Love the San-Francisco-is-a-hellhole-for-new-business stuff in here... LOL, that's why I have to dodge twitter, facebook and genentech buses and their nerd fillings every damn day around here. Stick to the topic gaiz.
He wishes its 90% that hes leaning towards the Lakers.. All the Lakers Media and Fans are freaking out right now... I doubt its 90% leaning towards LA.. More like 50%.. Noone know what Dwight Howard is thinking.. He chnges hes mind all the time.. Just wish we can get confirmation on the dinner with Harden...
That's the growing feeling, that he's staying, ain't it? Mark Medina: Does Dwight Howard have the guts to leave? I don't think he's leaving LA. He likes living here. It was a frustrating season for him. At the end of the day, I don't see him going anywhere and not because of the 30 million. He's come to realize this is a storied franchise. This team always reloads. ... Howard, Gasol, Jamison did not like D'Antoni's system. ... Contenders for Dwight? Just because of logic, Houston would have the better chance. A young roster, have Harden who can pick up the slack, but again, even though you equate the no tax, I don't see a scenario where he leaves the Lakers. ... I think he can (return to Orlando-form Dwight) but depends on how he meshes with everyone else. He was the guy in Orlando. The Lakers, there are so many other players who can pick up the slack. He still won't be number one. He also struggled with that this season but as the season progressed, he embraced "it doesn't matter if I score, I'll lock down on the defensive end." ... % chance Dwight re-signs? 90%.
Just more media speculation basically saying, "But he CAN'T leave, right?? It's LOS ANGELES!" Nobody really knows anything right now, and it's clear we're not going to know anything about the decision he's making before July 1. I will say that the people saying it's 90% are basing it solely on the fact that he likes the city.....none of it is basketball-related. That's just sad to me. On another note, how you gonna drop a bomb like that, and then just leave, SWTsig?!?!
Was it ever not the feeling? As far as I've seen, most national types and literally everyone in LA will believe he's staying until the ink is dry on the Houston contract. Part based on the money and part based on Laker arrogance. They're terrified of outside-the-box thinking. That said, this Medina guy takes homerism to a new level. He's come to realize this is a storied franchise. This team always reloads. Say what? So Dwight didn't realize that last summer when traded there... but after a year in which the reloaded Lakers crashed and burned in epic fashion, a year that he called a "nightmare", he's come to realize that they'll always be just fine? Sorry Mark, that makes zero logical sense to anyone that's not an LA fanboy.
1. 90% is less than the 95% Jim Buss was trumpeting a few months ago. 2. Just don't put a lot of stock in Medina. Good guy. But he's a homer. If Dwight signs anywhere but LAL, its going to catch them by surprise. And frankly it's going to catch most everybody by surprise. We all know the Lakers are the favorites. But his decision can flip on a dime. Everybody knows that too.
It's still a lot of time for him to think until the time comes. That is just a speculation piece. No one really knows what Dwight is going to do. If he wants to stay whatever. He'll learn the same lesson Dwill and Melo are learning. What fun is it playing in a big market if the FO makes terrible decisions? If he's going to pick the Lakers because of their past then that's his problem and lack of logic. They always reload? Every team, every franchise has it's down years thanks to the salary cap. He's going to have to wait till Kobe, Nash retires, Pau is traded...then the Lakers are right at rebuilding mode. Lakers sucked in the 90s, they've been riding the Shaq, Kobe era all the way until now.
You're right. It was always the feeling that he would stay. I shouldn't be surprised(hell, I thought he was staying all along) but all the reports(or opinions) as we slowly inch towards July 1, he's staying. Amick, Woj, local guy Medina, ...
The beef I have with it is that it flies in the face of every action Dwight has reportedly taken over the past year. It wasn't his preferred destination. The day after his trade, Bill Simmons reported that Dwight was very much NOT sold on LA long-term and was keeping an open mind to free agency. The "reloaded Lakers" crashed and burned, barely making the playoffs and then being swept out. Nash missed almost half the season. They had a chance to hire Phil and hired D'Antoni, a coach Dwight hates. Kobe has a torn Achilles. Gasol is highly unlikely to return. Dwight called the season "a nightmare" and reiterated that his free agency decision would be based on the "right to be happy". If Dwight were sold on the Lakers simply because they're the Lakers, we'd have seen signs a very long time ago, much the way Paul has taken a leadership role within the Clippers and recruited potential free agents. Dwight hasn't done that. He hasn't even given Kupchak an indication. Maybe a homer like Medina thinks the Lakers will always immediately reload, but to transfer that logic to Dwight is disingenuous at best and possibly a flat-out lie.
Is SWTsig credible? Has he borken anything in the pass... who did he say told him Dwight Howard is coming to Htown?
