Dallas Mavericks center Tyson Chandler has conceded that Amar’e Stoudemire has ‘earned the right’ to criticise the team despite only recently arriving.
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Stoudemire signed with the Mavs almost a month ago after agreeing on a contract buy-out with the New York Knicks, and one of the key aspects of his decision to choose Dallas was because he believed that they gave him the best opportunity to win this season.
However, with the Mavs struggling since his arrival and going 5-6 since the All-Star break, he is not impressed with their recent level of play and questioned their commitment and determination as he insisted that he “came here to win”.
Coach Rick Carlisle blasted his team after their heavy loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this week and practice was an hour longer than scheduled on Wednesday. While morale within the camp still seems to be at a reasonable level, Chandler backed Stoudemire for public outburst.
“I think he’s earned it throughout his career, and he came here because he wanted to win a championship,” said Chandler as reported by ESPN.
“And I encourage more guys to be vocal. I think he’s only been honest to his teammates. He didn’t say anything to you guys that he didn’t say to us personally, so I respect that. I feel like guys will respect that and get things in order.”
Stoudemire and Chandler played together for the previous three seasons in New York and clearly have a strong bond, but the main problem in Dallas is to fix their issues on the court as they continue to slide down the Western Conference standings.
The Mavs currently occupy seventh spot with a 41-25 record, while Stoudemire has averaged 11.4 points and 3.5 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game since arriving.
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