Dwight Howard Rumors: 6 Biggest Losers If D12 Stays with Magic

Christian Bruey of Channel 9 Sports in Orlando reported via Twitter that Dwight Howard intends on opting in to the final year of his contract. The sports world has met this news with mixed reactions.

If Howard truly intends on staying with the Magic, then it must be considered a big win by Orlando. While none of this is confirmed, here are the seven biggest losers should Howard's decision become official.

Dan Gilbert/Lebron James

One might think Dan Gilbert might have won, as Dwight Howard stays in a small market, but now Gilbert won’t have anything to complain about.

No complaining means no national headlines for Gilbert and his struggling franchise for the rest of the season.

Also, if Howard has essentially made the decision to stick it out with the franchise that drafted him, he will make LeBron James look more like a cowardly traitor than ever before.

Adidas

Dwight Howard is one of the biggest names that Adidas has locked up in endorsement deals, and they can’t be too happy that Howard will remain in a small market.

Oh well, looks like Derrick Rose’s kicks will have to carry the load for now. In the meantime, they can enter the international market by signing Jeremy Lin before Nike snatches him up.

Sports Media

Now that "Linsanity" and the Dwight Howard soap opera are over, sports media will have to find something else that’s trending to cover regularly.

This will come as a big win to sports fans who won’t have to watch special segments on Howard’s decision—or see his face on the Bleacher Report home page.

Stan Van Gundy/Otis Smith

Howard now has complete control over both of head coach Stan Van Gundy and GM Otis Smith’s futures with the organization. This has to be a slap in the face to both Smith and Van Gundy, as they both could be gone with the slightest outburst from the 25-year-old center.

Both Smith and Van Gundy will have to walk on eggshells when they deal with Howard from now on, and this could prove to be problematic in the future, especially with the player/coach relationship.

Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks have to be disappointed that Howard will opt in to his contract in Orlando.

They could have potentially signed Howard and Deron Williams to play alongside their superstar Dirk Nowitzki in Dallas and could have instantly become title contenders again.

Now they’ll have to figure out what to do with their roster. Williams will likely be available, but the team might need more than Williams and Nowitzki to chase another ring.

Deron Williams

Regardless of what Williams decides to do this summer, he won’t have the opportunity to tandem with Howard.

D12 and D-Will would almost certainly have been a championship caliber duo, regardless of where they decided to play. They both compliment each other's playing styles and would have been a formidable opponent to any team.

Williams will now have to decide whether or not he wants to remain with the Nets in their move to Brooklyn or choose to play elsewhere, presumably returning to his hometown in Dallas to play with the Mavericks.

Brooklyn/New Jersey Nets

The Nets bet all their chips in hopes of attracting another superstar when they traded for Deron Williams last season at the deadline.

Now it appears that they’ll come up empty handed, as Howard will stay in Orlando and D-Will will enter free agency having to decide if he wants to continue playing for a floundering franchise.

This could have meant an emphatic opening at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, but now the Nets will have to explore other options to improve their roster. The team will likely keep their top 14 protected first-round pick and should have significant cap room to make another signing.

No one available on the market this summer can make as big of an impact as Howard could.