Magic Posturing About Keeping Dwight Howard Until Feb. 2013?

Why? People love Cuban. If there are players coaches cuban is a plaers owner. Over a decade of 50 wins every year right? Contrast that with morey who has been all assets
I think its also about picking a destination. Howard diet pick Houston it picked him. In la he picked them in Brooklyn the same and Dallas same as well. Its psychological . Let me control my destiny

 

Rivalry is a fan-based concept only? Alright then. There are definitely two types of rivalries. One the players care about, ones the players want to win more than anything. I remember Demeco Ryans basically saying "F the Cowboys." and the Titans seemed to be a very real rival (fan wise and player wise) last year.

Then there are rivals that fans hold, which sometimes is not always agreed upon of the players on the current team. Like Celtics and Lakers. Kobe have said many times that he doesn't care about that but the fans of both teams always will. You can dismiss that all you want though just to say you are right I guess. But it is widely accepted whether you like it or not. Those teams (and any rival teams) rarely trade between another.

As for the second part of your post. I find it hilarious that you'd say that...as if the Lakers wouldn't beat up on our team as currently constructed lol.

 

Mejia's latest....

Enjoy the part where he says Houston is taking a harder stance, because it can and should.



http://www.probasketballnews.com/news/1101/

 

Let's start wityj the obvious. Howard isn't a typical person or normal , and Howard can and likely has convinced himself he can recover that money on the next contract.

 

I don't have a problem with howard as long as the price is right,but leverage or not it's still a huge risk.

Bynum 3 way ? no way in hell .. that's like handing the lakers a few more championship trophy's ... Let the lakers get old and rebuild like everybody else..The best scenario imo,woul keep howard in the east..lakers are declining as well as the mav's and spurs.If Morey is really that good he could take the hi-picks in 2013 and build a team that could become one of the elite western teams in about 4 years

 

http://www.probasketballnews.com/news/1101/


LIMBO REIGNS AFTER LATEST MEETING BETWEEN HOWARD AND MAGIC

JULY 26, 2012 TONY MEJIA NO COMMENTS
Limbo has a hellish connotation, so maybe it’s appropriate that the Dwightmare has graduated to it’s current state.

Dwight Howard wants out, has wanted out and will never want back in. Nevermind that he opted in. That only matters in the most important way possible. He’s got no control, so what he wants doesn’t matter.

What he doesn’t want matters a ton.

At this point, an Orlando Magic organization that isnt commenting on Wednesday’s meeting in L.A. walked away even more frustrated than the six-time All-Star center who can’t wrap his mind around why he hasn’t been traded yet. Maybe, had he been more open-minded, he could’ve strengthened the Magic’s stance in negotiations with the Houston and Los Angeles, the latter being the one place outside of Brooklyn that he’d like to call home the next few years.

One thing I can understand is that Howard doesn’t want to speak out of each side of his mouth anymore. Much of Orlando’s fan base has turned on him, so the need for him to appease no longer exists. He wants no part of relenting even an inch on his desire to be elsewhere, which really hurts Orlando’s ability to deal him for a return the franchise deems fair. I can respect he doesn’t want to tug at heart strings or play games, because he wore that rollercoaster out this past season.

Clearly, Orlando has lost the leverage game, even though it will continue to threaten to hold him until the trade deadline. At the same time, new GM Rob Hennigan has learned from some of the best, so he won’t be bullied and has to trust his gut with time on his side. CEO Alex Martins has expressed the desire not to have another year like the one the Magic just went through, but like Howard, didn’t help his team’s cause by having said that.

Houston went ahead and signed 2012 first-round picks Jeremy Lamb, Royce White and Terrence Jones, starting a 30-day clock before they can be moved in any deal. 2011 pick Donatas Motiejunas is available on Aug. 5. At this point, the Rockets are settling in for lengthy negotiations if they opt to try and rent Howard or L.A.’s Andrew Bynum with the intent to keep one of them long-term.

Meanwhile, Howard, under contract with Orlando but still trying to get his way, is sabotaging a potential move to Houston. Despite the fact that the Rockets can get him and move him down the road in a worst-case scenario, he wants no part of them playing faciliator, which is really infantile and misguided.

The Rockets have the best package of assets that the Magic feel comfortable moving forward with, but since Howard has made it known he could always bolt to Dallas if Houston attempts to use his Bird Rights as a way to keep him, there’s little incentive for Houston to give Orlando anything close to what it wants.

