Knicks Rumors: Signing Tyson Chandler Makes Perfect Sense for New York Knicks
You knew the New York Knicks weren’t going to be quiet in the craziest free-agent period in the history of the NBA.
Despite having little money to spend, the Knicks are now the front-runners to land prized free-agent Tyson Chandler for four years and $60 million according to Ken Berger of CBS Sports. ESPN.com then reported this tidbit from a source:
"It's 98 percent sure that Tyson is going to wind up with the Knicks
"
To pull off such a move, the amnesty clause will have to be used on Chauncey Billups, who is scheduled to make $14.2 million this season.
The reported deal would be a slam dunk for the Knicks. Sure Chandler isn’t worth $60 million, but he is exactly what New York needs for the following reasons:
Chris Paul Bait
CP3 has made it clear that he’s a big Chandler fan and would prefer to be reunited with his old teammate. The Knicks know they can’t beat out the Warriors and Clippers in a trade for Paul, but make no mistake about it: Paul will be Big Apple-bound this summer if Chandler is on the same team of his good friend Carmelo Anthony...in the biggest media market in the world.
Brings Toughness to Soft Team
I love everything about Amar'e Stoudemire offensively. He is one of the best big men in the league in that respect, but his defense leaves a lot to be desired. Stoudemire is what he is at this point. He doesn’t have great lateral quickness, can be outmuscled and doesn’t seem to care much about improving.
Chandler would be the guy to do all the dirty work for Amar'e. He will take and give out the elbows and infuse a sense of pride on the defensive end that is currently lacking across the board in New York.
Remember: The Knicks were 28th in the NBA last year, allowing over 105 points per game.
Improves Rebounding Tenfold
The Knicks were in the lower third in this category a year ago and adding a guy that is good for between nine and 10 boards a game would be huge.
Best Free Agent Available
Nene is a less-talented Stoudemire, Marc Gasol isn’t leaving Memphis, David West doesn’t bring enough defense to the table and DeAndre Jordan is going to stay out west.
Summary
Sure the Knicks would have to find a point guard on the waiver wire that comes cheap, but with the talent in New York it wouldn’t be that hard to find one. With Chandler, the Knicks are automatically a serious challenger to the Heat in the Eastern Conference. Without him they are a No. 3 or 4 seed destined to flame out in the second round.
The fortune of the 2011-2012 Knicks is about to drastically be altered.
