THE trade that sent DeMarcus Cousins to New Orleans changed the landscape of the NBA in some regards. It will obviously have implications on both teams records, but not everyone is analysing the fantasy impact of the trade. The ripple effect of the deal will see some players suffer from Boogie’s move, while others will relish their new opportunity.

Traded Players

Buddy Hield 

I’M sick and tired of everyone trying to evaluate whether rookies are already a bust. He has played 50 fucking pro games!! Hield might not be lighting the world on fire, but who knows what he can be in the future. Expect him to occupy a similar role to his previous one with his shooting his main asset. That being said if he can show some promise he may very well jump into the starting line-up, and prove to be a late waiver wire add.

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Langston Galloway

MUSHED into the depth chart behind the likes of Aaron Afflalo, Buddy Heild and Ben McLemore doesn’t bode well for Galloway’s future as a King. My guess is that he is waived once the trade is official.

DeMarcus Cousins

BELIEVE it or not I think that Cousins will be able to maintain similar averages to the ones he has put up so far in most categories. Obviously there will be a slight decline due to the pairing with Anthony Davis, at virtually the same position, but don’t be surprised if Cousins is asked to be the ‘big man in the middle’. This means Cousins will chew up the spare rebounds on offer as Anthony Davis leaks out to be on the receiving end of alley-oops galore. Boogie won’t average his 27.8 PPG (good for fourth best in the league), but he should hover around 24 PPG.

Tyreke Evans

WITH Rudy Gay injured for the rest of the year, Tyreke Evans could be a fantasy stud in the second half of the year. He has shown that he can be a playmaker and fill up the stat sheet in a number of categories so far this year. If he can stay healthy expect Evans to be the #2 option on the Kings and absorb some of Cousins 20.3 shots per game, boosting his own scoring output.

Affected Pieces

Kings: Willie Cauley-Stein, Darren Collison

THE two players who benefit the most from this trade, from a fantasy perspective at least, are two Kings players. Collison will be expected to shoulder a much bigger offensive workload now and he has sown in the past that he is up to the challenge. Willie Cauley-Stein has shown flashes of potential for years, but has never had a fair run at becoming a relevant fantasy player. This was largely due to Cousins hogging all the minutes at center and being the offensive focal point. I rely expect Cauley-Stein to thrive should he play his way to a starting role. He may be capped offensively at this stage, but he does average close to 16 PPG and 7.5 RPG per 36 minutes. He could reach those numbers by seasons end.

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Pelicans: Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday

HOLIDAY will suffer from Cousins addition the most. He had played his way to career best form entering the All Star break and was the clear #2 option for the Pelicans. The trade however moved him back to their third option, and while his assist numbers are maintainable he will purely have the ball less in his hands, equating to less scoring opportunities. As mentioned above I expect Cousins to occupy the middle more than AD now, meaning Davis’ block and rebound numbers will decline. Chances are though he will maintain his scoring average and inevitably shoot a better field goal percentage due to Cousin’s presence.

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