OKC Thunder gets the interior 7 footer they desperately needed in Tyson Chandler. The Hornets received forwards Joe Smith and Chris Wilcox in exchange for their best interior defender.
ESPN.com reported early Monday that the Hornets -- who have been looking to move Chandler mostly for financial reasons -- were in talks with the Thunder on a trade that would net the expiring contracts of Smith and Wilcox. Thunder general manager Sam Presti is a long-time admirer of Chandler dating to his time with the San Antonio Spurs.
The Thunder also possess numerous draft picks to sweeten trade packages -- including five first-round picks in the next two drafts -- but Presti was able to land an accomplished center to complement his promising young trio of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green without surrendering any major draft considerations.
With a payroll at nearly $67 million this season and scheduled to reach almost $77 million next season, New Orleans felt it had to part with Chandler before Thursday's 3 p.m. trading deadline regardless, even though dealing away the 26-year-old almost certainly takes the Hornets out of serious playoff contention in the West.
