Dwight Howard Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Interested In Reunion With Dwight Howard

August 18th, 2019 at 8:52am CST by Arthur Hill

Six years after leaving the Lakers, Dwight Howard may be about to return, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. L.A. is expected to seek permission to talk to the veteran center, and there is reportedly “mutual interest” in a reunion.

Howard, 33, is currently with the Grizzlies after being traded there in early July in exchange for C.J. Miles. However, the move was regarded as a salary dump for Memphis, and Howard isn’t expected to play for the franchise. Buyout talks are expected soon on his $5.6MM contract for the upcoming season.

An eight-time All-Star who was once considered one of the league’s best centers, Howard has turned into a journeyman since reaching his 30s. He has played for four teams in the past four years and was briefly the property of the Nets last summer. Injuries limited him to nine games last season, but he was still productive in 2017/18, averaging 16.6 points and 12.5 rebounds per night with the Hornets.

The Lakers suddenly find themselves short-handed at center after this week’s ACL injury to DeMarcus Cousins, who signed with the team last month. L.A. was hoping to avoid using Anthony Davis in the middle, but JaVale McGee is the only other currently option on the roster.

Still, the shift toward Howard is somewhat surprising, given his acrimonious history with the team. Howard spent just one year in L.A. after being traded there in 2012, signing with the Rockets the following summer. Kobe Bryant famously called him “soft” at the time and suggested that Howard wasn’t willing to learn how to win.

In an interview last month with Kristine Leahy of FS1 (video link), Howard appears to have come to terms with those comments. “Everybody reaches different levels of maturity at different times,” he said. “I think at that time I was ignorant to the level that he was at. So I appreciate you, Kobe. Thank you for saying I was soft. I didn’t realize what you meant until now.”

Grizzlies Notes: Jackson, Iguodala, Howard, Guduric

July 19th, 2019 at 11:42am CST by Luke Adams

As first reported by TMZ, new Grizzlies forward Josh Jackson has entered a diversion program to settle a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest. An ESPN report, confirming the TMZ story, indicates that Jackson will have the misdemeanor charge dismissed if he completes the diversion program.

The misdemeanor charge stems from an incident that occurred at a music festival in Florida in May, when Jackson tried to enter the VIP area without a proper pass too many times. He ran away after being handcuffed by police, and was charged with resisting arrest after being re-apprehended. Jackson also initially faced a felony charge of escape, but had it dismissed last month, per ESPN.

The fourth overall pick in the 2017 draft, Jackson essentially became a salary dump this offseason, when the Suns had to attach a pair of second-round picks to him as part of a multi-player trade that sent him to Memphis. Jackson has a troublesome history of off-court incidents and hasn’t developed into an impact player on the court, but he’ll get a chance at a fresh start with the Grizzlies this season.

Unless Jackson looks terrific in training camp and makes a strong impression on the Grizzlies to start the season, I wouldn’t expect the team to pick up his fourth-year option for the 2020/21 campaign. That decision is due at the end of October, and the ’20/21 option would pay Jackson a salary worth $8.93MM.

Here’s more on the Grizzlies:

Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian takes an in-depth look at the Andre Iguodala trade market (or lack thereof), exploring what sort of packages teams like the Rockets, Clippers, Nuggets, and Mavericks might be able and willing to offer.
In Herrington’s view, it’s unlikely that Iguodala or recently-acquired center Dwight Howard ever appear in a regular season game for the Grizzlies. For now, both veterans’ expiring contracts remain on Memphis’ books to maintain flexibility for trades.
Multiple reports out of Europe earlier this month indicated that Serbian swingman Marko Guduric would be signing a two-year contract with the Grizzlies. There has still been no official word on that front, but Herrington writes that it’s probably safe to assume it will happen at some point.

Lakers Notes: Davis, Howard, Handy, Horton-Tucker

July 15th, 2019 at 12:38pm CST by Luke Adams

When Team USA named its 20-man training camp roster for the 2019 World Cup last month, Anthony Davis‘ name was on that list. However, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, the new Lakers star will remove his name from consideration for USA Basketball’s World Cup roster.

As Haynes explains, Davis won’t participate in training camp with Team USA because he wants to spend the bulk of his offseason preparing to attempt a championship run with his new team. The former Pelicans big man remains committed to playing in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, sources tell Haynes.

Davis, a gold medalist in 2012 (Olympics) and 2014 (World Cup), will still attend Team USA’s training camp next month to support his teammates, per Haynes. It’s not clear if USA Basketball has a 20th man lined up to replace AD — the club will eventually pare that group down to 12 players for the World Cup itself.

