Tyson Chandler: ‘I Refuse to Have a Losing Season’

The New York Knicks’ latest horrific loss took place on Saturday night in Houston, and following the team’s third-straight defeat, Amar’e Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler were highly critical of their own squad. From the NY Post: “Amar’e Stoudemire sounded graver than ever, and ripped some players for not preparing for games and not learning from mistakes, seemingly trying to protect D’Antoni for this wreckage. Stoudemire also agreed this 1-9 stretch is probably the low point of his Knicks stint. ‘We got to start reading the board before games,’ Stoudemire, who had 23 points, said. ‘We have to prepare ourselves better as individuals. Coaches give the game plan. We have to be ready to execute the game plan. If we’re not ready to execute the game plan, we’re not helping our teammates. We have to learn to comprehend and learn from our mistakes and right now we’re not doing that,’ Stoudemire added. ‘The only thing that could put a smile on my face is my kids and they’re not in New York. It’s not a great feeling right now.’ The Houston game had long been targeted for Baron Davis’ Knicks debut, but Davis hasn’t had any pop in scrimmages. Davis’ return Tuesday against Detroit at the Garden is questionable. Tyson Chandler also sounded the alarm in the locker room afterward, indicating the club is falling back on excuses. The Knicks fell behind Houston (12-8) by 21 points even without its star Kevin Martin. ‘I refuse to have a losing season,’ Chandler said. ‘We have to do what it takes. I refuse to go through a losing season. We got to man up.’ The Knicks are 1-5 on the second night of back-to-backs and now are tied with the Nets for 10th place. ‘I’m not going to build any excuses,’ Chandler said. ‘Everybody has this schedule. Everybody’s going through four games in five nights and back to backs. Everybody’s banged up. It’s times like this you have to dig deep. It’s about the team that wants it more.'”