The ink on the four-year contract isn't dry yet, but free-agent center Tyson Chandler confirmed that he will sign with the New York Knicks.

Sources close to the talks told ESPN.com's Marc Stein that the Dallas Mavericks expect Chandler's exit to ultimately take the form of a sign-and-trade in which Dallas will take back a low-salaried player to be determined from the Knicks. Doing so will create a sizable trade exception that the Mavericks can use to faciliate future deals.

The Knicks scheduled a news conference for after practice Saturday to discuss Chandler.

The 7-foot-1 Chandler, who served as the best defensive backbone Dallas has had in the Dirk Nowitzki era, realized almost immediately in the negotiation process that he wouldn't be able to work out a deal to return to the Mavericks.

Chandler opted to sign with the Knicks after being heavily courted by the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets among other teams.

"It just really happened over the last, like, 48 hours," Chandler said on ESPN 103.3's "Ben and Skin Show" on Friday. "I just think the future of the team, being able to play alongside Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and the young talent that we have, I feel like puts us in contention over the next four or five years."

Anthony, for his part, was excited by Chandler's addition.

"It'll beef up our frontcourt," Anthony said. "Tyson brings a lot of energy and a lot of enthusiasm to the basketball in court, and I think he will do the same thing that he did in Dallas here in New York. We got what everybody wanted what New York to get, which was a big man. Tyson has established himself as a dominant force on the defensive end.

"He showed that on the biggest stage in sports, winning a championship."

Dallas owner Mark Cuban, who is determined to maintain financial flexibility under the new, more restrictive collective bargaining agreement, offered only a two-year deal. The New York Times reported that Chandler's deal with the Knicks is expected to be in the range of $58 million for four seasons.

"In this situation, signing back with the Mavs, it just didn't make business sense," said Chandler, who averaged 10.1 points and 9.4 rebounds and finished third in Defensive Player of the Year voting. "Business is business. Sometimes we get upset by it, but in this business, we can't take it personal.