Dwight Howard: Magic and Lakers Reportedly Involved in 4-Team Talks

The Dwight Howard saga has been ongoing for about a year in Orlando, but it appears as though the Magic may be taking steps toward ending it.

The Magic are discussing a four-team trade with the Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets and Philadelphia 76ers that would send Howard to L.A., as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports.

UPDATE: Thursday, Aug. 9 at 1:25 p.m. ET by Mike Chiari

The rumored four-team deal between the Magic, Lakers, Nuggets and 76ers involving Howard has gotten a bit clearer. Wojnarowski is reporting that the teams are discussing what would certainly be a blockbuster trade if it were to come to frutition.

According to Wojnarowski, the deal would involve:

• Lakers receiving Howard and Nuggets forward Al Harrington
• Nuggets would get 76ers forward Andre Iguodala
• Sixers would nab Lakers center Andrew Bynum
• Magic would acquire both Nuggets guard Arron Afflalo and Lakers forward Pau Gasol.

It comes as somewhat of a surprise that the Magic would want Gasol rather than Bynum, but Wojnarowski believes that Gasol would be easier for Orlando to move in an additional deal and that Bynum's contract status may be scaring the Magic off. With that said, Wojnarowski believes that where Bynum and Gasol could end up isn't set in stone.

*END OF UPDATE*

There hasn't been any indication as to which other players or picks would be involved or where they would be heading, but one would assume that Lakers center Andrew Bynum would be the centerpiece of the package going back to the Magic.

Wojnarowski is also reporting that these talks have been ongoing for several days, and although that doesn't mean that a trade will necessarily happen, the teams appear to be making progress.

One thing that has been speculated as a sticking point for the Magic thus far is their desire to unload bad contracts such as those of Jason Richardson and Hedo Turkoglu, potentially along with Howard. No specifics are known at this time, but it seems likely that Denver and Philadelphia may be included for the sake of taking on some of those contracts.

Although it may seem as though some real progress is being made on the Howard front, there have been countless reports this offseason of teams like the Lakers, Brooklyn Nets and Houston Rockets closing in on a deal for him.

None of that has come to fruition yet, but maybe the Lakers will finally find a way to add him to their superstar core of Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Pau Gasol.

The Magic have a new head coach in Jacque Vaughn and appear to be ready to move on from Howard after continual attempts to keep him in the fold. Orlando has been steadfast in its demands when it comes to trading Howard, so it will be interesting to see if it has softened its stance at all.

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