Lakers Rumors: Los Angeles Should Bail out of Endless Dwight Howard Talks

Whether the Los Angeles Lakers would be better off with Dwight Howard may be irrelevant. 

If the organization falls prey to the endless brinksmanship that lies before them, it may inadvertently ruin an otherwise unbroken formula. General manager Mitch Kupchak should know by now that keeping your own players under the threat of trade doesn't do much for their psyches.

It certainly didn't go over well with Pau Gasol last season.

Nevertheless, that could be the very mindset under which Andrew Bynum must play if Los Angeles remains engaged in discussions with the Orlando Magic.

According to HOOPSWORLD's Alex Kennedy, those discussions won't be ending anytime soon: 

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The Magic continue to negotiate with the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets, but a deal doesn’t appear to be close, according to sources close to the situation. Magic general manager Rob Hennigan isn’t in any rush to trade Howard and Orlando isn’t impressed with the offers that they’ve received in recent weeks. They’re not ready to trade away the top center in the league for pennies on the dollar.

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Hennigan's position is perfectly understandable. After watching how the bidding escalated during the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes, Orlando's front office can't ignore the value of a little patience.

Since there appear to be fewer and fewer bidders, Howard himself will eventually be forced to capitulate and facilitate a deal. The teams with the resources to sign him outright in 2013 aren't the ones for which he wants to play.

That means it's ultimately in his interest to make a deal happen, even if that involves expanding his list of preferred destinations—a shift that would likely expand the number of trade partners with whom Orlando has to work.

Regardless of what happens, this isn't a drama with which the Lakers want to be involved.

The last thing the 24-year-old Bynum needs is a half-season worth of speculation surrounding his future.

It wouldn't help his performance on the court, and it certainly wouldn't endear him to the organization that would ostensibly like to re-sign him next summer in the event he's still with the team.

Nor would it be in the best interest of the roster at large.

If the Lakers are to make a serious run at another title this season, some certainty about who will be on hand for that run would be nice. It's not that a midseason trade for Howard would end any title hopes.

It's just that those hopes would benefit from clarity.

As important as talent and playbooks may be to success, there's no substitute for chemistry and mental focus when it comes to making a push in the postseason. Those are the kind of intangibles at risk in a world where Los Angeles remains subject to rumors and speculation over the course of several months.

And, those are the kind of intangibles that can be knocked off kilter when a big deal like this goes down right as guys are settling into a comfort zone.

Perhaps there's some wisdom in seeing how this version of the Lakers gels with Steve Nash and determining whether Bynum can maintain the pace he established in 2011-12. If things aren't working out, pulling the trigger on a deal for Howard would be the logical next step.

However, taking that kind of "wait and see" approach could become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

So long as the Lakers' brass wavers in its attitude toward Bynum, the big man may himself lose confidence in the end and justify Los Angeles' fears.

There's something to be said with moving forward with a commodity that is both known and promising. 

There's also something to be said for establishing a quarantine around Dwight Howard and his never-ending sideshow. It's already derailed one team and the Lakers should make sure it doesn't do so to another.