Dwight Howard Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Notes: Pekovic, Warriors, Blazers, Mavs

July 11th, 2013 at 4:57pm CST by Luke Adams

As teams continue to finalize trade and free agent agreements, and peruse the market for hidden value, let's round up a few links related to Western Conference clubs….

Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link) still fully expects Nikola Pekovic to be back with the Timberwolves, and hears the big man isn't in contact with the Mavericks.
The Warriors never called the Lakers to discuss a sign-and-trade for Dwight Howard, since they were never told they were a real contender, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. That aligns with comments owner Joe Lacob made to Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News earlier today.
Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey indicated today to media, including Mike Tokito of the Oregonian (Twitter link), that he prefers to keep an open roster spot during the season, so the team could waive Terrel Harris before November.
According to Sam Amick of USA Today, the Grizzlies considered Brad Stevens before he was hired by the Celtics, and a third unknown team was interested in the former Butler coach as well (Twitter links).
Having lost last season's D-League affiliate, the Reno Bighorns, to a single-affiliation partnership with the Kings, the Jazz will now align with the Bakersfield Jam, tweets Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune.
Jose Calderon doesn't believe the Mavericks necessarily need a star center to compete, as he told 103.3 FM in Dallas (link via Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com).

Kobe’s Delay Of Retirement Irked Dwight Howard

July 11th, 2013 at 12:38am CST by Chuck Myron

Kobe Bryant appears more open to the idea of playing beyond next summer than he was before his Achilles injury, but his plans to stick around longer didn't sit well with Dwight Howard, according to Ramona Shelburne and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Howard was having a difficult time envisioning himself as the star of the team with Bryant still present, sources tell Shelburne and Stein, and that appears to have persuaded the big man to sign with the Rockets instead of the Lakers.

Howard's camp apparently asked the Lakers if they were considering an amnesty of Bryant, a scenario that could have made it easier for the team to clear room for both Howard and Chris Paul. The Lakers weren't open to that idea, and they were also unwilling to make a coaching change to appease Howard, who asked the team to hire Phil Jackson during this past season.

The All-Star center and Dan Fegan client was also upset with the Lakers' marketing plan for him, as Stein and Shelburne write. Howard's closest confidant on the team was GM Mitch Kupchak, and he intended to meet with the executive to tell him in person on Friday that he had chosen to sign with the Rockets. With word out in the media that he had already picked Houston, Howard elected to simply call Kupchak instead.

Lowe On Howard, Wizards, Teague, Pelicans

July 8th, 2013 at 6:28pm CST by Zachary Links

The surprise of the summer might not have been Dwight Howard's departure from the Lakers, but the quickness with which he decided to join up with the Rockets. We're just a week into the free agency period, but executives are already taking the time to survey the entire landscape outside of their own milieu. Zach Lowe of Grantland checked in with basketball people to get their take on things and unearthed some very interesting tidbits..

Lowe wonders why more clubs didn't put their toe in the water for Dwight Howard. His educated guess after poking around is that the Wizards gave it a go while the Bulls, who were once a rumored trade destination, did not. The Bulls have a stern culture, very good talent already on hand, and a tax complication, so Howard would have been a longshot and maybe not the best idea anyway.
The Jazz could have used their cap space this summer to sign Jeff Teague, who sources say is nearly unwanted in the Hawks organization. We've heard previously that the point guard was upset with the lack of communication he's had with Atlanta this summer.
Pelicans owner Tom Benson has told the front office that the team needs to take a significant step forward this season, according to several sources around the league. That would help to explain their sizable commitment to Tyreke Evans this summer.
Other execs have pointed out that the Rockets tend to be sort of annoying, especially around draft day. Daryl Morey & Co. make many, many phone calls, poking the market and chasing tiny deals that move them two spots up in the draft or add an extra second-round pick. People knocked Morey for burning up the phone lines to chase the No. 9 seed a year ago and didn't seem long for Houston, but he has turned a roster with zero top-50 talent into a roster with two top-15 players.
As much as Houston says they want to hang on to center Omer Asik, Lowe would be surprised to see him finish the year with the Rockets.

