Obviously, the two biggest names in this potential trade are Carl Landry and Charlie Villanueva. If Landry lands with the Bucks, he will probably get to play more minutes. In Houston, Landry was stuck behind a lot of players who play at the same position. According to Landry’s per minute numbers, he could do some major damage if given extended minutes. For fantasy basketball purposes, watch to see if Landry’s minutes increase following this potential trade.

Villanueva could also see his value rise. He isn’t a great fit with the Bucks and also has the problem of duplicate talent at his position. On the Rockets, he could see some minutes at power forward to help spread the court for Yao Ming.

All in all, this trade would be good for both of the big names involved. All the role players involved would likely remain irrelevant in the fantasy basketball world.

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The Kings did the trade because in return they get a young player in Greene who shined in the Vegas Summer League, an expiring contract in Jackson (who just happens to be a fan favorite in Sacramento) and a future pick. For the Kings, they get a couple of young pieces without having to add salaries to the books.

The Rockets did the trade to try to win a championship. With a Big Three of Artest, Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, the Rockets will now be true championship contenders as long as they remain healthy. In addition to the Big Three, the Rockets have solid role players in Rafer Alston, Shane Battier, Brent Barry and Luis Scola.

Artest personally should have a very good season in Houston. The Rockets will let him score as much as he can. Defensively, his rebounding and blocks could go up because he’s likely to see a lot of time at power forward. Artest has played for Rick Adelman in the past and had good fantasy basketball success.

All around, this a good trade for the Kings, Rockets and Artest’s value in fantasy basketball.

Here is a video with more on the Ron Artest trade:

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Barry will step in and help the Rockets hit shots from beyond the three-point line. The Rockets were streaky last season from deep and Barry should help Houston become more consistent. In addition to being a very good shooter, Barry is also a good passer and a good playmaker.

In terms of fantasy basketball, Barry likely won’t be too valuable. At 36 years of age, Barry is getting up there in years and it is doubtful that he can play more than 15 to 18 minutes per game. He can help a fantasy team with three-pointers, assists and good field goal, three-point and free throw percentages.

Here is a Brent Barry Highlight Video:

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In the 2007-08 season, Mason averaged 9.1 points, 1.7 assists and 1.6 rebounds per game. He shot 44.3% from the field and 39.8% from beyond the three-point arc. Mason split most of his time between shooting guard and point guard.

For the Spurs, Mason will play mostly shooting guard for the Spurs. In fact, there is a chance that Mason could start for the Spurs at shooting guard. With the unknown futures of Michael Finley and Brent Barry, Mason could start so that reigning Sixth Man of the Year Manu Ginobili can continue to come off the bench.

Mason doesn’t currently look like a guy who will have a lot of fantasy basketball value but that would change quickly if he’s named a starter in San Antonio. As a starter, Mason brings to the table a guy who can score, hit three-pointers and shoot for a high percentage.

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Barry has missed the last two months after injuring his calf for the second time. The reports out of San Antonio are that Barry could begin playing later this week. Although he’ll come off the bench, Barry could still play a 15 to 18 minute role on the Spurs.

Before you pickup Barry, you might as well see if he can play and how many minutes he will get. There’s no point in wasting a roster spot on him at the moment. Calf injuries tend to linger so there’s no guarantee that he’ll be much of a player when he returns.

However, if he has a good game or two and plays quality minutes, consider him as an option in the final week of the 2008 fantasy basketball season.

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How did Barry become a free agent? After being traded to the Seattle Supersonics along with Francisco Elson and a draft pick for Kurt Thomas, the Sonics made another trade that forced them to waive a player. Barry was the player who Seattle decided to waive.

The 36-year-old Barry is a guy who can shoot three-pointers at a great clip. He’s also an accomplished passer and playmaker. Those skills are highly needed around the league. Since Barry is a veteran player, most league pundits believe that he’ll end up with a championship contender.

