would like to go somewhere where my talents are appreciated."
Under the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, players are prohibited from making public trade demands. The league fined Anthony Davis $50,000 last season after his agent, Rich Paul, publicly requested a trade while Davis was with the New Orleans Pelicans. Nate Robinson was fined $25,000 when his agent made a public trade request in 2009.
Sacramento signed Dedmon to a three-year, $40 million contract in July. Kings general manager Vlade Divac believed Dedmon, 30, would be a good fit next to second-year forward Marvin Bagley III due to his perimeter shooting, pick-and-roll skills and interior defense, but Dedmon has struggled.
Dedmon is averaging 4.8 points and 3.8 rebounds. He is shooting 22.9% from 3-point range after shooting 38.2% last season with the Atlanta Hawks. Dedmon lost his spot in the starting lineup after four games and has now fallen out of coach Luke Walton's rotation completely. He has appeared in only two of the past 12 games, logging a total of seven minutes.
The Kings are listening to offers for the 7-foot center, but a league source told The Bee any deal would have to make sense for the team and its future.
Dedmon told The Bee he believed it was too late to salvage a future for himself in Sacramento.
"I want to be somewhere where I get to play," Dedmon said. "That's my biggest thing. I'm trying to play and I've been told I'm no longer in the rotation here, so there's really nothing to wait on."
