Tyson Chandler Thinks He’ll Leave the Dallas Mavericks


by Marcel Mutoni @marcel_mutoni

From Tyson Chandler’s point of view, he will not get a chance to help the Dallas Mavericks defend their NBA championship.

The free agent center is convinced he’ll be playing for an other team by the time the season kicks off.

Chandler doesn’t foresee a long-term deal of his liking coming from Mark Cuban, and expects to sign with another squad.

From ESPN:

In a surprise development on the first day that NBA teams and agents could start talking about new contracts, Tyson Chandler came away convinced that his time with the Dallas Mavericks is coming to an end. “I really think I’m going to be on a new team come training camp,” Chandler said Wednesday night. “I’m really taking a hard look at all of my options, trying to see what best suits me … I would like this to be settled by early next week. I want to be in camp with my new teammates as soon as possible.”

Chandler maintains that staying in Dallas has always been his first choice, but he expressed disappointment that the communication between the sides was minimal from the end of the NBA Finals in mid-June and the June 30 deadline for extensions. On Wednesday, when teams and agents were allowed to commence free-agent negotiations, NBA front office sources listed New Jersey, Golden State, Houston and Toronto as the teams chasing Chandler hardest. The Mavericks have likewise long maintained that bringing Chandler back is their No. 1 offseason priority and that they were reluctant to talk about an extension before July 1 because no one knew how drastic changes to the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement would be at that time.

Despite the new, restrictive CBA, some team will offer Tyson Chandler a monster deal. And with the Mavs looking to get under the cap next summer, they may balk at trying to match that (to say nothing of trying to re-up other free agents JJ Barea and Caron Butler.)

Interesting times ahead for the defending champs.