Which teams make most sense for him? The Suns and Warriors like to run-and-gun and Barry would fit right into that type of attack. Word out of Phoenix is that signing Barry is a top priority for the Suns. The Lakers could always use more shooters. The Rockets could use a playmaking guard.

The Mavs are looking to fill some holes after the Jason Kidd trade. Celtics reportedly have interest in Barry. And don’t forget about the Spurs. San Antonio is expected to attempt to re-sign Barry.

In terms of fantasy basketball potential, Barry would do best to go to a team like the Suns or Warriors. He’d get to put up a lot of shots on those two teams, without having to worry too much about playing defense. This season on the Spurs, he wasn’t really playing enough minutes to make much of a fantasy impact. If he returns to San Antonio, expect that to remain the same.

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And now that he’s going to the Spurs, his fantasy value will drop even further. He was starting and playing relatively big minutes for the Seattle Supersonics. With the Spurs, he likely won’t start right away. In fact, Fabricio Oberto may remain the starter for the rest of the season.

In the short-term, expect Thomas’ numbers to plummet to about half of what he did in Seattle. Eventually, as he earns more and more playing time, his peak production will likely be approximately 75% of what he did while with the Sonics. The end result will be a fantasy player who isn’t rosterable in most leagues.

In Seattle, neither Brent Barry nor Francisco Elson will make too much noise. Elson will likely be a backup center who gets limited minutes. Barry likely won’t even suit up for the Sonics and will instead be bought out. Expect Barry to either re-sign with the Spurs or sign with a contender such as the Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers or the Dallas Mavericks.

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Well, All-Star Weekend has come and gone, however, the debate on the “Superman” dunk (was it a dunk or not?) still rages on. As fantasy basketball players, we have bigger concerns on our mind. For one, what are the fantasy effects of all of the blockbuster deals this season? Also, are there any second-half sleepers out there to help you in your league’s stretch run? Here is a look at those questions and more.

Trade Fallout – The Winners:

Kurt Thomas – Power Forward/Center – Spurs – Thomas moves to a team that needs his services in the post. He should get the majority of minutes over Fabricio Oberto and may contribute a double-double statistical line with strong percentages and decent defensive numbers. He has very limited upside. But, you could do worse for a short-term filler at center.

Beno Udrih – Point Guard – Kings – Udrih resumes his role as the Kings starting point guard with Mike Bibby going east to the Hawks. Just in case you forgot, he is averaging 14 points and 5 assists as a starter this season.

Marcus Williams – Point Guard – Nets – The good news, Jason Kidd has left town. The bad news, Devin Harris has arrived in town. Harris will be out a couple of weeks recovering from injury. That will give Williams ample time to audition for the starting point guard job.

Antoine Wright – Shooting Guard/Small Forward – Mavericks – Wright has two things to be grateful for. One, he no longer has to compete with the uninspired duo of Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson for minutes. Two, he is out of New Jersey. Wright could contribute in steals, assists, and rebounds if given 28 to 30 minutes a night. That is not as far fetched as it sounds as the Maverick may start to save the aging legs of Eddie Jones and Jerry Stackhouse for the playoffs.

Trade Fallout – The Losers:

Andris Biedrins – Center – Warriors – Biedrins’ stock is not affected by a trade, but the signing of Chris Webber. Biedrins has not only lost his starting gig to Webber, but some playing time as well. He is really foul-prone, so the drop in his value can not all be attributed to the Webber signing. He is also very young and is a nice buy low candidate for keeper leagues.

Josh Boone – Power Forward/Center – Nets – The Nets have been in search of good big men since the days of Derrick Coleman. While the lot of “bigs” they have now do not have the talent – or nearly the waistline – of Coleman, there are a lot of them. Adding DeSagana Diop to Boone, a recovering Nenad Krstic, the recently acquired Stromile Swift, and rookie Sean Williams makes the front line rotation pretty crowded. There is a large possibility that there will be an open audition at the four and five spot in New Jersey for the rest of the season. If that is the case, then all involved will have diminished fantasy value.

