Ron Artest to be traded to the Phoenix Suns?

In recent days, there have been a few reports indicating that Ron Artest may be the next big acquisition of the Phoenix Suns. According to the reports, the Suns would trade the Atlanta Hawks 2008 first round draft pick to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Artest.

The Suns, who got the pick from the Hawks in the Joe Johnson trade a few years ago, would look at Artest as a quality Shawn Marion replacement. While Artest is a highly volatile and erratic person on and off the court, he’s a quality basketball player when he’s not acting crazy.

In the fantasy basketball world, this trade would arguably be bigger than the Shaquille O’Neal trade. First of all, Ron Artest would find himself in the run and gun Suns system. Playing next to Steve Nash and Shaq, Artest would likely become an all-around force. His scoring would likely decline but everything else would likely go up.

For the Kings, that’d open up space for a player like John Salmons or Francisco Garcia. Both Salmons and Garcia played well at the beginning of the season but have been relegated to the bench since the team got healthy. If Salmons or Garcia became a starter again, they’re fantasy value would skyrocket.

While this rumor remains simply a rumor, you should be prepared for the fallout. If you see that the trade has gone through, you should go and pickup either Salmons or Garcia if they are available and hope to strike gold on the waiver wire.

Artest Dunking on Joakim Noah …