Tyson Chandler on fashion offensive

New York Knicks center Tyson Chandler may be the NBA's defensive player of the year but when it comes to fashion, he's all offense. The dude tops out at 7 feet, 1 inch, but he doesn't let that hinder his wardrobe choices.

"You have to be creative," he said, before the start of Alexander Wang's Spring 2013 fashion show at Pier 94 on Saturday.

He's not just hanging out at those big 'n tall stores, Chandler explained.

"A lot of my clothes are off the rack, from designers like Rick Owens and Ann Demule...Demeel..Duelmeist...," he says, smiling, taking a personal foul on the pronunciation of Belgian designer Ann Demeulemeester.

At the Wang show, one of the hottest tickets of  Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Manhattan, he's wearing a tee and Wang-ish deconstructed knit piece, a sorta-sweater-kinda-thing, sleeveless, with just a neck hole. (Long shorts, what regular guys would call "pants" and red leather ankle boots complete the look.)

Very fashion-forward, but with temps still in the 80s' isn't he hot?

"Actually, no," he says. "There's no sleeves in this; my arms are free, so I'm cool. I'm actually cool."

We know. Very.

Photo: New York Knicks center Tyson Chandler and his wife, Kimberly, attend the Alexander Wang spring 2013 show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Manhattan. (Sept. 8, 2012)