Dwight Howard Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers, Rockets Continue Pursuing Dwight Howard

July 17th, 2012 at 5:45pm CST by Luke Adams

5:45pm: Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal cites a team executive involved in the discussions between the Lakers and Magic who says that both teams have been talking about Dwight for weeks but haven't been making much progress. Lloyd also references an Eastern Conference executive who believes that the Magic are in no hurry to move Howard and are holding out for the Rockets to improve their offer.

4:24pm: The Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin offer sheets won't affect the Rockets' discussions for Howard, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. However, reports that Houston would take on all of Orlando's bad contracts in a Howard deal are "ridiculous," tweets SI.com's Chris Mannix.

Feigen also notes that the Magic/Lakers talks would likely involve the Rockets as a third team (Twitter link), while Mannix cautions that both Howard and Bynum would have to agree to sign long-term with their new teams before any trade could happen (Twitter link).

1:57pm: Talks between the Lakers and Magic are ongoing, but a Howard trade would be "very tough to pull off," a source tells Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link). That news isn't surprising — I briefly outlined below why the two teams aren't an ideal match.

11:02am: The Lakers are "pushing hard" to acquire Dwight Howard and are meeting with the Magic today to discuss a possible deal, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). According to Spears, the Lakers continue to seek a long-term commitment from Howard.

Weekend reports indicated that the Lakers and Magic were involved in Howard talks that also included the Cavaliers, though Cleveland seems to have disengaged from those discussions. While the Lakers' Andrew Bynum is a better centerpiece than rival suitors can offer for D12, it's still hard to imagine the Lakers and Magic consummating a deal without involving at least one more team. The Magic are seeking cap relief, young talent, and draft picks in any Howard trade, and outside of Bynum, L.A. can't offer that. The Lakers included four picks in their sign-and-trade for Steve Nash, and are over the luxury tax line, making it difficult for them to take on any bad contracts.

The Magic recently put Howard trade talks on the backburner while they search for a new head coach, but are still fielding offers from interested teams. The Rockets are also seriously pursuing the star center, reportedly offering a package that included recent draftees, future picks, and cap relief. However, Houston does not currently have a meeting set up to discuss Howard with the Magic, tweets Spears.

As for the Nets, having recently re-signed Brook Lopez and Kris Humphries, they appear to be out of the Howard sweepstakes until at least January. But as ESPN.com's John Hollinger points out, Humphries' sizable first-year salary could make it easier for the Nets to put together a package for Howard that lets them take back a few of Orlando's undesirable contracts. Of course, that scenario assumes Howard is still playing for the Magic in the new year, which is far from a certainty.

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Odds & Ends: Calderon, Suns, Magic, Howard

July 15th, 2012 at 10:54pm CST by Alex Lee

Ever since the Raptors' acquisition of Kyle Lowry, there has been a steady flow of rumors revolving around Jose Calderon's future, or lack thereof, in Toronto. Calderon, who will run the point for Spain's Olympic team later this month in London, has already expressed his discontent with the thought of being relegated to back up duties, but according to Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun, he may not have a choice.

Wolstat caught up with Toronto GM Bryan Colangelo who said, “We have had a few more trade inquiries regarding Jose (but) the scenario doesn’t seem to present itself to a trade today, but we’ll continue to monitor that and just try to determine whether it’s going to work in the long run.” Colangelo also implied that amnestying Calderon is not in the plans.

Here are some more updates from around the league on Sunday night:

Magic, Lakers, Cavs Mulling Howard, Bynum Deal

July 15th, 2012 at 8:48am CST by Chuck Myron

SUNDAY, 8:48am: High-ranking officials from the teams involved in a potential Howard trade tell Amico that the Cavs have walked away from the deal again, ending all recent talks (Twitter link).

SATURDAY, 9:12pm: Magic general manager Rob Hennigan wants to build his team in a similar fashion to how the Thunder were constructed, writes Kennedy (via Twitter). This plan would require Orlando to acquire multiple lottery picks and successfully draft players who would turn into superstars.

7:07pm: The Magic prefer draft picks and young prospects as the team is not interested in making the playoffs as an 8th seed, tweets Kennedy. Orlando hopes to completely rebuild its roster if the team trades Howard.

