Knicks Rumors: Wilson Chandler's Decision To Stick With Nuggets Stings New York

The New York Knicks may have accidentally solved their point guard issues with the sudden emergence of Jeremy Lin, but that doesn’t cure all of the team's ailments.

They still need wing players that can play strong defense and a familiar one has emerged as an option.

Wilson Chandler, the former Knick who was a part of the Carmelo Anthony deal that sent him to the Denver Nuggets, is finishing up his stint in China and is ready to get back into the NBA and sign a new contract at some point in March.

Considering he was a free agent, all 30 teams were an option. According to Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports, Chandler plans on re-signing with the Nuggets. His agent told Spears that Chandler drew “significant interest” from multiple other teams, and you can bet the Knicks were one of them.

They are playing Jared Jeffries 21 minutes a night, Bill Walker 19 and even Steve Novak gets 11. In other words, this team could have desperately used Chandler.

Wilson was the 23^rd overall selection for the Knicks and played his first three-plus seasons with the team before the blockbuster trade last February. During his career he has averaged 13.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists as a predominately defensive-minded player.

At 6’8", 225 pounds, Chandler is capable of bodying up the biggest of small forwards, like LeBron James, while still possessing the quickness to stay in front of the likes of Monta Ellis.

The more and more we drift away from that infamous ‘Melo trade, the more you feel like the Nuggets made out like bandits. Danilo Gallinari is a budding star (despite his recent ankle injury), as is Timofey Mozgov (in a year or two). Raymond Felton was flipped for Andre Miller (a player the Knicks would die for before Linsanity), the Knicks’ first-round pick in the 2014 draft and Chandler.

The Knicks could literally use all of those assets right now .

Instead, they have a player in ‘Melo who is launching almost 19 shots a game despite making 40 percent of them. He is making Amar'e Stoudemire an afterthought, and it has taken a miracle in Lin to infuse some energy into Madison Square Garden.

While it will take years to officially evaluate the deal, right now the Nuggets are the hands-down winner.

Getting Chandler back could have softened the blow. Instead, the team is all-in on an undrafted second-year player that couldn’t buy a minute of floor time a week ago.