The NBA free agency rumors continue and one of the more curious questions is where Dwight Howard will sign.
The three-time Defensive Player of the Year has officially opted out of his contract and is now a free agent. His ties with the Houston Rockets are officially severed and he can sign with any team he chooses. Howard also left $23 million of guaranteed money at the table.
Surely, D12 and his agent has checked on the market before making his decision. It is speculated that it's not all about the money that he could make for this year, but a long-term contract even if it does not match the amount he would make sticking out with the Rockets for another season.
Now is as good a time as any to test the market with the salary cap going higher than initially expected. $23 million is a relatively smaller amount compared to 2013 when Dwight signed the deal with them. But how many teams would line up for his services?
Still a handful of teams would venture for Howard, especially those looking for a defensive center. One of the teams is the Orlando Magic and Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report predicted that Howard would return to his original team, burned bridges notwithstanding.
Bucher noted that Howard is exactly the player that they need-a veteran, defensive center in contrast to the young talent that they have. Howard could also play with resident center Niv Vucevic (or he could be part of a trade later on).
Another factor why he feels that Orlando will find Howard worthy of swallowing their pride is the pairing of Howard with new head coach Frank Vogel of Indiana. Bucher cited how Vogel developed Indiana Pacers big man Roy Hibbert into a defensive force (he has regressed since he left). If anyone can help Howard regain his old form, it would be Vogel.
There was strong buzz about Howard ending up in Dallas earlier on. The Mavericks also want a big man-and a big name as well. The presence of old pal Chandler Parsons doesn't hurt, too.
However, the rumors about D12 to Dallas were shot down by a report from Matt Mosley of Sports Day which claimed that Mavs superstar Dirk Nowitzki doesn't want him there.
"Dirk doesn't want Dwight Howard coming here, by the way. I think he'll make that known in his talks with Donnie and Mark. This team needs a rim protector. But Howard isn't someone you can build around at this point in his career," Mosley opined.