Their predictions were the same when the season ended. I mean, there were a couple of opinion pieces (Jemele Hill) saying Howard should sign in Houston. But when it comes to predictions, they all said LA. Keep in mind that the vast majority of reporters are incredibly inside-the-box. The conventional logic involves money and market, and LA has the advantage in both. They're not going to go against that until the ink is dry. The unique thing with Dwight is that his circle is very transparent. We know their playbook after the past 18 months. When they have an opinion, they leak it and it's usually fairly direct. This stuff with Woj and Medina... it's nothing but conventional logic, guesswork and rehashing of "reports" (Dwight likes living in LA) from several months ago. You can tell it's not an actual scoop. To be fair, it's not like we've heard anything incredibly pro-Houston either. I recognize that. But relative silence from Dwight's team is a good sign for the Rockets. Dwight knows what the Lakers offer. He also knows, as Kupchak said, that an early commitment would greatly help their offseason plan. Dwight's not giving them that, and is actually complaining about being pressured. The more he legitimately appears to be thinking (and thus, fewer leaks from his "team"), the better for Houston's chances, imo. If he trusts the Lakers simply because they're the Lakers and wants the biggest market, it's pretty easy.
I agree. I think if Dwight was sold on the Lakers he would have been resigned. At least gave a stronger indication that he would. It's like Shaq said and I paraphrase of course. "Historic franchise, great city, and 30 extra million. What is there to think about?" If this was all about the city and money he'd been resign. Just like Harden signed first thing once he got here. It was about the money for Harden as it usually is for young players. He could have BSed about this and left for FA (no one mentions that) if it has been about that extra 30 million and the city then what has taken Dwight so long to make that firm commitment? Any ways Dwight doesn't even make sense for the Lakers. So after Kobe and Nash retire...they now plan to build around a player that will be around 30? Yeah a player still has a few prime years left at 30 but this is like some team trading for Wade and going "Yeah, we're going to build around this guy!" Lakers are better off completely waving the white flag this year and going for a top 5 pick in a very strong draft. If they suck again then how are they going to attract all the FAs they hope to attract? They will just attract the fools who are more about money and fame than basketball. I see it like this. It makes too much sense for Dwight to pass up the Rockets. Even Magic said it makes more bball sense to come to Houston. If he chooses the Lakers over the Rockets than oh well. The guy was/is all about money and perceived fame than he is about winning and basketball. If he is about winning and solely winning he'll come here. It's that simple. Lakers will be worse next year. Their problem has been age and their guys are not getting younger.
I'm not getting my hopes up. I've learned not to do that as a Houston fan. Not trying to be a Debbie downer here, but come next season Dwight will still be a Laker.
I think Howard is coming to Houston and this is off-topic but... Who thinks this team would be a championship contender? Cwight Howard F:JJ Hickson F:Chandler Parsons G:James Harden G:Jeremy Lin C:Jermaine Oneal F-Mo/T-Jones(Take your pick) F:Tayshaun Prince G:JJ Redick Gatrick Beverley Now this is all hypothetical, but i think this team would be a legit contender. And i did some Salary Cap checking and this would be an affordable roster. It would just take a trade that sends Asik and some PF’s away, and getting Prince and draft picks.
If your referring to my post (didn't see any other SF post), I never said SF was bad for new business', I said friends who visited the United States told me they'd rather live in Houston than SF or LA. Which was a shock to me. Just reporting.
haha it's third-hand info so take it for what it's worth, man! this isn't my forte... i'm no insider. /disclaimer but the source is decent. basically confirmed the whole dinner thing, that dwight said he was very unhappy in LA and that houston was his next spot. but dude... this is dwight. he may've just been saying that or he may have woken up today and had a change of heart. or my source could be completely full of it or totally misheard. who knows. again, take it FWIW.
Boom. His crew has been very leaky and transparent. Except now. We had this little snipped from cyberx (legit) and now silence. It appears they are tightening up the leaks and being very covert, something very difficult for Dwight's crew to do. What does that tell you? (It's just a small indicator but Dwight wants to make the decision independent of all the pushing and shoving that has dominated his life the last 2 seasons. He's tired of all this. He wants to sign a contract, play basketball, and compete for championships.) IF Dwight is going to leave LA, it's going to be like a tornado blowing up out of nowhere guys. When the decision is made he most likely will be in Florida, possibly Texas, but most likely Florida. He's not going to be in LA, that's for sure. So, as the end of June/beginning of July rolls around one thing to watch for will be is he traveling outside of CA. is he going overseas and going back to Florida, etc. If he is doing that, it's an indicator that he's leaving LA. Another indicator he is leaving the Lakers is how long this thing drags out. If he hasn't committed to them openly and cut off everybody else by...mid June...then you know the game is on. The later this things goes without a commitment from Dwight the more likely it is that he is going elsewhere. So, while the odds are still high of Dwight returning to the Lakers, every day that drags by without him committing to them, without any leaks from his leaky crew, the more likely it is that he is leaving. The odds of him leaving the Lakers is creeping higher every day.
