Kings F Carl Landry to miss 3-4 months with hip injury

When I read this news regarding the Sacramento Kings and forward Carl Landry, all I could think was “ouch”.

Landry’s loss, for much of the regular season if the timetable is accurate, is a huge one for Sacramento. The combo forward was given a 4-year, $27 million contract in the off-season to supply some stability to an otherwise chaotic organization, but further, he is a tremendous on-court asset in a variety of ways.

In 2012-2013, Landry averaged 10.8 points and 6 rebounds per game, but when you factor in that he did so in just 23 minutes per outing, those stats become wholly more impressive. His 17.6 PER is well above-average, and his versatility both around the rim and on the perimeter is an offensive asset for any roster.

On the other end of the spectrum, critics did knock the contract for Landry, simply on the basis of what is a crowded logjam in the Sacramento frontcourt. In the wake of his injury, Sacramento has a relatively full cupboard that involves DeMarcus Cousins, Jason Thompson, Patrick Patterson, and Chuck Hayes, but none of that stable of players can replicate the offensive efficiency of a guy like Landry.

There’s no way to sugarcoat this loss for the Kings, and for Landry, this is a difficult blow for a player who surely wanted to get onto the floor to begin justifying what many thought was a overpriced contract. Hopefully, he’ll make his way on to the floor sooner rather than later, but it will clearly be a few months before that is a reality.