Tuesday’s trade between Atlanta and Charlotte, which sent Dwight Howard to the Hornets for an underwhelming package that included Miles Plumlee and Marco Belinelli, signaled to many that Howard’s value is at a low point. While that may be the case, Hornets head coach Steve Clifford is confident that he can help Howard become an All-Star caliber player again, as Steve Reed of The Associated Press (via The Charlotte Observer) details.
“I know what he has to do to play well,” Clifford said of Howard, whom he coached as an assistant in Orlando and Los Angeles. “He understands that I know him. I know his game. Being around him in different settings I have a feel for what he likes to do… There is no reason he can’t get back to playing at a really high level.”
While we wait to see if Clifford can help Howard rebound after his stint in Atlanta ended with the big man complaining about his role, here are a few more notes from around the Eastern Conference:
- The Howard trade between Atlanta and Charlotte will leave the Hawks with a modest trade exception. Atlanta’s new TPE will be worth $4,346,942, and will be the fourth – and largest – trade exception available to the team, as our list of TPEs shows.
- Asked why he decided to exercise his player option to remain with the Bulls, a candid Dwyane Wade told David Aldridge of TNT that there were “24 million reasons” (Twitter link). Wade’s option will pay him $23.8MM next season.
- The Wizards have reportedly expressed interest in Paul George, and John Wall is on board with the idea of acquiring the Pacers star. However, a trade for George is a long shot, since a sign-and-trade of Otto Porter would be tricky and the inclusion of Bradley Beal is, of course, a non-starter, writes J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.com.