NBA Rumors: Orlando Magic GM Foolish to Try to Convince Dwight Howard to Stay

The Orlando Magic have been feverishly trying to grant Dwight Howard his wish of being traded this offseason, but reportedly had some recent doubts about that course of action and attempted to convince the superstar to stay.

According to ESPN The Magazine's Ric Bucher, Rob Hennigan, the new GM of the Magic, attempted to make an appeal to DH12 after a potential trade to the Brooklyn Nets broke down for good with their signing of Brook Lopez.

Bucher’s source relayed some details of Hennigan’s pitch, stating that the GM and Magic CEO Alex Martins tried to convince Howard that they were not associated with the people who forced Howard to request a trade, namely former coach Stan Van Gundy and GM Otis Smith.

As expected, Howard rebuffed the plea and will be leaving as a free agent next summer if the team cannot find a suitable trade for the big man before the deadline.

It was a foolish move by Hennigan to even waste his time trying to convince the petulant diva to remain with the organization. He would have made better use of his time attempting to field more trade offers and continuing to talk to other GMs around the league about possible deals.

There is a clear rift between the Magic and Howard that will likely never be repaired, and trying to convince the three-time Defensive Player of the Year that some sort of civility is still possible was just a wild, desperate move.

Hennigan must realize that DH12 is not going to be anything more than a distraction if he is still on the roster by the start of the season, and the longer Orlando waits to deal him, the less likely it'll receive any significant compensation for his services. 

Hennigan would be wise to find and accept the first reasonable offer that comes down the pipeline at this point, as there is no turning back.