NBA Trade Deadline: How Dwight Howard Will Affect Trade Market

With ESPN, USA Today and Yahoo! Sports all reporting that Dwight Howard will remain in Orlando, the trade market landscape has once again changed in the NBA.

With Howard off the market, teams looking for a center will be giving New Orleans and Washington calls about Chris Kaman and JaVale McGee, while Pau Gasol becomes one of the biggest names left in the rumor mill.

Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports has reported via Twitter that the Wizards are "actively trying to trade JaVale McGee," but are asking "for the world," according to a general manager he spoke with.

The current Wizard, who is one of the most talked about names leading up to the 3 p.m. EDT deadline, will be a restricted free agent come summer. While Washington may want a boatload in exchange for him, if another team tries hard enough, there's a fair chance they might take 70 cents on the dollar.

Meanwhile, Kaman has been linked by CSNNE.com to Boston and by the Indianapolis Star to Indiana and is a solid option if neither can get their hands on McGee.

Howard was obviously the best of the best available at center, but McGee is a young talent who can step in and help a contending team immediately. He would also be a building block for the future. On the other hand, Kaman is what he is at this point in his career, but he can contribute and he's one heck of a shot-blocker.

As far as Pau Gasol is concerned, while it looked like a foregone conclusion just a few weeks ago, it now seems he will be remaining in the bright lights of Los Angeles.

People were tweeting Pau and thanking him for his services as a Laker just a short while ago. However, after the Rajon Rondo swap fell through with rivals Boston, it appears both teams will be keeping hold of their big-name athletes.

With Gasol, Rondo and Howard all staying put, the market has become increasingly less interesting. There are still murmurs regarding Carmelo Anthony, but Kaman and McGee are the biggest names left in the potential trade pool.

Indeed, it appears the big trades we had been expecting as NBA fans were just teases and we'll have to wait until free agency for the whole "whose going where" debate to once again tickle our fancy.