Chandler Parsons and DeAndre Jordan are totally friends again
It feels like it’s been roughly 100 million years since the biggest, weirdest and most ridiculous story of the NBA’s 2015 offseason — the Dallas Mavericks’ courtship and ensnaring of prized free-agent center DeAndre Jordan, followed by the change of heart that led Jordan back to the Los Ageles Clippers — exploded in a panoply of emojis. Evidently, I’m not the only one who feels that way — after all the smirks, slights, sorries and so whats, Jordan and Mavericks lead recruiter Chandler Parsons have apparently buried the hatchet:
[Follow Dunks Don’t Lie on Tumblr: The best slams from all of basketball]
“#nohardfeelings,” reads the hashtag on Parsons’ Sunday Instagram post. I guess time, apologies and labored explanations really do heal all wounds.
Because, y’know, there were wounds:
Parsons: “I’m shocked, very disappointed, frustrated, disrespected. This is something that I’ve never seen in my career, and I know that it doesn’t happen very often. When a man gives you his word and an organization his word, especially when that organization put in so much effort and I walked him through this process and was very, very open and willing to work with him, it’s just very unethical and disrespectful.” […]
“The kind of guy that he is, the kind of guy I thought he is, would never do something like that. That’s tough for me to swallow, just from the fact that I know how excited Mark was. I know how invested Mark has been throughout this whole process. That’s what I don’t get.
“Be a professional. Pick up the phone. If you’re not going to meet with him, pick up the phone and tell the guy that you’re committed to what you’re feeling, what you’re going through and maybe he can talk it out and help you. But do not ignore the guy. Do not make him sit there and sweat it out. That’s just very unprofessional. I can’t get over that part.”
Like, for real:
“We had Mavs gear shipped to DeAndre for the season,” Parsons tells Yahoo. “We picked out his locker. We picked out where he was going to sit on the team bus and plane. We picked out his No. 6 jersey. We narrowed down which home he would buy in Dallas, talked about restaurants here.
“I think I’ve earned the right to speak freely about the Mavs and our future. There was no way DJ was going to come unless I presented our pitch. It’s not like I was gassing him up and lying. Everything he was saying that he wanted, we were going to give to him. Everything: the opportunity to get the ball more, to be an MVP candidate, to be the man and take the next step in his career.
“It’s not like I was just making this [expletive] up. He’s still a friend. But when I saw him in Las Vegas for Team USA, all I could really say was, ‘Are you [expletive] serious?'”
And:
“He was one of my really good friends, so when he told me something I took his word,” said Parsons.
Now, though, despite Parsons’ recent assertion that the relationship between the two is “pretty nonexistent, honestly,” the two chill bros have decided to make the best of their teams’ respective early postseason exits by resuming the practice of chilling with each other. It’s nice to see friendship conquer all, you guys … just so long as Chandler doesn’t allow his new adventures with his old boo get in the way of pursuing new relationships.
More NBA coverage:
– – – – – – –
Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
Stay connected with Ball Don’t Lie on Twitter @YahooBDL, “Like” BDL on Facebook and follow Dunks Don’t Lie on Tumblr for year-round NBA talk, jokes and more.