Post Dwightmare Reactions: Shaq, Lakers, Howard

July 7th, 2013 at 10:36am CST by Spencer Lund

Dwight Howard's decision to spurn the extra $30MM the Lakers could offer in order to join the Rockets has led to some revelations around the rest of the league. With Dwight as the big free agency coup of the summer, he's turned into the first domino as other teams have made moves in the wake of his announcment.

But the fall-out from Dwight's decision is just starting to expand in scope, and there have been reactions all over. Perhaps most notably, are the words from another former Lakers and Magic star, Shaquille O'Neal.

O'Neal has been critical of Dwight Howard in the past, but he was a bit more condescending when he called Dwight's decision the "safe move," while speaking to assembled media Saturday. But O'Neal's reaction to Dwight's decision wasn't the only fall-out from D-12's move to Texas. Here are more Dwight Howard links now that he's finally made up his mind on where he's going next year:

A year ago, Howard's camp warned the Rockets that he wouldn't re-sign with Houston if he were traded there. This summer, other Howard suitors tried to convince the big man that James Harden is a selfish teammate. Still, the Rockets persevered, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy thinks Orlando got the better end of the deal when they dealt Howard in the blockbuster trade involving the Sixers, Nuggets and Lakers this past fall. Van Gundy spoke with Fox Sports Florida's Chris Tomasson about how the Magic ended up on top after the initial response had them losing the deal badly.
There's video of Shaq talking about Howard and the decision, via NBA.com
ESPN.com columnist J.A. Adande writes about the flummoxing decision by Dwight to leave the Lakers and the extra money, especially when considering his stated motivation to win now.
The Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen sat down with the best Rockets center since Hakeem Olajuwon to get Howard's side of the story about what brought him to Houston.
Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News offers a sobering insight for Lakers fans after Howard's decision: Kobe Bryant might have lost his last chance at title number six.
Finally, we have Mike Bresnahan at the Los Angeles Times on the sketchy Lakers future after Dwight's decision to leave. Their first decision appears to have been not to amnesty Pau Gasol before the last season of his contract.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Dwight Howard Could Opt Out In 2016

July 6th, 2013 at 1:00pm CST by Zachary Links

Dwight Howard's new four-year, $88MM deal with the Rockets includes an early termination option after the 2015/16 season, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. The contract also includes a 15% trade kicker, but that doesn't mean an awful lot for the big man.

Our own Luke Adams crunched the number's on Howard's potential max contract scenarios earlier this year and found that the ~$88MM mark is the absolute most D12 can receive in a contract with a new club. Because a trade kicker can't elevate a player over the player's max salary, it probably won't make much of a different in Howard's bank account if he is moved.

However, the option is certainly noteworthy. The CBA doesn't allow early termination options on contracts shorter than five years, so the fourth year should technically be a player option, but it ultimately has the same effect: Howard could potentially hit the reset button on the free agency Dwightmare in three short years.

Howard Notes: Mavs, Magic, Lakers

July 6th, 2013 at 12:07pm CST by Zachary Links

Our long, national Dwightmare is over, but the ripple effects from his move to Houston will be felt for some time. Here's the latest news and fallout concerning the summer's biggest free agent move..

Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com wonders aloud if Mark Cuban's grand plan is officially a failure. When MacMahon posed that question directly to Cuban in an email, the owner responded, “We haven't played a game yet. Look back at the big deal that won last summer and ask how it’s working for everyone now.” Still, it's hard to overlook the fact that Cuban struck out on Deron Williams last summer and was unable to land Dwight Howard or Chris Paul this summer.
The Magic have officially won the Howard trade, opines Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel. While the Lakers lost Howard, the Nuggets lost Andre Iguodala, and free agent Andrew Bynum didn't play a minute for the 76ers last season, the Magic ended up with a couple of nice, young building blocks in big man Nikola Vucevic and Maurice Harkless, a consummate pro in Arron Afflalo, and five future draft picks.
Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com (Twitter links) hears that Howard already made up his mind before boarding a plane for Aspen, Colorado, but wanted a little bit more time to think about things before shutting the door on the Lakers.

