NBA Rumors: Dwight Howard Must Increase List of Suitors to Escape Orlando
Here is an NBA equation for you: If Orlando wants veterans in return for Dwight Howard, and Jim Buss thinks Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum for D12 is silly and Brook Lopez, the center of the New Jersey Nets deal is hurt, what does that equal?
Your answer to this complex problem is that Howard must add some teams to that short list to escape Orlando before he becomes a free agent.
The teams he listed: LA Lakers, Dallas and New Jersey, don't appear to have the talent package, and/or the willingness to part with the players necessary to accomplish the deal.
Dallas has veterans, but none that are worthy of trading for Howard, unless you included Dirk Nowitzki. Judging the way he and Dallas have looked so far, that isn't a fair deal for Orlando.
It seems that more than the weather could be keeping Howard from Chicago.
Rumors surfaced that Adidas, the shoe company that endorses Derrick Rose and Dwight Howard, may be influencing Howard's decision to look elsewhere. The shoe giant may not want both players in the same geographic market, which is ridiculous and worthy of sanctions, if it's true.
Either way, Dwight isn't interested in the Bulls. Who else could it be? Maybe you start to look at teams within the same region of the US.
Houston would still love to add a player like Howard, even after signing Dalembert. They could offer Kevin Martin, Luis Scola and Courtney Lee for Howard and Hedo Turkoglu, but does D12 mind balling in Houston 41 times a year, and likely taking residence somewhere nearby.
Philadelphia doesn't seem realistic, as they have shown no interest in adding Howard, and they don't have a center to offer in return, which Orlando is likely to want.
Marc Stein of ESPN.com recently spoke of a proposed deal to Howard's hometown Atlanta Hawks. It is centered around Josh Smith and Joe Johnson. The Magic would likely want Al Horford as well to complete this deal.
From a pure talent standpoint, it sounds good, but we've all watched the Johnson and Smith duo underachieve in the playoffs year after year, why would it be any different in Orlando? Plus, the dysfunctional state of ownership with the Hawks probably isn't a draw for Howard, either.
It just doesn't appear as though a deal can be completed with the teams he has mentioned. If he truly wants out the way it seems he does, he'll have to add teams, hope for Jim Buss to change his mind or a speedy recovery for Brook Lopez.
Time is ticking away in this episode of Trade Me, the NBA's inadvertent reality TV series. Now, Howard has a decision to make before the trade deadline cancels the show.
