Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has acquired center Tyson Chandler from the New Orleans Hornets in exchange for forward Chris Wilcox, forward Joe Smith and the draft rights to DeVon Hardin.

UPDATE: The traded was voided! Chandler failed his physical and the Thunder decided to void the deal. More info here.

“We are pleased to welcome Tyson Chandler to the Thunder organization,” said Presti. “We are excited to add a young, defensive-minded big man that we feel can help us now and in the future. Tyson has ties to the Oklahoma City community and we are excited to have him with us as we continue to build our organization.”

Chandler (7-1/235), currently in his eighth NBA season, brings career averages of 8.2 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 27.9 minutes per contest while appearing in 524 NBA games. He has appeared in 32 games this season for the Hornets and has averaged 8.8 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks while playing 31.1 minutes per game.

The Hanford, California native was selected second overall pick by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2001 NBA Draft. Chandler was traded to the Chicago Bulls on draft night and played five seasons with the Bulls before being traded to New Orleans on July 14, 2006.

Chandler entered the NBA Draft directly from Dominguez High School (Compton, CA.) where he averaged 26 points, 15 rebounds and eight blocks per game on his way to being named Parade Magazine’s All-American First Team as a senior.

Chandler played 71 games in Oklahoma City as a member of the New Orleans Hornets team that was displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

Smith, a 13-year veteran, has averaged 6.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in 19.2 minutes of play in 36 games (three starts) with the Thunder. The former 1st overall pick from Maryland, has career averages of 11.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 0.8 blocks over 929 games (615 career starts).

Wilcox, a six-year veteran, has averaged 8.4 points and 5.3 rebounds in 19.4 minutes over 37 games (six starts). During his three-year stint in Seattle (2005-2008), Wilcox averaged over 13 points and grabbed at least seven rebounds in each of the three seasons, including career-high’s of 14.1 points and 8.2 rebounds during the 2005-06 season.

“First off, I want to wish Tyson the best of luck in OKC, he is an outstanding person and we thank him for his service as a Hornet.” said Hornets Head Coach Byron Scott. “I am excited to be able to get more frontcourt depth in bringing Chris and Joe in, they are experienced NBA players who will be able to step right in and help us. In addition, we get a promising young post player in Hardin.”

Hardin, the 50th overall pick out of the University of California in the 2008 draft by the Thunder, averaged 9.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks last year as a senior for Cal. He finished as the school’s second all-time leading shot blocker (132).

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