Photo. Brandon Sullivan

The first time I talked to Tyson Chandler he was just wrapping up the best season of his NBA career, on his way to finishing second in the League in rebounding (12.4 rpg) last year while posting career-highs in points (9.5 ppg) and blocks (1.8 bpg). In his first season with the New Orleans Hornets after being traded by the Bulls, the 7-foot-1 Chandler was morphing into a legit NBA star and living up to the hype he had coming out of Dominguez High School (Compton, Calif.) back in the 2001 Draft — which is why we wanted to give him a full feature in Dime #33. This year he’s kept it up, and when I talked to Tyson earlier this week, he was averaging 12.1 rebounds and 12.1 points per night, and he and Chris Paul had the Hornets just one game behind the Spurs and Mavericks in the tough-as-hell Southwest Division.

Dime: You guys missed the playoffs last year and now you’ve got the sixth-best record in the West while playing in the toughest division the League. What’s been the difference?
Tyson Chandler: We’ve been injury-free this year. We knew we had a pretty good team last year, but Peja was hurt for almost the whole season, David West was out, Chris was out, I was out for the last 12 games. We never got a chance to play together and gel. This season we’re seeing what we can do when everybody’s healthy.

Chris is playing excellent basketball right now, and he’s more consistent. He’s one of the few point guards in our League who’s pass-first but can still score 30 on any given night. David West is playing more consistent. Getting Mo Pete really helped us — we’ve got our two outside gunners with Mo Pete and Peja. Then we’ve got a bench presence with guys like Jannero Pargo and Bobby Jackson.

Dime: How would you evaluate yourself this year?
TC: I’m having a good year, but as the year goes on I want to get stronger and stronger. My whole thing is that I wanna be more consistent, too. I want to have good games night in and night out, and I’ve been pretty much doing that so far.

Dime: It seems you and Chris’ chemistry is on another level this year. You don’t even have to look at each other on those pick-and-roll lobs.
TC: Oh yeah. (Laughs) We’re developing a great one-two punch. The reason why it works so well is because Chris is a great distributor and he reads the pick-and-roll so well. If guys try to take me away, that gives Peja open shots or David open shots or Mo Pete open shots. If they play it honest, Chris throws it over the top. So it’s like, pick your poison out there.

Dime: Looking at the centers in the West, it’s a tough group to get through to get to the All-Star Game. But even if you don’t make the team, All-Star’s going to be in New Orleans, so you should be in town. What do you think the atmosphere will be like?
TC: All-Star Weekend’s gonna be really crowded. New Orleans is known for the French Quarter and Bourbon Street, so that’s where a lot of the attractions are going to be and that’s where everybody’s going to go. There’s gonna be people from all over the country — from all over the world. They’re going to break out all the jazz, all the music … It’ll be like a huge Mardi Gras.

Dime: Almost halfway through the season, give me one team that’s impressed you that you didn’t think would be as good?
TC: The Portland Trail Blazers. They’re very well-coached, and it’s obvious in the way they play. My hat goes off to Coach (Nate) McMillan; he has those guys playing hard and playing together and he’s teaching them the game right.

Dime: What about one team that hasn’t lived up to expectations?
TC: I’d say either the Heat or the Bulls. We haven’t played either one of them yet, though.

Dime: Last year was a breakout season for you. Who are some players in the West who have had a breakout year so far in ‘07-08?
TC: I’d have to say Andrew Bynum. He’s having a great year for himself. He’s always had the tools to be great, but now he’s maturing. He’s getting more comfortable in his own body. Brandon Roy has been very impressive. He’s real deceptive — it doesn’t look like he’s ever moving fast and it doesn’t seem like he’s that athletic, but he is. He’s maybe the best in the League at change-of-pace. He’ll come up with a slow dribble then give you a nice burst.

Dime: What are your goals for the remainder of the season?
TC: This year we didn’t want to just make the playoffs; we’re thinking way beyond that. We want to get home-court advantage, at least for the first round.

Dime: In order to do that, what do the Hornets still need to improve on?
TC: We need to be a consistently good defensive ballclub. There are nights where we shut everyone down, and other nights where we give up a lot and it puts more pressure on you to score more buckets.

Dime: What was the biggest adjustment you had to make coming into the League as a teenager? And looking back, how did you handle it?
TC: The biggest thing is understanding that this is your profession and this is what you do for a profession. You have to limit certain things and cut some things out of your lifestyle — your profession comes first before going out and partying with your friends. And any friends who don’t respect what you do for a living, you have to cut them out. As I got older, I surrounded myself with good people who shared the same goals that I had.

Dime: Do you feel you’re in a position now to give advice to younger players?
TC: Yes, definitely. I find myself talking to young players all the time, but it’s funny because I’m still young myself. But I guess in NBA years, you count ‘em in dog years.

Dime: What do you think of your team’s Lottery pick, Julian Wright?
TC: He’s gonna be great once he has a better understanding of his game, because he has great tools for this League. He’s one of those guys that can give you 10, five and five, or get you a double-double with five assists. He’s a very well-rounded player — he can dribble, rebound and defend.

Dime: Whether it’s a certain individual matchup or a certain team, which games do you always circle on your calendar?
TC: I always love playing at home, playing in L.A. in front of my family. I always look forward to those games.