04/17/2009 - 22:43
Rocky Mountain Bound
by Devon Jeffreys

This Sunday, Tyson and his Hornets teammates embark on a mission.

Ever since last season’s heartbreaking loss to the San Antonio Spurs, the Hornets have worked to get back to the postseason and finish what they began. That started Sunday in Denver against the No. 2 seeded Nuggets.

Tyson worked all offseason to complete his game by adding a jump shot, to make his game, and in-turn the team, more well rounded. But unforeseen injuries cost No. 6 nearly half the season (37 games). It seemed every time the Big Easy was finding his rhythm, the ankle put him back on the sideline.

No. 6 stuffing former Denver Nuggets guard Allen Iverson in November 2007 (Getty Images).

Subsequently, New Orleans suffered without their big man, missing their goal of repeating as Southwest Division Champions and sliding into the playoffs as the seventh seed, without the benefit of Hive Court Advantage.

But the playoffs represent a new season for TC and company and a clean slate. Tyson believes that the Hornets have as good a chance as anyone and reading into their late season performance without key players is not wise, as quoted by the Sun-Herald:

“At the beginning of the year, they had us winning the championship,” Chandler said. “You lose a couple games and they have you out of the playoffs, they have you in the eighth seed. So if you start listening to that, I mean, you can forget about it. That stuff only counts in video games and stuff like that, fantasy sports.”

BREAKING DOWN DENVER
The Hornets have played four games against the Denver Nuggets this season, splitting them right down the middle. Each team won one game at the opponent’s court and one game at home. Tyson missed all four games.

The Nuggets, who ended up with the second best record in the West, will certainly give the Hornets their best shot in the seven game series.

“We put ourselves in this situation and we know we have to deal with it,” Chandler said of the Hornets’ seventh seeding, five slots lower than last year when the team won the Southwest Division and had home-court advantage in the first round. “Denver is a great team from top to bottom. We’re going to have to bring energy because they’ve got a full roster.”

Despite the tough seeding, Tyson believes the Nuggets and Hornets match up very evenly, as quoted in the Times-Picayune:

“We mirror each other when you look at the matchups,” said Chandler, who missed all four regular-season games between the teams. “We are very similar teams. They have a very deep team. They throw guys at you. I’m not sure how Coach (George Karl) is going to run their playoff roster, but they have a lot of guys on that roster who we are going to have to match their energy.”

TYSON’S ASSIGNMENT
No. 6 will match up in the series with Nuggets 6-11 center Nene Hilario, better known simply as Nene.

Nene averaged 14.6 points and 7.8 rebounds per games for the Nuggets this season. In particular against New Orleans, Nene fell below his season averages, with 36 points (12 ppg) and 14 rebounds (4.7 rpg).

Nene has not faced New Orleans with No. 6 in the lineup since November 4, 2007, a 93-88 Hornets win in Denver. Marcus Camby was the starting center for the Nuggets at the time. Tyson had 12 points and 17 rebounds in the win. Nene scored 12 points in 20 minutes off the bench.

John Reid of the Times-Picayune sees Nene as a good matchup for TC, as he noted in his most recent Hornets chat:

“Tyson Chandler will be able to handle Nene. The question is whether Nene will be able to limit Chandler’s rebounding ability. I don’t see Chandler have a high scoring series, but his rebounding will be key, along with his defensive play. ”

The Big Easy is also sure to see plenty of Kenyon Martin and Carmello Anthony in the post. Anthony finished tied for 7th in the NBA in scoring at 22.8 points per game with Ty’s teammate, Chris Paul.

HOW’S THE ANKLE?
As Tyson noted in his most recent blog, his ankle isn’t quite at 100 percent and probably won’t be until after the season, but he still plans to give it his all, as quoted in the Times-Picayune:

“That’s the reason why we’ve been holding off,” Chandler said. “That’s they reason why I haven’t played the regular-season games. This is just something we are going to have to deal with. That’s one of the things that I’m going to have to be a little aware of what I’m doing out there, how I’m jumping. I got to box out and let (teammates get some) rebounds, try not to do as much jumping around."

“It’s the playoffs, so I plan on being out there because it’s either being out there and giving my team a shot and a chance to win or not playing at all. And I’d rather be playing.”

WHERE AND WHEN
The Hornets and Nuggets tip off their best of seven series this Sunday at 7:30 PST on TNT. Here’s a look at the entire schedule:

Game 1: Sunday, April 19, 7:30 p.m. PST, at Denver, on TNT
Game 2: Wednesday, April 22, 7:30 p.m. PST, at Denver on TNT
Game 3: Saturday, April 25, 10 a.m. PST, in New Orleans on ESPN
Game 4: Monday, April 27 in New Orleans
Game 5: Wednesday, April 29, in Denver, if necessary
Game 6: Friday, May 1, in New Orleans, if necessary
Game 7: Sunday, May 3, in Denver, if necessary

ARRIVED IN DENVER
Tyson added a little color to his trip to Denver, tweeting about it on www.twitter.com/tysonchandler:

In Denver driving in the snow.. Well the cab driver is driving in the snow

A PREDICTION
While many are picking against the underdog Hornets, there are several media members who have sided with the NOLA five, like ESPN True Hoop’s Henry Abbott:

“With a fairly healthy Tyson Chandler, they are a much better team than with no Tyson Chandler. Thanks to the majesty of Chris Paul, they have been OK without him, and now he’s coming back. No matchups are great for New Orleans, but they did get a team in the Nuggets that they have played well. The teams split their four games, even though Chandler didn’t play in any of them. The magic of almost knocking off the Spurs last year made a big impression on me.”

As always, stick with TysonChandler.com throughout the series for game previews and recaps.

RELATED STORIES
Effort in return has Chandler hopeful (The Times-Picayune, April 17, 2009)
http://www.nola.com/hornets/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-4/123994642530560...
Hornets vs. Nuggets Friday news wrap (Hornets247.com, April 17, 2009)
http://www.hornets247.com/blog/2009/04/17/hornets-vs-nuggets-friday-news...
Hornets pin playoff hopes on improving health (The Sun-Herald, April 17, 2009)
http://www.sunherald.com/218/story/1278586.html
Hornets live chat at 11 a.m. (The Times-Picayune, April 17, 2009)
http://blog.nola.com/hornetsbeat/2009/04/new_orleans_hornets_live_chat_1...
Hornets see similarities in playoff foe Denver (The Times-Picayune, April 17, 2009)
http://blog.nola.com/hornetsbeat/2009/04/new_orleans_hornets_see_simila....

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