6:41pm: The Cavs are seeking assurances from Bynum that the big man would sign an extension with the team before talks intensify, says Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (Sulia link).

5:02pm: Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal says that while it makes sense the Cavs have entered the discussion again given their involvement in the rumored Howard/Nets deal last week, the Cavs and Magic would both be looking for draft picks as part of the deal, and the Lakers don't have any to spare (Sulia link).

4:22pm: The Lakers, Magic and Cavs have discussed a three-team deal that would send Dwight Howard to L.A., Andrew Bynum to Cleveland and provide the Magic with draft picks, prospects and cap relief, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld reports (Twitter links). Details are scarce and the situation is fluid, but the deal would make sense, says fellow HoopsWorld scribe Steve Kyler, especially if Bynum winds up in Cleveland, since the Magic prefer to acquire other assets instead of another veteran center (Twitter links).

Both the Rockets and the Lakers continue to pursue D12 and have been in contact with the Magic, Kennedy says, via Twitter. An earlier report by David Pingalore of local TV affiliate WKMG in Orlando suggested that a deal between the Lakers and Magic was in place and would be announced shortly, though Kyler suggests such reports might have been leaked to entice the Rockets to up their offer, and said he did not think a deal with the Lakers would be announced this week (Twitter links).

Kennedy said it's hard to tell whether the Rockets or Lakers are in the lead for Howard's services as the Magic weigh all their options (Twitter link). Kyler tweets that the Lakers' willingness to take on Jason Richardson's contract is appealing to Orlando, but the Magic still want more relief. Former Magic director of player development Adonal Foyle told Kyler yesterday he believes the Magic will wind up trading Howard to the Rockets, since they're the only team willing to take on Orlando's unfavorable contracts (Twitter links).

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Dwight Howard Rumors: Friday

July 13th, 2012 at 9:57pm CST by Michael Pina

The Rockets and Magic are further from completing a deal than has been speculated, reports NBA.com's David Aldridge. It's been rumored that Houston had made the decision to amnesty Luis Scola so that they could take on several of Orlando's terrible contracts, but they're apparently only willing to take back one. Also, they're only willing to give up one of their three first round draft picks.

Rockets Amnesty Luis Scola

July 13th, 2012 at 2:33pm CST by Ryan Raroque

FRIDAY, 2:33pm: The Rockets have officially released Scola via the amnesty clause, tweets ESPN.com's Marc Stein.

THURSDAY, 8:57pm: Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld points out why Scola could actually clear the amnesty waivers and become an unrestricted free agent. An amnesty bid requires the incorporation of the non-guaranteed amount of the contract. While Scola was guaranteed $9.4MM and $10.2MM for the next two seasons, his final season was for $11MM with just $1MM guaranteed. A bidding team would have to account for the non-guaranteed $10MM over the life of the original deal (three years in this case), thus starting the bid at a minimum of around $3.3MM. Pincus mentions that teams won't have that kind of cap space to make such an offer, which increases the possibility that Scola clears waivers.

Rockets Reconstruct Trade Offer For Howard

July 13th, 2012 at 11:35am CST by Luke Adams

11:35am: Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets that he doesn't believe last year's rookies (Morris, Parsons) and this year's three draftees (Lamb, White, Jones) are all a part of the Rockets' offer, but that many of them could be involved.

7:43am: In an effort to convince the Magic to deal Dwight Howard directly to Houston, the Rockets are in the process of reconstructing their trade proposal for the star center, according to an ESPN.com report by Marc Stein and Chad Ford. Stein and Ford write that the Rockets are looking to clear the necessary cap space to absorb at least three additional contracts in addition to Howard's, from a group that includes Hedo Turkoglu, Chris Duhon, Glen Davis, and Jason Richardson.

