Jackson’s chemistry comments irk Chandler

Tyson Chandler put up with enough nonsense from the Knicks. (USATSI)

On Friday, Mavericks center Tyson Chandler fired back at allegations from the Knicks over the summer that the veteran was a chemistry problem for the Knicks last year in an interview with ESPN Dallas, an allegation not unlike saying the Hindenburg had a problem with cupholders.

Chandler was traded back to Dallas this summer for Jose Calderon and filler, in part to remove the salary from the remainder of his contract he signed with New York in 2011.

And the fire, it did rise.

"I did nothing but try to help the culture there the three years I was there," Chandler said Friday. "You can say I didn't live up to whatever or you didn't like the way I played or anything. But to ever question who I am and the type of leader I am in the locker room, I don't even know where that came from.

"I honestly don't know where that came from. I don't know if Phil put that out there or who put that out there, but to me, that was the ultimate shock. And you don't have to say that to get rid of me or to trade me. The trade is over.

"So to judge my character and what I've done, you can go look at all my teammates and ask all of my teammates in the past, and the coaches I've played for, and I've never been a problem and never had a problem. So that was a shock to me that I didn't appreciate."

"It makes no sense," Chandler said. "If you call holding people accountable daily being a bad influence, then hey, I'm a bad influence. But I'm going to be that as long as I'm going to strap up my shoes and step on the basketball court. And that was the big problem there.

"That's the biggest thing. I guess if that's why I was a bad influence, because I wanted to do things the right way, then I guess I'm a bad influence. But I've never heard of that. I thought that was being a professional."

"You can go to any of the staff members or anybody and ask them what kind of guy I was when I was there, and if I was the guy who was pushing for what is right all the time and they would tell you so," Chandler said. "That more than anything in my career caught me off guard. I can stomach somebody saying he didn't produce or whatever, and that's just motivation. But a shot at someone's character or professionalism, that's a little far-fetched."

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Jackson's chemistry comments irk Chandler