Dwight Howard (Photo : NBAE via Getty Images)
The NBA trade rumors continue to roll and while the book might have closed on the Dwight Howard trade, insiders are skeptical.
NBA team owners need to say the right things and when it comes to trades, the more they hold on, the more valuable a player gets. Admitting a team's intentions to trade a player will cause his trade value to plummet.
Dwight Howard used to be a dominant NBA force and for almost half a decade (the era when Shaquille O'Neal was close to retirement), he redefined the center position, emphasizing defense and athleticism more than size and post-scoring prowess. But even he is now facing the ravages of time.
The Houston Rockets were so convinced that they could win a title with Dwight Howard, who has yet to win a ring himself, especially when they pair him with James Harden. They came so close to the fulfilling that vision last season when they faced the Golden State Warriors in the Conference Finals.
Now, Houston is scurrying to keep a playoff spot and trying desperately to move up and avoid not just the Warriors but also the San Antonio Spurs. One big factor to their descent is that Dwight Howard, while still producing the numbers, is no longer the defensive force that he once was.
This is why the ESPN Insiders believe that Howard can still be traded at the deadline. On the question of which biggest name in the West is most likely to move, Howard was chosen one.
"While I'm skeptical that any particular big name is likely to be moved, there's a strong case for Howard to be changing ZIP codes, as noted above. But again, that's still a long shot," Amin Elhassan said.
"I'll go with Howard," Bradford Doolittle said. "Moving him would preempt the concern Houston must have about his opting out this summer, and the Rockets have a ready-made replacement on the roster. Howard could bring back a legit package of talent to help right away."
There's barely a week to go before the deadline, and the Rockets may have to decide. It's not that Howard is a bad player, but more because Howard is a flight risk as he can opt out at the end of the season. Also, the Rockets may have seen just how far they can go with the Harden-Howard tandem, and it's not enough to go all the way.
According to Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports, the Rockets have already discussed trading Howard to the Boston Celtics, and they remain the best trade partner. The deal was off because the Rockets were asking too much, but if the Rockets reconsider their demands at the trade deadline, the Celts have the combination of assets and they also need a player like Howard to go further in the East.
This is probably the reason why the ESPN Insiders named D12 as the prime mover of the deadline.
