Carl Landry to the Hornets for Marcus Thornton: Fantasy Impact

Carl Landry has been traded by the Sacramento Kings for Marcus Thornton of the New Orleans Hornets.

The Kings were in dire need of a scoring guard with Tyreke Evans out for three weeks or more and the Hornets, ever the cheapskates are already making contingency plans for when they likely let David West walk this summer.

This is a good move for the Hornets as I firmly believe that Landry is a better player than West and that West is only a backup big on a serious playoff contender…its only that Chris Paul has elevated his game and made him look better than he is.

Marcus Thronton is a great fit for Sacramento who simply had too many big men, and now have a workable rotations of three bigs with Cousins, Dalembert and Thompson.

Fantasy Impact:

Carl Landry should see a spike in his numbers across the board as he is expected to see increased minutes in New Orleans once he has adjusted to the offense. Landry is a gifted scorer and should be utilized as the primary sixth man for the Hornets. He will also share the floor with David West at times so the minutes should be there for him to post 15 points and six rebounds per game as a member of the Hornets.

David West’s fantasy value takes a hit with news of this move as the Hornets are likely gearing up to let West walk if his contract demands are deemed too exorbitant this summer. Landry is a proven 4th quarter scorer and may get the call over West late in games.

Chris Paul gets a new weapon to play with and Landry’s potent offensive game should help to make things easier for Paul. Paul should see his assists rise back past the double digit threshold and should begin to take more shots with less bad shots to go around with the efficient Landry in town.

Marco Belinelli should see a major spike in minutes and is firmly back on the fantasy radar in leagues of all sizes; Jarrett Jack is worth a look as well.

Marcus Thornton is a great short-term pickup as he will get plenty of playing time over the next three weeks with Tyreke Evans sidelined. Remember this is a player who put up 20.3 points per game over the final 29 games of the season with Chris Paul sidelined. He has talent and knows how to score. Jermaine Taylor and Luther Head can score in spurts as well but neither is as good a talent as Thornton has proven to be on the offensive end. With that said Westphal is a whimsical coach and his lineups cannot be trusted. Proceed with that in mind.