The reaction was mixed at the time of the trade announcement, so, I’m curious to see if any fan opinion has changed in the few short days Thornton has worn the black and purple.

Do you approve of the Kings trade for Marcus? Still undecided? Or just plain hate it?

As for me? Eh, I see it as essentially the best we could do for Landry given the circumstances. That sounds like a mild bash on Thornton – it’s certainly not. I think Marcus brings a handful of qualities that the Kings lack – a deep threat, a solid shooter, a guard that can tangle with the big men down low. And while he does have his issues – defense, undersized – the good outweighs the bad for me. When Tyreke Evans returns, be it later this year or next, Thornton has all of the qualities you look for in a sixth man. His deep shot is a run stopper for opposing teams and a run starter for the Kings – his speed can eat up a second unit’s defense – and his consistent scoring ability off the bench will be a welcome addition.

Is Carl Landry more valuable? Given the premium on big men in the NBA, sure – especially given that Landry can score. But let’s not play devils advocate here. Landry was in town for a year and a half and really never played up to the hype that many thought he could. His scoring, supposedly his best asset, was average this season. His rebounding was some of the worst in the league for a “big man” – and most importantly, he was a free agent to be who was/is going to score a pretty nice pay day – one the Kings couldn’t afford to clog up their cap space with.

Like I’ve said before – Carl Landry is the piece you bring on to make a playoff contender a Championship contender – not a piece you bring on to move you from a league worst record to a 10th seed. I’m content with the move as I was when it was made.

First off, if you’re going to continue to associate Marcus Thornton with the Kevin Martin deal, you might as well stop. It’s done – Kevin isn’t coming back. If you think the Kings took it up the shooter in the Martin/Landry deal last season, that’s understandable but what’s done is done and trying to evaluate the trade when comparing it to last years deadline move will only breed unhappiness.

With that said….given what the Kings were able to pull out of Landry, they did pretty solid.

It needs to be understood that while Landry is a talented player, he is an upcoming free agent so his trade value automatically plummets. I’ve seen a lot of people unhappy the Kings didn’t attempt to make a bigger deal (say for Deron Williams) with Landry as a key piece in the trade. Problem being, he had extremely limited value because of his contractual situation so expectations needed to be tempered greatly. Let us not forget – it was only a few weeks ago that many King fans here voted that they’d be okay with a mid to first round pick for Landry. Getting an actual player, all be it a pretty solid one, is a very solid move in my humble but most excellent of opinions.

Plain and simple, the Kings weren’t going to do much better than they did for Landry. In all actuality, I’m a bit shocked they were able to snag Thornton.

And speaking of Marcus, what can we expect out of him?

Well, first off – we don’t have to watch him absolutely destroy the Kings like he did earlier this year. Don’t recall? Here go…

Bring back the memories of you vomiting on the couch? I thought it would.

Anyway, Marcus is still young pup – only 23, this being his sophomore campaign in the NBA. He had a very impressive rookie year, given the circumstances in New Orleans last season and while the sample size was pretty small, his numbers as a starter were very impressive last year. In 17 career starts, Thornton has averaged 19.8 points a game on 45% shooting while posting adequate rebounding and assist numbers. He’s also a very talented marksman from distance, shooting 37% from downtown for his (all be it short) career – something the Kings need desperately. And in even more promising news, he shoots the three ball better off the bench – which will be his primary position once Tyreke Evans returns.

In short, the Kings picked up a very solid, young piece that is a welcome addition to any core. He’ll have no trouble putting up numbers and I’m sure he’ll become a fan favorite in no short time.

The Kings did well given the difficult circumstances.