Atlanta acquired rookie point guard Wes Matthews from Washington on January 17, 1981 for rookie wing Don Collins. Matthews played 145 regular-season games for the Hawks across parts of three seasons, including 34 games at 12.5 points and 6.2 assists immediately after the trade. Washington received 178 regular-season games from Collins across parts of three seasons, including 79 games in 1981-82 and 65 in 1982-83. Atlanta later included Matthews with Kevin Figaro in a 1983 trade for a second-round pick that became Cedric Henderson, so that downstream value is diluted. Washington gets the slight edge on the longer direct return.
Atlanta and Washington transaction ledgers agree on the January 17, 1981 exchange. The Hawks sent Don Collins to the Bullets for Wes Matthews. Matthews immediately became Atlanta's primary point guard. He played 34 games after the trade and averaged 12.5 points, 6.2 assists and 32.5 minutes.
Matthews returned for 47 games in 1981-82, starting five, and averaged 6.9 points with 3.0 assists. He then played 64 games in 1982-83 and averaged 6.9 points with 3.9 assists. Across the three Atlanta seasons, Matthews appeared in 145 regular-season games. That is a useful multi-year return, even though his role declined after the initial half-season.
On October 6, 1983, Atlanta traded Matthews and Kevin Figaro to San Diego for a 1986 second-round pick. Atlanta eventually used that pick at No. 32 on Cedric Henderson, who played eight NBA regular-season games in his career. This review does not credit the full Henderson return to Matthews because Figaro was also included in the trade. The branch still shows that Matthews retained some transaction value after his Hawks playing tenure.
Collins played 34 games for Washington after the trade in 1980-81 and averaged 9.8 points. He then played 79 games in 1981-82, starting 18 and averaging 10.0 points. Collins added 65 games in 1982-83, starting 21 and averaging a career-best 11.8 points. That gives Washington 178 regular-season games from Collins across parts of three seasons, 33 more than Matthews gave Atlanta. Washington waived Collins on October 27, 1983. Golden State signed him later that year, so the Bullets did not receive a documented downstream asset when his tenure ended.
Both teams received productive rotation players for multiple seasons. Matthews had the stronger immediate post-trade role, while Collins provided the longer Washington tenure and more total games. Atlanta retained a small downstream branch through the 1986 second-round pick, but that later transaction also required Kevin Figaro and ultimately produced only eight NBA games from Cedric Henderson. Washington's 178 Collins games therefore outweigh Atlanta's 145 Matthews games plus the diluted late pick return by a modest margin.
Slight Bullets Edge, B+/B. Washington receives a B+ for 178 Collins games across parts of three seasons. Atlanta receives a B for 145 Matthews games and a later shared-asset second-round return.