Jason Richardson, formerly of the Charlotte Bobcats, is headed to the Phoenix Suns. Along with Richardson, the Bobcats sent Jared Dudley in a package that is bringing back Raja Bell, Boris Diaw and Sean Singletary from the Suns.

For Richardson, this should be good news for his fantasy basketball potential. Playing next to Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire and Shaquille O’Neal, he is sure to get plenty of open looks. Since the lane will be somewhat clogged with Stoudemire and O’Neal down low, look for Richardson to shoot a lot of three-pointers. That shouldn’t be a problem for him considering that he was the top three-point shooter in the NBA last season in terms of makes.

In addition to 6-7 three-pointers a game, Richardson’s points per game should be able to get back around 20 points per game. His rebounding and assists could also see a spike due to the fact that the Suns play at a much faster pace than the Bobcats. In fact, the Bobcats are one of the slowest paced teams in the entire league.

Dudley doesn’t gain much fantasy appeal due to this trade right away, but keep an eye on the role he is given. Chances are that he’ll be a deep bench player but the Suns may have bigger plans.

Diaw wasn’t having a very good season with the Suns but could possibly turn it around with the Bobcats. He has a good chance to start at power forward next to Emeka Okafor. If he sees a major jump in minutes, he could revert back to the Diaw who was a very good fantasy player a few seasons ago. That said, the slow pace of the Bobcats will likely keep him from getting anywhere near his best career stats.

Bell’s fantasy appeal will be dependent on how many minutes he gets. But considering that his fantasy appeal is based on his ability to take and make a lot of three-pointers, don’t count on that carrying over to Charlotte. Bell’s days as a fantasy relevant player could be done.

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