Last season, Stan Van Gundy went viral when he told reporters that Dwight Howard was pushing the Magic front office to fire him before leaving the big man to face the scrum all by himself. One would assume that the outspoken coach and the Lakers star are not on speaking terms, but that's not the case, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. "We never stopped communicating even if there have been times he was very angry with me," Van Gundy said. "Dwight and I may not have always seen eye to eye. But I think there is mutual respect." More on the Lakers and the rest of the Pacific..
- Maalik Wayns is looking to make the most of his time with the Clippers, writes Eric Patten of NBA.com. You can keep up with all of this year's 10-day deals with our handy 10-day contract tracker.
- Chris Hansen, the prospective owner of the Kings, is calling on fans in Seattle to sign up for a "priority ticket waitlist" as a way to show the NBA how much interest there is in bringing pro basketball back to the area, according to the Associated Press. Commissioner David Stern said last week that Hansen's group currently has a significantly larger bid on the table than the competing Sacramento group.
- Howard will return to Orlando on Tuesday night and Frank Zicarelli of the Toronto Sun isn't sure if the Lakers star has the mental toughness to thrive in that environment.