Here’s more on the Lakers and Davis:

In a conversation with ESPN’s Rachel Nichols, Davis said that Lakers GM Rob Pelinka was calling him every “30 to 45 minutes” during free agency. “Rob would call me: ‘AD, what you think about him?’ ‘All right, cool,'” Davis said. “Right back, ‘AD, you know, this is what is going on with him.’ ‘All right, cool. All right.’ Sometimes I had to tell him, like, ‘Rob, I’m in the movies.’ He’d be, like, ‘All right, well, call me as soon as you get out.’ But we’re trying to put the best team around us, and I think he did a great job of doing it.”
Speaking to Arash Markazi of The Los Angeles Times, veteran center Dwight Howard – who technically remains under contract with the Grizzlies for now – said he wouldn’t mind playing in Los Angeles again, either for the Lakers or Clippers. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I do love L.A.,” Howard said. “Staples Center is going to be rocking this season.”
The Lakers are hiring veteran assistant coach Phil Handy to join Frank Vogel‘s staff, reports Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link). Handy has appeared in five consecutive NBA Finals, having coached in Cleveland before joining Toronto for the 2018/19 season.
Talen Horton-Tucker‘s new two-year, minimum-salary deal with the Lakers is fully guaranteed, a source tells Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link).

And-Ones: Howard, Summer League, Spain, BIG3

July 11th, 2019 at 9:01am CST by Luke Adams

Having been sent from Washington to Memphis in a trade for C.J. Miles, veteran center Dwight Howard is a member of the Grizzlies for now. However, the club is expected to waive or trade him at some point. After he was limited to just nine games in 2018/19 for health reasons, it’s not clear what the next step will be for Howard, but the eight-time All-Star tells Shams Charania of The Athletic that he has adjusted his mindset and is prepared to do whatever it takes to help his next team win.

“I don’t have an ego — it’s dead,” Howard said. “It had to die for me to be who I am. Sometimes when you want to become who you want to be, you have to die within yourself. Once you learn that you have to give up yourself for the team, that’s when things flourish.”

According to Charania, several NBA teams have said that they’re intrigued by Howard, who says he has been fully cleared after last year’s injury issues. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year claims he has lost 25 pounds since the end of the season, and one executive who saw him recently said he appears to be in his best shape in years, per Charania.

It remains to be seen whether Howard will get an opportunity to choose his next team on the free agent market, but if he does, he has one clear priority, he tells Charania: “Winning. Winning. Winning. I want to win. Nothing else. Just win.”

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

According to Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter link), there has been talk in Las Vegas about the possibility of moving back the start of Summer League in future years. Postponing the start date until after the end of the July moratorium would help address the problem of having traded 2019 draftees tied up in deals that can’t be made official until after Summer League is underway.
Spain announced its preliminary roster for the 2019 FIBA World Cup this week, as Sportando relays, and the group includes a number of familiar names. The 16-man list, which will be cut down to 12 for the competition, features Marc Gasol, Ricky Rubio, Willy Hernangomez, Juan Hernangomez, and former NBA players like Rudy Fernandez and Victor Claver.
The BIG3 announced on Wednesday that Baron Davis, Bonzi Wells, Lamar Odom, and Jermaine O’Neal are being “deactivated” for the 2019 season. The league cited the need to “maximize competition, protect the health of players, and to raise the level of the professionalism of the BIG3.”

Wizards Trade Dwight Howard To Grizzlies

July 5th, 2019 at 7:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 6: The trade is now official, with both teams announcing it in press releases. “C.J. is respected around the league for his defense, three-point shooting and leadership,” Wizards Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations Tommy Sheppard said. “All of those qualities appealed to us in making this deal and we look forward to him making a positive impact on our team.”

JULY 5: The Wizards are trading center Dwight Howard to the Grizzlies, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. Memphis plans to waive Howard or forward him to another team, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

Washington will receive swingman C.J. Miles in the deal, David Aldridge of The Athletic tweets.

The Grizzlies will shave $3.13MM off their team salary by dealing Miles, who is due $8.73MM next season. Howard has one year and $5.6MM left on his contract.

Additionally, Memphis has waived shooting guard Avery Bradley, Aldridge reports in another tweet. Bradley had a $12.96MM salary for next season but only $2MM was guaranteed. This gives Memphis even more flexibility to make moves, as Aldridge notes.

Bradley is a former client of current Lakers GM Rob Pelinka, which may impact his decision as a free agent, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders notes (Twitter link).

Howard opted in for the second year of his contract with the Wizards, who had no interest in keeping the former All-Star on the roster.

Howard, who spent his previous three seasons with three different teams in Houston, Atlanta, and Charlotte, was a complete washout last season. Having used the full taxpayer mid-level exception to sign him, Washington viewed Howard as its major offseason addition, but he only appeared in nine games. Spinal surgery and a hamstring injury during his rehab resulted in a lost season for the 33-year-old Howard.

