PHOENIX SUNS

Suns center Tyson Chandler: ‘I feel healthy now, my mind is clear’

Jan 18, 2017, 4:50 PM

Phoenix Suns Tyson Chandler gestures during a game against the San Antonio Spurs, in the second hal...

Phoenix Suns Tyson Chandler gestures during a game against the San Antonio Spurs, in the second half of their regular-season NBA basketball game in Mexico City, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

(AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

PHOENIX – Often times, the best way to measure a player’s true value to a team is in their absence.

Case in point: Tyson Chandler.

Without their veteran big man against Utah on Monday, the Phoenix Suns were beaten on the boards, leading to the visitors’ game-deciding 22-6 advantage in second-chance points.

From head coach Earl Watson to players Eric Bledsoe, Devin Booker and Marquese Chriss, each mentioned Chandler’s presence, or lack thereof, in the middle of the paint. All refused to use it as an excuse for the 106-101 loss, their third in four games.

The good news here is that Chandler is back, fully recovered from a stomach illness that sidelined him against the Jazz.

“Yeah, I’m playing,” he said, referring to Thursday’s game at Cleveland, the start of a three-game road trip. “I’ll be fine. I had a couple of days of rest. I’ll be alright.”

Chandler, who stands 7-foot-1, leads the Suns in rebounding, and it’s not even close. His 12.1 average is sixth-best in the league and almost twice as much as his closest competitor on the team, Alex Len.

With Chandler unavailable Monday, Len started and grabbed five rebounds in 21 minutes. More was certainly expected and needed especially against the likes of a Jazz frontcourt that included Rudy Gobert (17 rebounds), Boris Diaw (six), Derrick Favors (four) and Trey Lyles (three).

Utah outrebounded the Suns by seven (46-39), and they were a plus-eight on the offensive end (14-6). All of that resulted in the Suns allowing the second-most second-chance points of the season.

“I don’t look at it that way,” Chandler said of perhaps being viewed as indispensable. “I look at it more like, just looking at my teammates and seeing the growth in them and seeing how I can help them out.”

There’s no question he can help.

In his second year with the Suns and 16th overall in the NBA, Chandler, 34, remains one of the better big men in the league.

Breaking down his rebounding numbers finds both his work on the offensive (3.5 rebounds per game) and defensive (8.6) ends of the court tied for seventh among qualified players with the latter a career-high.

Chandler is in the midst of a five-game run of grabbing 15 or more rebounds, the second-longest such streak of his career behind only a six-game streak while with New Orleans in 2007. And according to the Elias Sports Bureau, he’s just the second player in Suns franchise history to post at least five straight games of 15-plus rebounds and is the first to do so since the team’s inaugural season when Jim Fox recorded at least 15 rebounds in six straight games in 1969.

Oh, and Chandler is an effective shooter, too. His 67.1 field goal percentage is tops on the team and his best mark since his first year with New York when he led the league shooting 67.9 percent in 2011-12.

“I feel good, and I enjoy playing for Earl and I enjoy my young teammates,” he said Wednesday. “I felt great last year, but it’s mentally. You got to want to be out there. You got to give yourself something to compete for. I feel healthy now, my mind is clear and so that’s why you see the product of it.”

Injury and illness robbed Chandler of 16 games last season, a season that also included player unrest and a coaching change.

There’s some stability now, both in the locker room and on the sideline.

“I feel like there’s no reason why I should ever fall off,” Chandler said, talking about his game. “I feel like I can play as long as I can play and do the things that I’m capable of doing.”

FREE THROWS

— In addition to Chandler’s return, Jared Dudley should be available after sitting out one game because of dizziness. Brandon Knight is officially listed questionable due to right wrist tendonitis, an issue that’s sidelined him each of the past two games.

— The meeting with the Cavaliers will be the Suns’ second in 12 days against the defending NBA champions. Cleveland, the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 team at 29-11, won a thrilling 120-116 matchup on Jan. 8 at Talking Stick Resort Arena. However, they’ve lost three of four since.

“We understand going back home that Cleveland is going to come out and come out with a tenacity — not even just for that game but for the fact that we came back the way we did last time we played them, which was recently,” Watson said, alluding to the Cavaliers’ 126-91 loss at Golden State which ended a six-game road trip. “We also understand coming back after a long road trip is the hardest game, somehow getting adjusted. Somehow it’s always tougher for the home team.”

— The Suns (13-28) did not practice Wednesday. Instead, they went offsite for yoga, something Watson is a big believer of. “Yoga is always a good thing to create a union, come together, physically feel better and get ready for another road trip,” he said.

The yoga session helped the team hit reset before the start of the second half of the season.

“We’ve been through a lot in the first 41 games,” Watson said. “We’ve seen our young players grow quickly. We’re excited about that. We’ve seen Eric Bledsoe take amazing strides. We’ve seen Devin Booker dominate two-game, three-game, five-game stretches. Optimism is high.”

— Watson has been quick to credit P.J. Tucker for Booker’s current six-game streak scoring 20 or more points, a career-best stretch, by the way. Their battles in practice make gameday easier, according to Watson. Tucker, though, is not taking any credit.

“(Booker) don’t like it when it’s happening, but in the end he knows I’m just trying to make him better,” Tucker said, before adding about how he defends Booker, “give him different looks, my physicality, putting my strength on him, make him take tougher shots. It’s all for the betterment of his game.”

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