Carl Landry

After signing a four-year, $26 million contract with the Kings last summer, Landry's first season in Sacramento did not go as planned. A hip flexor injury surfaced during the preseason and kept him out of action through the first month of the regular season. In mid-October, the Kings announced Landry would undergo surgery to correct the issue. He returned, as expected, in mid-January, but was clearly still hampered. After 18 ineffective performances, the decision was made to shut Landry down for the season, as he developed a nagging knee injury. In March, Landry underwent knee surgery to correct a torn meniscus. Following a summer of rehab, Landry expects to open the season at full strength. In Year 2 with the Kings, Landry will look to return to the form that saw him average 11.4 points and 5.7 rebounds with the Hornets and Warriors from 2011-13. The Purdue product projects to serve as the primary backup to Jason Thompson at power forward, but it wouldn't be surprising if he pushes the relatively ineffective Thompson for the starting spot as the season progresses.

Landry's outlook is suddenly pessimistic after the announcement that he will miss three to four months to recover from hip surgery. Combine the King's likelihood of obtaining an early draft selection next summer with the unusually fair four year contract the Kings signed Landry to this offseason, and it is highly unlikely that they will rush him through his recovery. For when he does return, Landry is an extremely efficient field goal and free throw shooter, and he is a much better scorer and rebounder than passer or defender. His fantasy value will remain limited, however, due to the King's frontcourt depth.

Landry isn’t the big-time rebounder the Warriors were looking for in the offseason, but he’s a clear upgrade from last season’s roster as a backup frontcourt man. He can certainly score in the low post and is a dogged competitor. He’ll back up David Lee at power forward, but that doesn’t mean a lot of playing time. Landry will get more minutes in smaller lineups when Andrew Bogut is out of the game.

Landry, who was acquired via trade midseason, was immensely productive for the Hornets in 2010-2011. Landry averaged 11.8 points per game and 4.1 rebounds per game after David West was put on injured reserve last season. He’ll look to build off his past production with the team and play an important role in the Hornets’ frontcourt rotation. Landry should be starting at power forward to start off the year, but could be moved to the bench if Kaman and Okafor prove productive together. Regardless, Landry proved to be valuable and loyal to the team and should benefit from whatever creative frontcourt sets Coach Williams installs.

The deadline deal that sent Landry to Sacramento proved to be a nice little boost for his fantasy fortunes. Landry started just one of his 52 games as a Rocket last season, but after arriving in California became the Kings unquestioned number one at the power forward spot. His post-trade numbers show a significant boost in playing time – 37.6 minutes per game as opposed to just 27.2 in Houston. His other numbers don't show quite as big an increase – points per game went from 16.1 to 18, boards from 5.5 to 6.5, steals from 0.5 to 1.0… and blocks actually decreased from 0.9 to 0.6 after the move. He'll start this season as the Kings' top power forward, though it will be interesting to see how his role and playing time are adjusted to accommodate top draft pick DeMarcus Cousins.

Landry posted modest stats last season, but that’s because he saw just 21 minutes per game. With 5.0 boards, 0.4 steals and 0.5 blocks in such limited action, Landry has proven to be an effective player when on the court. The first pick of the second round during the 2007 draft, Landry should only improve entering his third year in the league. With Yao Ming (foot) likely to miss the upcoming season, Luis Scola should move to center, so the power forward position is wide open in Houston. With only Chuck Hayes as the main competition, expect Landry to win the starting job, which should result in a big increase in minutes. Moreover, with Tracy McGrady’s status shaky thanks to lingering knee problems and Ron Artest now playing in Los Angeles, the Rockets have few scoring threats, so guys like Landry will be asked to take on more responsibility on the offensive end. Since he’s never been given much of an opportunity in the past, Landry should enter 2009-10 under the radar, but he could be sneaky productive given his situation and the Rockets’ depleted roster. He’s a sleeper.

The Rockets are still hoping to re-sign Landy and add him to their front court mix. Landry is a high-energy player who can score from in close and even back up Yao Ming in the pivot on occasion. Landry would have to fight for minutes with Luis Scola and Chuck Hayes, however.

Will vie to make the team as a reserve power forward.