Los Angeles can’t get Howard on its own because an Andrew Bynum package potentially puts the Magic in the same position they were in this afternoon. Orlando doesn’t want to sell its vision to any 7-footer that’s not under contract, but also wants no part of Brook Lopez or Kris Humphries, which means the Nets are out, even if Jan. 15 was Aug. 15 or March 15. Orlando and Brooklyn traded medical reports on their centers and talked in circles, but those talks yielded nothing that’s expected to change in the future.

As a result, the Lakers and Magic both need the Rockets, with Howard doing any potential three-way no favors at the moment. At least Bynum has said he’s amenable to calling Houston home.

Meanwhile, the Magic lose a lot if Howard comes to training camp. For starters, it would be a distraction and a horrible influence on those that want to be here, since the environment that Hennigan and coach-to-be Jacque Vaughn want to instill is ingrained in teamwork and no one being greater than the whole. Doesn’t exactly fit with Howard moping about being held hostage by the opt-in he signed.

They can pay him to stay away, but then everyone loses, basketball included. Howard does have a joy for the game, never being one to sit out unless he absolutely has to.

If he returns and plays for the Magic, they won’t be the travesty of a team necessary to compete for a top-five pick in a 2013 draft that has multiple gems. From that standpoint, Orlando can’t risk not getting a shot at Nerlens Noel or Shabazz Muhammad because they opt to make a guy unlikely to be around come March go through the motions for a couple of months.

Orlando won’t lose him for nothing, so they’re going to trade him. That’s certain. Howard won’t re-sign. Houston is taking a harder stance, because it can and should. The Lakers are playing the waiting game, because there’s no other option for them. Bynum is chilling. Has been. Will continue to. Chill, that is.

Welcome to limbo. As expected, it’s hellish and ugly.



Tony Mejia is senior writer of Pro Basketball News. Follow him on Twitter @TonyMejiaNBA

 

Here an interesting article i just read.

http://www.probasketballnews.com/news/1101/

What I wonder is how much of the supposed Dwight hating Houston talk is real. Also, at this point, bum knees and all I think Bynum would be Ok and would not cost us nearly as much in a trade.

 

I guess the reason I want Howard here even if he doesn't come willingly is because of my confidence in Morey to transform our roster into a championship contender a year from now if he were to re-sign. Does anyone else feel this way? The guy always seems to have a plan A, B, and C. If we finally snag our superstar, he'll finally open the floodgates on our assets and use our ever-valuable "flexibility" to pull the trigger on deals that bring in pieces to stay. Don't sleep on the idea of bringing in James Harden or ,god-forbid another Blake injury/disappointing Del Negro playoff exit, CP3.

 

I dont' know. He got lucky with a franchise player in Dirk and had no problems attracting top free agents because of it. With no superstar, I think Cuban treats all his players "like assets" in order to get that superstar. The rockets weren't on the asset carousel (as much) when Yao and McGrady formed the core..it all comes down to pieces you can work with that form a championship caliber team or a group of role players who won't get you there--in which case you have to move pieces around .

who did the rockets give up on/trade that could've taken them to a finals? No one I can think of (best player prob. Gay but he was a draft day trade anyways). So if you want to improve, you gots to move (Assets, that is)

 

Quite possible.

But, I doubt it.

We're not talking about $5 or $10M. THIRTY MILLION, man..... say it with me... THIRTY MILLION....lol. (not sure which movie that's from... The Italian Job, maybe...?)

 

If you were indeed saying that we should not trade for Howard then I obviously misread the intent of your post. So sorry. It has been a long day.

 

They are the same price to us.... Lakers can offer nothing to Orlando at all...

 

Go Morey, go Morey....

 

pipedreaming...he ain't staying here

 

I didn't say anything close to that

Your focus is too narrow for me to bother with this anymore

 

Yours is just as narrow since you didn't seem to get what I said at all.

Which is, the Lakers are better than us right now. Would be better than us if we only get Howard. Lakers will always attract stars.

IMPROVE YOUR OWN TEAM. Period. Morey agrees with my logic so it's not as outlandish as you seem to claim.

 

What's it like in the future?

 

I think an la writer tweeted it but its so true. This isn't Dwight's fault its the owners and by association the Cba . The 3 year extension has killed talks

 

And if he doesn't, we can flip him for Bynum next season in a S&T. Either way, it's a win-win for us If we get Howard, we hold all the cards. He can pout, and whine all he wants. Ultimately, he has no say in what happens here.

 

No we can't. Lakers cannot S&T for Howard.