NBA Rumors: Dallas Mavericks Would Be Wrong Destination for Dwight Howard

The Dwight Howard saga continues to roll along, and the latest development indicates that Howard would like to be traded to either the Los Angeles Lakers or Brooklyn Nets.

If that doesn't work out, the big man's plan is to sign with the Dallas Mavericks next offseason. 

Here's an excerpt from Adrian Wojnarowski's report on the newest information: 

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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."

Dwight Howard remains steadfast in his demand to be traded to the Lakers.Without a deal that would deliver him to the Lakers in the near future, sources said Howard wants Henningan to revisit trade talks with the Brooklyn Nets in January, when center Brook Lopez is eligible to be traded. If deals don't surface with the Lakers or Nets, Howard plans to sign with the Dallas Mavericks as a free agent in the summer of 2013.

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So assuming that Andrew Bynum stubbornly refuses to commit to an extension with any team, and Brook Lopez's contract is understandably unappealing to the Magic, we're looking at Dwight in a Dallas uniform for the 2013-2014 season. 

That's a great situation, provided you're looking at this from the perspective of a frustrated fan who wishes nothing but the worst for Howard at this point. If you're D12, this shouldn't be considered a good landing spot. 

Right now, the Mavericks have four players under contract for the 2013-2014 season: Dirk Nowitzki, Jared Cunningham, O.J. Mayo and Jae Crowder. Realistically, Shawn Marion will exercise his player option, and Dominique Jones will be brought back for just over $2 million. 

The Mavericks can also extend qualifying offers to Rodrigue Beaubois and Darren Collison, then match any offer sheets that the two guards receive. 

Still, Howard is looking at going to a roster that would be comprised of Dirk, Mayo, Beaubois, Collison, Marion, Cunningham and Crowder. 

That's not a playoff team, even if he's added to the mix—not in a tough Western Conference, at least. 

Obviously Mark Cuban is going to spend a lot of money to add pieces, but there's no guarantee that quality players decide to come to Dallas and play alongside Dwight and Dirk. 

Plus, Dirk is clearly declining. 

The German big man wasn't the same player this past season that he was during the Mavs' run to the title in 2011, and he's only going to get worse at this stage of his career. Nowitzki recently turned 34 and has seen both his scoring and PER suffer. 

Nowitzki is still an effective player, but even his flamingo shot isn't enough to stave off Father Time. Howard would help extend Nowitzki's semi-prime, but there's no telling how long Dirk would even stay with the team. The longtime Dallas staple will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2013-2014 season. 

Without an elite Dirk on the roster, there isn't much that Dallas has to offer Dwight right now. Then again, it can pay him more than other teams vying for his services. 

If that's truly what Dwight wants to be about, then he should go for it. He just wouldn't be able to pretend to care about winning at any point after that.