Chandler's Rise Is Easy To See Now

You're waiting for Tyson Chandler to gloat, to refer to his critics and detractors and relish the opportunity to tell them where they can stick the harsh words that draped their assessments of his NBA career.

But he won't, as much as he has earned the right, as much as no one would begrudge him the counterpunch. Because, goodness knows, he's been punched hard and often enough that it would've been understandable if he'd chosen to stay down, rather than get up and risk more punishment.

But he won't -- which, actually, is a good thing for a certain columnist.

That doesn't make his rise as a Hornet, for which the word "meteoric" hardly does justice, any less impressive to us or satisfying to him.

A little more than 13 months ago, Chandler was a throwaway for the Chicago Bulls, who happily traded him to the Hornets in exchange for veteran forward P.J. Brown and guard J.R. Smith. In five non-remarkable seasons with the Bulls, Chandler, the No. 2 overall pick in 2001, didn't average more than 9.2 points, 9.7 rebounds or 1.76 blocks per game.

Today, he's one of the 12 members of Team USA, playing with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James in the FIBA Americas Tournament in Las Vegas. The tournament is one of five Olympic qualifying zone tournaments and will determine the two men's teams from the Americas zone that will qualify for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

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source : nola.com