Washington Wizards' Caron Butler to Be Traded to Mavericks for Josh Howard

After several weeks of trade talks, it appears the Wizards finally have their first taker. The Dallas Mavericks appear ready to deal Josh Howard for former All-Star Caron Butler before the Feb. 18 deadline.

So who is getting the better end of the deal?

The Wizards give up arguably one of the hardest working players in the NBA. Butler's career has been defined by determination and hustle, and that has earned him plenty of admirers throughout the league. But he always seems to get the raw end of the deal when it comes to who stays and who goes on a team.

The Miami Heat drafted him, and then traded him to the L.A. Lakers for Shaquille O'Neal. The Lakers didn't waste much time in trading him to Washington in a deal that helped the Wizards dump super-bust Kwame Brown.

Another trade deadline, and another new team for Tuff Juice.

Josh Howard looks to be a perrenial underachiever with his recent regression with the Mavericks. He struggled with injuries early this season, which didn't help his case. Every one of his averages is down, including points and minutes per game, and the addition of the versatile Shawn Marion made him expendable.

The Wizards lose an underrated overachiever and get an overrated underachiever.

The silver lining is that the Wizards are signaling their readiness to rebuild. Along with Butler, it is rumored that the team will package Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson in the deal and the Mavs will send journeyman Drew Gooden back.

The key to the deal is the expiring contracts of both Howard and Gooden, as the Wizards are eager to free cap space for the future.

Howard's contract has a team option for next season, which gives the Wizards the option to retain him for another season or send him on his way, leaving even more room under the cap. The wild card in the Wizards' plans is Gilbert Arenas, who is suspended for the season without pay, but is due around $80 million over the next four seasons.

The Wizards have the option to buy-out the remainder of Arenas' contract, or may seek to void it entirely. The latter would remove a substantial financial burden from Washington's figurative shoulders, and open up even more opportunities for the future.

The worst thing the Wizards can do now is nothing. They have to be active now so they can reap the benefits later.

Best case scenario: The Wizards clean house now and go 23-60 for the next couple of years. In that time, they can develop what little young talent they have maintained, and maybe use the draft for once. This year's class has a lot of good prospects ripe for the picking.

Kentucky's John Wall is likely to be the first overall pick, and with the draft lottery still months away, there is still a hope that the Wizards could get the first pick.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

At first glance, the trade doesn't make much sense for the Wizards. Getting rid of their greatest asset for another team's castoff? Where's the return?

The return comes three and four years down the road. Butler, at one point, may have been the perfect player to build around with one superstar and upgrades at other positions. The superstar has fallen and the upgrades fell short of improving anything.

Fans need to look at the big picture.

The Wizards need to say goodbye to the familiar faces, and Butler is just the first casualty of that fact. It is a struggle between what the fans want and what the franchise needs. Right now the franchise takes center stage, for the fans' sake.

While the deal has yet to be finalized, it has been reported that it is almost a certainty to go through. It may not please the fans to see their favorite players go, but trust me, it is for the best.