The New Orleans Hornets (who were purchased by Saints owner Tom Benson for $338 million on Friday) lost starting point guard Jarrett Jack at the beginning of April to a stress fracture in his right foot. The 7th-year guard out of Georgia Tech will be sidelined for the remainder of the season, so head coach Monty Williams has plugged 6’6″, 2nd-year Venezuelan combo guard Greivis Vasquez into this backcourt hole.
The 2010 ACC Player of The Year at Maryland and former first-round draft choice has filled in nicely for the injured Jack over the past seven games. Since joining the first string, Vasquez’s numbers have increased significantly across the board. He has averaged 34.1 minutes per game, 12.3 ppg, 7.4 apg, 3 rpg and 1.3 steals per game in seven starts. Though the 18-42 NOLA squad has been out of playoff contention for months, the Hornets have gone 5-2 and won their last three contests since Vasquez was inserted into the starting five.
With New Orleans being a team in transition in multiple areas, from ownership, to defining their player core, to devising competitive strategies for success in the West, look for them to give their young guns like Vasquez more run as they finish out the regular season and head to the Lottery. Vasquez should be a solid pick-up for fantasy owners who need to fill in some gaps during the final six regular season games.
