NBA Rumors: Dwight Howard Reiterates His Desire to Leave, Where Will He Land?
This past week, Dwight Howard stated that his trade request still stands, by stating "Nothing has changed".
With the Magic sitting near the top of the Eastern Conference withsix wins and three losses in this early sequence of the season, many expected Howard to be quite happy with the direction of the current team.
However, with Howard continuing his quest to move to a bigger market, here is breakdown of the current teams vying for his services.
The most public of the pursuits, the Lakers have long been an admirer of Howard and have made it no secret they would love to have him.
Interestingly enough, the Lakers do have the pieces to acquire him with star center Andrew Bynum playing very well, and cohort Pau Gasol averaging a respectable 17 points and 9 rebounds per game.
However, the one holdup remains in the disagreement in compensation. While the Magic have been clamoring for one big name in other deals, they are holding out for both Gasol and Bynum from the Lakers.
On the other side, the Lakers refuse to give up their primary strength, length, and want the Magic to choose between the two big men.
Also, the Magic are hosting the All-Star game this year and would like to have Howard in a Magic uniform for the home fans.
However as the trade deadline fast approaches, I believe the Magic will have to choose the best available deal to them, which at the moment, is the Lakers' Andrew Bynum.
Odds: 2/1
The Nets are Howard's preferred destination, according to the Orlando Sentinel and a deal was almost done according to Jermaine Dupri.
However, since those latest developments the Nets have hit a tough stretch, with superstar guard Deron Williams having the worst season of his career, while the main focus of a Howard swap, center Brook Lopez, has a stress fracture and could be out all the way to the All-Star break.
Their trade hopes have certainly been dashed with no main piece to center a trade around and an unhappy Williams. Williams may leave at the end of the season, which could cause Howard to be hesitant to join a 2-8 team.
In the end, the Nets simply no longer have the essential trade pieces to complete a deal which leaves the Lakers in the forefront for a trade.
Odds: 10/1
The Bulls would be the most far fetched of all the possible destinations for Howard.
Although they lack much cap space, they would be probably be able to offer Orlando the most attractive trade package; talented young players like Joakim Noah and Luol Deng would give the Magic the chance to build a competitive team even after the departure of their talisman.
Chicago, however, was not on Howard’s shortlist of preferred destinations, and it seems that the chance to play alongside reigning MVP Derrick Rose may actually be a deterrent instead of an enticement.
According to recently circulating rumors, Adidas, with whom Howard has a lucrative contract, would prefer for him to go to LA or New York and stay away from the Windy City, where they already have a brand face in Derrick Rose.
Odds: 20/1
If Howard stays in Orlando until the start of free agency in summer, Dallas would certainly be among the favorites to land him, as they will almost certainly look to make some big acquisitions to revamp their team.
The Mavericks are helped by the fact that they will have a fair amount of cap space after making some moves (buying out Lamar Odom, amnestying Brendan Haywood), as well as a solid core (headlined of course by Dirk Nowitzki) that is very much capable of winning another championship or two with the right additions.
Howard has yearned to play with Deron Williams, and if Dallas can also convince the Nets’ elite point guard Deron Williams to join his hometown team, at the start of summer, then Howard would have to take a serious look at being a piece of yet another “Big 3”, one that could be very much capable of winning the rings the big center so desperately desires.
Odds: 5/1
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
