NBA Trade Rumors: Orlando Magic Have False Sense of Dwight Howard Security

Pipe dreams met good intentions for the Orlando Magic and their dismissal of the Dwight Howard reality. 

For now, things are all hunky dory on the home front for the Magic. Orlando is 9-3 and winners of four straight, and this after a humble start. Howard is his usual awesome self, averaging 19.4 points and 14.8 rebounds per game. 

No news is good news for Magic fans wishing to keep Howard for a few years more, but that just isn't how this thing will play out.

CBS Sports' Ken Berger opines on the current state of affairs for the Magic and their Superman. It seems that this time of tranquility may just be the calm before a trade deadline storm.

Berger asked Howard about his relationship with Carmelo Anthony, the star forward that landed with the Knicks last year, and what advice Anthony had for him. 

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All he said was, "Do what's best for you. Whatever you decide, people are gonna dislike you, but you have to live for you." And it's good advice. I just told him, "I want to do whatever I can do to win."

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On the question of a pending trade or leaving in the summer, Howard said, "Right now, I'm with the Magic. That's the only thing that matters."

And so general manager Otis Smith, as well as the Magic faithful, hope winning can truly cure all ills and keep Howard with the Magic for another contract. 

That doesn't seem likely as Howard continues to play nice with the knowledge that his time with the Magic is coming to an end. At that point, the failure will have to fall on the Magic, who did not get any compensation for the best center in the game. 

Berger writes how grim things are currently:

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It's fool's gold for the Magic, who are destined to lose Howard once he and his representatives pull out all the tricks that were deployed by LeBron and Melo, and a few new ones courtesy of a collective bargaining agreement that will force Orlando to make a decision rather than beg Howard to stay this summer. 

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Orlando has two options at its disposal, and neither are at all that appetizing.

Option 1

It can trade Howard for what continues to look like less and less return for its Superman dollar. 

The Clippers have been added as a possibility but are winning ball games with an exciting core group, and DeAndre Jordan has emerged as a defensive force of his own. 

The Lakers are less likely to deal Andrew Bynum, who has added another level to his game. That would leave the Nets and Mavericks. Howard may choose to walk in the summer for a Dallas deal at the same time that Nets guard Deron Williams does the same. 

Option 2

The Magic can cross their fingers and hope their money and station in life is far more appealing than any other destination for Howard. 

That is some laughably high expectations for a franchise that has been all but told with body language that Howard is a goner. 

Enjoy the silence and wins, because this is about to get uglier the closer the trade deadline gets. 

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