Last night, we heard that Josh Howard was close to making a decision on his free agent destination, having narrowed his options to five teams: the Jazz, Pacers, Knicks, Nets, and Warriors. While we wait to see where the veteran forward lands, there are a few rumblings today detailing how serious a couple of his suitors are. Let's round those rumors up right here….
- A source very close to Josh Howard told Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com (via Twitter) that nothing is imminent between the forward and the Knicks.
- The Warriors' interest in Howard is very minimal, according to Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group (Sulia link). Golden State is still prioritizing power forwards, with Carl Landry atop the team's wish list. If the Warriors were to shift their focus to small forwards, they would target players that could also play the four, and Howard probably doesn't fit that description.
- Howard feels some loyalty to the Jazz, since they took a chance on him last year, so Utah is "near the top of his list," says Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune (Sulia link). It's also worth noting that, since they have his Non-Bird rights, the Jazz can offer Howard a first-year salary up to $2.58MM without using a mid-level exception.