Miles’ situation was similar. He opted in to his contract but the Grizzlies had little use for the three-point specialist with a hefty salary on a rebuilding squad.

Miles is recovering from a stress reaction in his left foot. The 14-year veteran, who started last season with the Raptors, was sent to the Grizzlies as part of the package for Marc Gasol in February. In total, Miles appeared in 53 games (16.2 MPG) for Memphis and Toronto, averaging just 6.4 PPG on .360/.330/.828 shooting.

Memphis had until July 8 to fully guarantee Bradley’s salary. He appeared in 63 games last season with the Clippers and Grizzlies, averaging 9,9 PPG and 2.4 APG in 30.2 MPG. Without Bradley on their roster, the Grizzlies are in much better position to match an offer sheet for restricted free agent Delon Wright without going into tax territory.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Atlantic Notes: Howard, Celtics, Kurucs, Knicks

June 16th, 2019 at 2:02pm CST by JD Shaw

Former Lakers center Dwight Howard was asked this week about whether impending free agent Kawhi Leonard should consider the team in free agency, with Howard quickly shutting down the idea in favor of Leonard’s current situation in Toronto.

“I don’t know if [the Lakers] are the draw anymore,” Howard said Thursday on ‘First Things First’ on Fox Sports 1, as relayed by Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. “I think now guys understand that in the era that we live in, the social media age, you can play anywhere and get attention.”

Howard, who was traded to the Lakers in the summer of 2012, spent just one tumultuous season in Los Angeles and quickly became disliked by many fans of the organization. He believes that Leonard should prioritize re-signing with the Raptors when free agency opens on June 30.

“To me, I think he should stay in Toronto,” Howard said. “Because he took the team to the Finals. If he wins, why would he go anywhere else?”

Along with Leonard, the Raptors also have the situations of Danny Green (unrestricted) and Marc Gasol ($25.6MM player option) to address this summer. Leonard has long been linked to the Clippers as a free-agent target, but Toronto may have the slight advantage coming off their first NBA championship.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division today:

The Celtics’ plans have been altered in the wake of the Lakers-Pelicans trade for Anthony Davis, Jay King of The Athletic writes. Boston suddenly has an unclear future, dominated by the fact that star guard Kyrie Irving could leave the team in free agency and sign elsewhere. The team is also awaiting a decision from Al Horford, who must inform the franchise of whether he plans to exercise his $30.1MM player option for the 2019/20 season.
Nets forward Rodions Kurucs is planning on playing summer league with the team, he told Brian Lewis of the New York Post. “My focus this summer is just working on my game, my all-around game, my handle, my shot, defense, rebounding, physicality for sure,” Kurucs said. “Everything, basically, because I will need them next season.” Kurucs is coming off a rookie season where he averaged 8.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 20.5 minutes in 63 games.
Aside from the Warriors themselves, the Knicks are one of the biggest losers from Golden State’s strange NBA Finals run, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. Major injuries to potential targets Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant have hurt the potential of the 2019 free agent class, leaving some to wonder what kind of contracts teams will offer the two All-Star players on the open market. New York still hasn’t backed away from the idea of signing Durant to a four-year, $141MM deal if he opts out from his final season in Golden State, according to Berman.

Wizards’ Dwight Howard Opts In For 2019/20

April 18th, 2019 at 10:55pm CST by Luke Adams

In an unsurprising move, Dwight Howard has picked up his 2019/20 player option, opting in for next season, reports ESPN’s Zach Lowe (via Twitter). The decision ensures that the Wizards center locks in his $5,603,850 salary for ’19/20.

Howard, 33, signed a two-year deal with the Wizards last summer after spending his previous three seasons with three different teams in Houston, Atlanta, and Charlotte. Having used the full taxpayer mid-level exception to sign him, Washington viewed Howard as its major offseason addition, but the big man’s stint in D.C. hasn’t gone as planned.

Sidelined by spinal surgery for most of the 2018/19 season, Howard also injured his hamstring during his rehab and was ultimately limited to just nine games. He was reasonably effective when he saw the court, averaging 12.8 PPG and 9.2 RPG in 25.6 minutes per contest as the Wizards’ starting center, but the question marks surrounding his health ensured that he wouldn’t land a contract on the open market this offseason worth more than his $5.6MM option.

With Howard back in the fold, the Wizards are now on the hook for approximately $89.5MM in guaranteed salaries for 2019/20, per Basketball Insiders. That doesn’t include potential contracts for free agents like Tomas Satoransky, Bobby Portis, Trevor Ariza, Thomas Bryant, or Jeff Green. It also doesn’t account for Jabari Parker‘s $20MM team option, though that’s a lock to be declined.

