Seven years ago, things were not looking great for Tyson
Chandler’s NBA career. After 5 years
with the Chicago Bulls, it would appear as though he was going to head down the
same path as Darius Miles and many others who came into the NBA too soon, never quite reaching their full potential because of it. Once he reached the low point of his playing
career, Chicago traded him to New Orleans and everything has been looking up
for him ever since.
With the Hornets, Chandler became a right-hand man of sorts
to Chris Paul. He averaged career highs
in both blocks and rebounds in his first season with the team in addition to
ranking among the top three in the league in rebounds for his first two years
there.
Injuries held back his playing time in his last season with
New Orleans and after three years with the team he was traded to the Charlotte
Bobcats. Once again, injuries kept him
sidelined for more than 30 games. Led by
Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson, the Bobcats made their first playoff
appearance. Chandler was still able to compete in the playoffs, and despite his work on
the defensive end, holding Dwight Howard below 10 points and 10 rebounds per
game, the Bobcats were swept by the Orlando Magic.
After the quick playoff exit, the Bobcats sent Chandler to
the Mavericks. In Dallas, we began
seeing Chandler reaching his full potential.
He was the top rebounder and shot-blocker for a team that was packed
with seasoned vets, including Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd and Shawn Marion, just
to name a few. The Mavericks breezed
through the Western Conference in the post season. Along the way, they swept the defending
champion Lakers, beating them by nearly 40 points in Phil Jackson’s final game
(for now). In the finals, the Mavericks
won 4-2 over the heavily favored and widely hated Miami Heat, giving Tyson his
first NBA championship.
During the off-season, Chandler was given a four-year
contract worth an estimated $58 million by the New York Knicks. He showed that he was worth the money,
taking home the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award while also posting the
highest field goal percentage since the NBA-ABA merger in 1976.
This season, Chandler is playing better than he ever has
before. The Knicks are sitting on top of
the Eastern Conference with the first quarter of the season in the books. Chandler leads the league in field goal
percentage, shooting .721 for the year.
That number is second all time, bested only by Wilt Chamberlain in
1973. He’s also averaging a career high in
points per game while still putting up 9.6 rebounds per contest.
Aside from the numbers, Chandler knows how to make big plays that don't show up in the box score. In the Knick's last 2 wins, Thursday against the Lakers and Saturday against the Cavs, Chandler managed to tip the ball away to his teammates, leading to offensive rebounds and extending the team's time of possession in close games. With his strong pick-and-roll play, keen eye for alley-oops
and tough play on both ends of the court, reminiscent of many big men from the
‘90s, Chandler is proving himself to be an elite, all-star talent in the
NBA. He's definitely the most no-nonsense guy in the NBA today.
So far this year, I think it’s safe
to say that he is playing better basketball than any other center in the
league. Dwight Howard is putting up his
lowest numbers of the past five years in both points and rebounds, while
Anderson Varejao has strong stats that are outweighed by sloppy play and a
low win count for his team. In my opinion, the
strongest competitor to Chandler right now is Joakim Noah, who is averaging
career bests in points, assists, steal and blocks at the moment. He’s been fantastic in keeping the Bulls
above .500 throughout Derrick Rose’s long-term absence.
The bottom line though is that Tyson Chandler has proved that
he was well worth the number two overall pick back in 2001. Hopefully an all-star pick is in his near
future. Out of players who have yet to
be selected for an all-star game, I can’t think of a single one who deserves the
honor more.
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