Lakers Notes: LeBron, Howard, Jackson

July 6th, 2013 at 11:01am CST by Zachary Links

I guess the billboards just weren’t enough. Last night, Dwight Howard spoke with Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld after making his decision to bolt for Houston and spoke candidly about his time in Los Angeles. When asked if Phil Jackson coming back as coach or being involved in some capacity would have changed his mind about the Lakers, Howard said, “Well, I asked to have him as my coach earlier in the year,” before taking a noticeable pause. You can check out more of the highlights here and the latest D12 reaction out of L.A. below..

The Lakers’ next move will be to try and make a run in the 2013/14 season and then try to lure LeBron James, sources tell Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (on Twitter).
Mitch Kupchak & Co. won’t amnesty Pau Gasol, but they still have that option for Kobe Bryant, Steve Blake, or Metta World Peace. Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter) hears that the club is weighing their options with MWP. The forward makes roughly $7.73MM next season.
The Lakers have little choice but to forget about this upcoming season and focus on the blockbuster summer of 2014, writes Tom Haberstroh of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req’d). Next summer is when James along with Carmelo Anthony, John Wall (if he doesn’t sign an extension), Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, and Dirk Nowitzki can all become free agents. The draft class also figures to be stacked with Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Marcus Smart, Julius Randle, and Andrew Harrison.
In an interview with Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, Howard downplayed his frustrations with the Lakers organization.
Howard’s final plan was always to meet with Kupchak one final time and inform him of his decision, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, but that didn’t wind up happening, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter).
Earlier today, we learned that the Lakers won’t use the amnesty clause on Pau Gasol.

Lakers To Keep Pau Gasol

July 6th, 2013 at 9:07am CST by Zachary Links

The Lakers got some difficult news last night as they learned that Dwight Howard will be taking his talents to Texas. However, there might be a silver lining in it for Lakers veteran Pau Gasol. With D12 out of the equation, there will be no talk or discussion about using the amnesty provision on the Spaniard anymore, a source with knowledge of the team's thinking told Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com.

If Howard re-signed with the Lakers, Gasol, who will make $19.3MM in the final year of his deal, was an amnesty candidate as the Lakers want to ease their luxury tax burden. However, no firm decision had been made, according to the source, as the team's preference was to look for ways to keep Gasol.

Gasol will likely move back over from power forward to center and be featured in that role, as he was on the 2009 Lakers team that defeated Howard and the Magic in the Finals. Metta World Peace, Jordan Hill, and rookie Ryan Kelly are all candidates to man the four in that scenario.

Dwight Howard On Decision To Sign With Rockets

July 6th, 2013 at 12:00am CST by Chuck Myron

Dwight Howard has been speaking with several reporters in the wake of his choice of the Rockets earlier this evening. HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy is one of them, and he delivers the big man's thoughts in Q-and-A format, including Howard's revelation that he asked the Lakers to hire Phil Jackson as coach. The entire piece is worth a read, but we'll pass along a few highlights here:

On the decision-making process and how the Rockets swayed him:

"It wasn’t really the presentation. Every team that I talked to had a great presentation. And it’s not like I came in thinking that the Rockets would be the team and didn’t pay attention in the other meetings or anything like that. I really listened. I took notes. I asked questions. I did everything I could to make sure I was making the best possible decision for myself. I just looked at everything in the end and I just felt like this was the place to go."

On turning down the Lakers:

“Very tough. Very, very, very tough. Very, very tough. People wouldn’t understand. Walking away from them and walking away from $30MM. That shows you right there that I want to win. I want to win. Nothing else matters other than winning. I don’t think anybody would’ve ever walked away from $30MM, but I want to win. But yeah, just walking away was tough. I was walking away from six million fans. I was walking away from a storied franchise. All of that makes it tough and it makes it a really, really big risk. I learned a lot from the situation in Orlando though, when I was afraid to walk away because I didn’t want to hurt people. I was afraid to leave because everything seemed like it was great. But now, I’m doing what’s best for Dwight. People are going to be mad and upset either way, so I’d rather be happy. I want to be happy playing basketball rather than upset doing what everyone wants me to do.”

