NBA Trade Rumors: Magic's Treatment of Dwight Howard Situation Deserves Praise

While the entire world becomes more and more annoyed with the Orlando Magic front office for letting the Dwight Howard saga continue for so long, Rob Hennigan and company deserve praise for what they've done. 

Howard, of course, has made it painfully clear over the last few months that he wants no part of the Magic, the team that drafted him as a mere 18-year-old back in 2004 with the No. 1 overall pick. 

He once again reiterated that fact on Wednesday night (via Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports): 

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“Dwight remained unchanged in his want to be traded,” a source with knowledge of the meeting said. “And he has no intention of signing another contract extension with Orlando.”

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With Dwight's future in Orlando all but done, the Magic's only chance of getting any value in return for their superstar is to trade him before he becomes a free agent in the summer of 2012. 

But the Magic have gone about trading their superstar in the right way. They haven't rushed it, and according to ESPN's Chris Broussard, they aren't going to start anytime soon:

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"Another executive who has talked with Orlando said he thinks the Magic may start the season with Howard and wait until the February trade deadline to move him."

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Yes, the entire world is sick and tired of Dwight Howard being a part of a different rumor every day, but why should the Magic care about that?

The offers they have gotten for the best center and most influential defensive player in the league have been a who's who of mediocrity.

Brook Lopez and a bag of poo? No thanks. Kris Humphries? Good joke. Anderson Varejao? See Kris Humphries. 

The rumored offer from Houston wasn't a bad one, but it was Dwight Howard's whiny attitude and refusal even to lead Houston on that killed that trade. There was no point in Houston trading for Howard if it had no chance of re-signing the big center. 

So when it comes down to it, there's no real trade that has been put on the table that makes enough sense for Hennigan and company to pull the trigger.

Besides, so often when a superstar demands to be traded, the front office freaks out and trades him for a less-than-satisfactory package. Teams don't always get Carmelo Anthony-type packages for their superstars. 

Sometimes, it's better to get nothing at all for Howard and save the cap space then to get a terrible return and cap restrictions in a trade. 

While the majority of NBA fans grow tired of Dwight Howard and inevitably blame the Magic for failing to make a move, don't feel pressured to jump on that side of the argument. Instead, praise the Magic front office for not succumbing to their own pressure and setting the franchise even further back. 

Besides, they still have seven months to trade their superstar. Howard's value isn't suddenly going to drop off the face of the earth, and the trade offers can only get better than Anderson Varejao. 

Remember, patience is a virtue. 

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