Dwight Howard Rumors: Thursday

July 12th, 2012 at 10:52pm CST by Luke Adams

While reports yesterday suggested that the Magic had suspended Dwight Howard trade talks while they search for a new head coach, it appears the team is still willing to listen to new offers. However, those offers likely won't be coming from the Nets for a while. After Brooklyn agreed to re-sign Brook Lopez to a four-year, maximum-salary contract, it took the team's top trade chip from the trade block until at least January 15th, at which point he's eligible to be traded again. Who knows if Howard will still be in Orlando by that point, but here's the latest on the Magic's star center:

Although Howard remains Houston's number one priority, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld tweeted earlier that acquiring Andrew Bynum in a three-way deal with Orlando and the Lakers is the designated back up plan.
Interestingly enough, ESPN's Marc Stein retweeted a follower who recognized that the Rockets' official Twitter account decided to follow Dwight Howard, Chris Duhon, Glen Davis, and Jason Richardson as of tonight.
John Denton of NBA.com says that according to GM Rob Hennigan, there is nothing imminent in Howard trade talks.

Earlier updates:

Bulls Notes: Rose, Asik, Howard, Hinrich

July 12th, 2012 at 10:24pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Derrick Rose's road to recovery appears to be progressing along nicely according to his brother Reggie, who says that the Bulls superstar is "way ahead of schedule." Rose is now walking without a brace and is currently in California enjoying a quiet retreat from Chicago in the meantime (Scott Powers of ESPN Chicago has the report). Here's what else we've heard out of Chicago tonight, including more on Omer Asik, thoughts on Dwight Howard, and a returning Bull..

Kyler On Calderon, Howard, Blair, Augustin

July 12th, 2012 at 10:30am CST by Luke Adams

Jose Calderon's name has surfaced as a possible amnesty candidate a few times this offseason, but according to Raptors president Bryan Colangelo, the team doesn't expect to amnesty Calderon or anyone else this week. While Colangelo acknowledged that Calderon wasn't "thrilled" about the trade that brought Kyle Lowry to Toronto, he still views him as a valuable piece on the roster, as Eric Koreen of the National Post writes. Colangelo confirmed that a few teams have inquired on Calderon, and Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld writes that a trade is much more likely than an amnesty. Here are a few more notes from Kyler's HoopsWorld piece:

Magic Suspend Dwight Howard Trade Talks

July 11th, 2012 at 9:38pm CST by Luke Adams

9:38pm: A compelling reason the Rockets, Warriors and Hawks may take on Howard without knowing whether he'll re-sign is the possibility of flipping him to the Nets, says Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter links). The Rockets' continued pursuit of Howard has no bearing on their offer sheet to Omer Asik, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune hears (Twitter link).

3:55pm: While the Magic appear to be putting Howard talks on the backburner for now, a source tells Ken Berger of CBSSports.com that Orlando would listen if the Nets (and presumably any other team) came forward with new proposals.

3:44pm: While Hennigan refused to share the specifics of the conversation he had with Howard today, both Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld and Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com hear that the GM told Howard: "Sorry, we tried" (Twitter links). Based on Hennigan's comments and various reports, it's clear Howard won't be dealt to the Nets, at least until January 15th. The star center could still be dealt this offseason, though the Magic GM acknowledged that D12 could open the season in Orlando.

3:13pm: Speaking to the media this afternoon, Hennigan said it's "not accurate" that the Magic have suspended trade talks, adding that the team is leaving every door open. However, the Magic GM seemed to at least acknowledge that a deal with the Nets looks very unlikely. He also said he spoke to Howard earlier today, though he declined to share the specifics (all four Twitter links).

2:46pm: The Magic have informed Dwight Howard that they are suspending trade talks involving him, reports Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com (via Twitter). According to Rudolph, GM Rob Hennigan told Howard that the team tried to make a deal, but didn't find one that Hennigan and the front office felt met the Magic's needs (Twitter link). The club will now focus on finding its new head coach.

If the Magic are done exploring a Howard trade for the time being, it almost certainly removes the Nets from the equation. Brooklyn is said to be closing in on a new contract for Brook Lopez, which would mean the center, who is the Nets' primary trade chip, couldn't be moved until at least January 15th.

The Magic were also reportedly in talks with the Lakers, Rockets, and Hawks, and it's not clear if or when the club will re-open discussions on Howard. As Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel points out (via Twitter), despite the bad blood between Howard and the Magic, Orlando would still love to have him back for next season.

As for the Magic's coaching search, Lindsey Hunter, Mike Malone, Brian Shaw, Jacque Vaughn, and Jeff Hornacek are all thought to be candidates for the opening, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld.

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