Dwight Howard (Photo : Facebook/DwightHoward)
The NBA Free Agency rumors continue to swirl as the teams who got the boot try to build their team.
The Portland Trail Blazers had the worst of fortunes in the offseason but they kept their focus, refused to tank and got rewarded with a second round playoff appearance. Also, Coach Terry Stotts was given a remarkable extension until 2020 which he deserves.
Now that they have a respected backcourt, the Blazers need to look towards obtaining a piece on their frontcourt. Kevin Durant is always the ideal scenario but Al Horford as a target seems like a great fit as well. There is also Hassan Whiteside of the Miami Heat as a defensive anchor up front.
However, despite the playoff run that turned heads all over the league, it might not be enough to sway these big names considering the horde of other teams that will also pursue them.
Which brought ESPN writer for The Undefeated, Marc Spears to discuss the possibility of Dwight Howard going to the Portland Trail Blazers in John Canzano's radio show. Oregon Live had the transcription.
"If he's your third option, he's a great third option... Dwight's a good guy. He gets beat up a lot, but to me, he's a really good guy. Under the circumstances, with the lack of post scoring and some added defense there, I'd certainly sign him up. Certainly, the price has to be the right price... who else are they going to get who is better? If Dwight Howard is interested, under the right price, I'd be interested back."
If D12 to Portland was a discussion in his last free agency, the Blazers could have been the next Western power with a Howard-LaMarcus Aldridge pairing. That seems very distant from the situation now.
The Blazers are now led by point guard Damian Lillard who drove a stake through Howard's heart in 2014 when he kicked the Houston Rockets out of the playoffs with a buzzer beating three pointer.
However, while Spears seemed optimistic about Howard donning the black and red, team site Rip City Project aired the sentiment that some fans harbored: stay away from Dwight. Writer Steven Dewald of RCP cited Howard's deterioration which will only get worse as he is now 30 years old with tons of NBA mileage.
Also, Dewald cited that Howard's "locker room persona carries a large stigma. There is a reason he only spent one season with the Lakers. Howard had an extremely hard time assimilating in Los Angeles."
Howard would also be incapable of stretching the four position and would create spacing problems with the Blazers' current bigs. Finally, Howard has openly stated that he wants to pursue the big payday and the Blazers would be better pressed to spend on their own free agents.
