Personally, I love this trade. I'm so happy to see Wallace go. So are tons of fans in this area. Many fans called into to the Portland sports radio station saying that this is the best day in blazers history since winning the NBA title in 1977, and they also said that they will go out today and buy Blazers tix, something that some of them haven't done in years.
But the reason the Hawks did this is that Shareef and Ratliff (who leads the NBA in blocked shots) are due $25 million next year, than their contracts are up. The Blazers weren't originally going to take on salary, but they decided that they would stay reasonably competitive next year. If they simply let Sheed walk, they would be a f***ing lottery team next year.
After next year, however, Dale Davis, Shareef, Ratliff, and Damon Stoudamire's contracts all expire. That's $50 million dollars freed up in what will be a huge free agent class!