NBA Trade Rumors: Nets Must Trade for O.J. Mayo to Land Dwight Howard

The New Jersey Nets are said to be interested in the Memphis Grizzlies' O.J. Mayo once again. Might they be trying to sweeten the pot they would offer the Orlando Magic in a trade for Dwight Howard?

Possibly.

First, let's address the rumors of Mayo to New Jersey. From the New York Post:

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The Nets could pull the trigger on a deal for guard O.J. Mayo, according to league sources familiar with the thinking of the Nets and Grizzlies.

Just two days after sources said talks between the Nets and Grizzlies for a trade involving Mayo had fizzled out, a published report said the two teams are talking again. The Memphis Commercial Appeal reported the Nets have offered two scenarios for Mayo—Anthony Morrow in one deal or Jordan Farmar and a pick in another.

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So would the Nets be interested in keeping Mayo around? Or is he essentially a temporary rental and trade chip?

Here's why I think it will be the latter. The following was reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports on December 14th:

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New Jersey and Orlando are working toward a core deal that would send center Brook Lopez and another significant player obtained elsewhere to the Magic for Howard and Hedo Turkoglu, sources said.

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I suppose some might question whether or not Mayo was a "significant" enough player to send to Orlando alongside Lopez, whose broken foot may have already made him a less attractive option to Orlando, at least this year.

But who else on the Nets roster would be overly attractive to Orlando? Kris Humphries might draw interest, but he won't have Magic fans jumping for joy at the loss of Howard. And the Nets won't move Deron Williams, who is a close friend of Howard and said to be a player Howard wants to play with.

And though a third or even fourth team could be involved, New Jersey would be be able to offer a stronger base package to the deal if they paired Lopez and Mayo with draft picks. Going into the deal with only Lopez and draft picks and hoping another team could sweeten the pot for Orlando would be a riskier proposition.

In my book, an acquisition of Mayo is a clear indication that the Nets are steadfast in their desire to present an attractive trade to Orlando for Howard. Whether or not that is enough for Orlando to move the superstar, remains to be seen.

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