Boris Diaw– Power Forward/Center – Suns – If Shaquille O’Nealcan stay healthy and if he can play 30 minutes a night, then Diaw role and minutes will be minimized for the Suns. But those are some pretty big “ifs”. Diaw’s steals and assists from the center spot can be value. However, his production is too volatile to rely on.

Jarrett Jack – Guard – Blazers – Why is Jack on this list? He has not been traded, has he? The Blazers have not made a trade, right? Well, there is the problem. Jack would have benefited greatly by a move out of Portland. He has moved into the starting lineup recently, at the two-guard spot, at least on a part-time basis. His shooting is too inconsistent to play big minutes at the off guard spot and there are too many options on the bench for Jack to be worthy of a roster spot right now.

Acie Law – Guard – Hawks – Using simple math, you can deduce that Law has a chance of more playing time. Two point guards leave (Tyronn Lue and Anthony Johnson) and one came back in a trade (Mike Bibby). However, beating out Lue and Johnson for minutes is different than beating out Bibby. Law may see some gain in value, but loses a chance to become a truly viable fantasy option.

Second-Half Sleepers

Randy Foye – Guard – Wolves – I have been tooting this guy’s horn for a while. Foye is good. How good? Well, that has yet to be determined, but Minnesota has nothing better to do this season but find out what exactly what they have in Foye. His shooting has been awful this season – currently sitting at 36%. Considering that he shot 43% from the field and 37% from three point range last season, he should raise his field goal percentage considerably the rest of the way.

Luis Scola – Power Forward/Center – Rockets – Scola got off to a slow start this season as he got acclimated to the league. His February numbers: 11 points and 6 rebounds – not eye popping, until you see that he is shooting 63% from the field. He should continue to put up better numbers as he gets more comfortable with the NBA style of play. Averages of 13 points and 7 rebounds is very possible.

Rodney Stuckey – Guard – Pistons – In case you have not noticed, Stuckey has February averages of 11.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in just 22 minutes. Logic tells us that he should see his minutes continue to rise as they ready him – a rest the aging starters – for the post-season. Put Stuckey on the Timberwolves or the Clippers, he would be a top candidate for the Rookie of the Year award.

Louis Williams – Guard – Sixers – Like Randy Foye, Williams should have plenty of opportunity the rest of the way to prove his wares. Williams has a multitude of skills and appears that he will be a fantasy star someday. The question that you should be asking is: will he turn those skills into production this season. He is, at least, worthy of a spot on your watch-list, if not your reserve team. However, I have a little more optimistic outlook for Williams. He could be good for 12.5 points, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals the rest of the way on 45% shooting, up from his current 41% shooting.

FantasyFanatics.com is a premier fantasy sports community. Need help deciding who to sit and who to start? What about help with a big trade? Chat with the fantasy basketball experts on FantasyFanatics.com.

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Andray Blatche, Washington Wizards
The injury to Arenas opened up a lot of doors, including one for Blatche. Blatche is seeing more time and most shots now that Arenas is out. Blatche has the added bonus of being a multi-positional player. Get him while his value is still relatively low.

Jamario Moon, Toronto Raptors
Moon is another player who should be added if he’s still available in your league. While he’s going to be a bit inconsistent, it appears as if he’s solidified his starting job with the Raptors. He produces all over the stat sheet in fantasy, which is always a plus.

Louis Williams, Philadelphia 76ers
It appears as if the Sixers are going to find more and more ways to get Williams into the lineup. Also, don’t be surprised if he ends up starting sooner rather than later – even if it means trading away Andre Miller to make room for him.

Marko Jaric, Minnesota Timberwolves
Jaric is getting plenty of playing time with the T’Wolves and is producing. The good thing about Jaric is he gives you production in literally every category. He’s not great at any one thing but his well roundedness is a very good aspect to his game.

Brent Barry, San Antonio Spurs
Barry is a fantasy role player. If your team needs three-pointers and needs to improve its shooting percentages, there aren’t many better options than Barry. He’s going to shoot for a good percentage and he’s also going to chip in with some assists and rebounds.

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