On whether the Rockets pitched the idea of playing with Josh Smith:

“They didn’t talk to me about it. They just talked about the opportunity that they have for me and what they can provide for me as a player. That’s what was intriguing for me. But like I said in the beginning, it was very tough. Very, very tough.”

Dwight Howard To Sign With Rockets

July 5th, 2013 at 10:01pm CST by Luke Adams

10:01pm: Howard, as promised, took to Twitter (or Twitlonger, to be precise) to reveal his choice of the Rockets.

"I've decided to become a member of the Houston Rockets. I feel its the best place for me and I am excited about joining the Rockets and I'm looking forward to a great season. I want to thank the fans in Los Angeles and wish them the best."

9:36pm: It appears Howard has picked the Rockets once and for all. The Lakers have released a statement from GM Mitch Kupchak:

"We have been informed of Dwight's decision to not return to the Lakers. Naturally we're disappointed. However, we will now move forward in a different direction with the future of the franchise and, as always, will do our best to build the best team possible, one our great lakers fans will be proud to support. To Dwight, we thank him for his time and consideration, and for his efforts with us last season. We wish him the best of luck on the remainder of his NBA career."

Of course, nothing's official until July 10th, when the league's July Moratorium is up, but presumably, Howard will be headed to Houston.

9:33pm: HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy hears from a source close to Howard that he's decided to join the Rockets after all (Twitter link).

8:46pm: On ESPN's SportsCenter, Chris Broussard is reporting that Howard has told the Lakers he's changed his mind, and both the Lakers and Rockets have 50-50 chances, according to multiple reports (All Twitter links).

6:32pm: Howard is flying from Colorado to L.A. to speak with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak tonight, Bresnahan tweets.

5:47pm: Asik has no interest in backing up Howard if D12 does indeed come to Houston, and that could force a trade, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. The Hawks would listen to a sign-and-trade proposal involving Smith, Windhorst adds (Twitter links).

5:41pm: If Howard does sign with the Rockets, Mannix expects the team to try to flip Omer Asik, possibly as part of a deal for Josh Smith (Twitter link). Pincus believes the Rockets may still need to create a little more cap room to sign Howard outright to a max deal, though that won't be official until the salary cap is set next week, when the July Moratorium ends (Twitter link).

5:36pm: Houston GM Daryl Morey tweets that while he is "excited & cautiously optimistic" that Howard might choose Houston, he and the team have not been informed of his decision (hat tip to HoopsWorld's Eric Pincus).

5:31pm: As it stands at the moment, Fegan appears to be the one putting the brakes on the story, telling Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times that, "Based on my most recent conversation wirh Dwight, it’s inaccurate" that he has chosen Houston (Twitter link). Howard had been leaning toward Houston, but with his back issues, he's wondering if leaving $30MM is the right idea, Bresnahan tweets.

5:21pm: Multiple sources tell Wojnarowski that Howard has chosen the Rockets, but that he is still finalizing details of the agreement (Twitter link). Chris Mannix of SI.com says that he's been told Howard is wrestling with the idea of passing up the extra $30MM or so that the Lakers could offer, but if all things were equal, he'd go to Houston (Twitter link). Kennedy echoes that sentiment via Twitter. The Lakers and Rockets are the only two teams that haven't been notified they're out of the running, Wojnarowski notes (on Twitter).

5:15pm: A decision is coming tonight or tomorrow, tweets Kennedy.

5:12pm: A source close to Howard tells Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld that no decision has been made, although it's unclear whether that source spoke to Kennedy before or after news broke that he would sign with the Rockets (Twitter link). While Berger and TNT's David Aldridge both confirm Howard will sign with the Rockets (Twitter links), agent Dan Fegan tells Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports that "Dwight has not finalized his decision" (Twitter link).

4:55pm: The most-discussed free agent of the summer has finally made his decision. After spending the week meeting with five different teams and weighing his options at a Colorado resort, Dwight Howard has opted to sign with the Rockets, reports Sam Amick of USA Today.

Howard has begun personally calling teams to tell them of his decision, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. The Warriors have already received one of those calls from Howard, according to Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter link). The Hawks and Lakers appeared to be the other teams in the running at the very end, with the Mavericks having been officially eliminated earlier.

Chuck Myron contributed to this story.