Portis and Bryant are both eligible for restricted free agency this summer, so it will be interesting to see how the Wizards handle their situations, given the team’s limited financial flexibility and the fact that veteran centers Howard and Ian Mahinmi are entering contract years.

Howard is the sixth player so far to exercise a 2019/20 player option or confirm that he plans to do so. The full list can be found right here.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Dwight Howard Won’t Return; Focus Moves To Player Option

March 28th, 2019 at 9:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Dwight Howard played just nine games in his first season with the Wizards, and the team would probably prefer that there won’t be a second one, writes Ben Standig of NBC Sports Washington.

The two-year, $11MM contract Howard signed last summer includes a $5.6MM player option for next season. It appears Washington would rather have the cap flexibility than another year of Howard, especially with the team already well stocked at center.

Thomas Bryant has stepped in as the starter and has enjoyed a breakthrough season. Bobby Portis, who was acquired in a deal with the Bulls last month, has been an effective backup in smaller lineups. They will be restricted free agents this summer and the Wizards would like to re-sign both of them. Washington will also be paying $15.45MM to Ian Mahinmi, who will be entering the final year of his four-year, $64MM contract.

The idea of Howard opting out and testing the free agent market at age 33 after an injury-plagued season is far from a sure thing. He has moved around the league since being traded out of Orlando in 2012 and has changed teams in each of the past three offseasons.

Howard’s physical problems began in November, leading to surgery on his back, then he suffered a hamstring injury while trying to return. He rejoined the team in for non-contact drills in late February, but never seemed close to being cleared for game action.

Eastern Notes: Magic, Howard, Hayward

March 18th, 2019 at 7:06pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Nikola Vucevic is in his seventh season with the Magic and he has yet to see the postseason with the club.

“In past years, this time of year we’d already be planning our vacations, unfortunately,’’ said Vucevic, who will be a free agent at the end of the year (via John Denton of NBA.com). “It’s much different now and much more fun. As a basketball player and a competitor, you want to be in this situation, fight for something, play for something and be in the big moments. So, it’s up to us to respond.’’

Orlando entered the day just one game behind the Heat for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference. Vucevic, who made his first All-Star game this season has been a major reason why the playoffs are in reach. The big man prides himself on his consistency.

“Being able to sustain a certain level of play is important for individuals and teams,” Vucevic said. “For us, that’s been the biggest issue. When play well, we’re very good and when we don’t, we struggle. But for me personally, [consistency] is something I take a lot of pride in, and throughout my career I feel like I’ve been able to show that when I’m out on the court, you know what you’re going to get from me.’’

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Magic coach Steve Clifford believes Vucevic’s stability and smarts are two things that set him apart from other centers, as Denton adds in the same piece. “It’s invaluable to have anybody else on the floor who can do that other than your point guard, particularly a center who can play like that,” Clifford said. “In many ways, when he’s out there, it’s like playing with two point guards.’’
The Wizards have yet to rule out Dwight Howard out for the season, though head coach Scott Brooks says the big man isn’t over his injury woes yet, as Candace Buckner of the Washington Post passes along on Twitter. “He’s still getting his work in — the hamstring problem has not turned the corner,” Brooks said.
Gordon Hayward remains in the early stages of the league’s concussion protocol, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets. Coach Brad Stevens called Hayward doubtful for the Celtics‘ game on Wednesday but left the door open for him to play on Saturday against Charlotte.

Dwight Howard Experiences Setback During Rehab

March 5th, 2019 at 1:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Dwight Howard suffered a “minor setback” while rehabilitating his back injury, Wizards head coach Scott Brooks said today (Twitter link via Fred Katz of The Athletic). According to Brooks, the veteran center – who has been doing non-contact drills in Washington – tweaked his hamstring.

With the Wizards technically still in the Eastern Conference playoff picture, three games behind the eighth-seeded Magic, there’s some incentive to get Howard back in the lineup before the end of the season. However, a Washington playoff berth and a Howard return both appear increasingly unlikely. The 33-year-old hasn’t played since November 18 and wasn’t taking contact even before his setback.

Assuming Howard is unable to make it back this season, he’ll finish his first year in D.C. having appeared in just nine games, with averages of 12.8 PPG and 9.2 RPG.

The former first overall pick has a 2019/20 player option worth approximately $5.6MM, which looks like a good bet to be exercised. After his lost ’18/19 season, Howard likely wouldn’t be able to match that salary on the open market if he were to opt out.

With Howard still on the shelf, the Wizards will continue to rely on Bobby Portis as their starting center, with Thomas Bryant earning minutes off the bench.