Dwight Howard is a punk

[LarBrd33]

Never liked Dwight.  He's a dirty player and a punk of a person.  

If you're following this "saga" closely, the one clear thing that seems to be coming out of this is that Dwight Howard wants to play for the Nets next season... and is going to be playing for the Nets next season one way or the other.

Not necessarily this season, though.  Probably doesn't want the Jersey stink on him.  Makes more sense from a marketing standpoint for him to join the team in the offseason during the whole "BROOOOOOKLYN NETS!!!" uber-hype we are all going to deal with.  New zillion dollar arena, new zillion dollar team... new zillion dollar franchise player in a major market.

So supposedly he is telling the Nets not to give up any assets for him.  In other words, don't give up Brook Lopez.  Don't give up Marshon Brooks.  Don't give up a 1st rounder.

And you can't blame him... the Nets will have the 2nd best PG in the world (Deron), capable young talent like Brooks, Lopez, Morrow... top 5 odds of landing the #1 pick and they also own the Rocket's top 14 protected pick (currently projected #16)...  The Russian and Jay-Z will have cap space to add Dwight without losing ANY of these assets... which is why Kris Humphries is probably what they are offering right now (since he doesn't fit into their long-term vision and they'll have no money left over to sign him if they sign Dwight in the offseason)

The 5th best odds of landing Anthony Davis is insane.  This draft is deep regardless.  So you can see why Dwight probably doesn't see the point in joining the 14-29 Nets right now.  Not much shot of making the playoffs this year and by playing for them down the stretch he'll just mess up their shot at landing a top 3 pick.

Some rumors even suggest Dwight has flat out spoken to the Nets and asked them not to give up assets for him.  Plausible since apparently the Magic have given him permission to speak to the teams that are interested... well... at least the 3 he says he'll sign extensions with:  Nets, Lakers, Mavs

So then, if the Nets aren't even willing to part with Brook Lopez... that narrows it down to just the Lakers and Mavs.  Mavs don't have anything interesting... so Orlando might as well just trade Dwight right now for Andrew Bynum, right?  Better to get something than nothing.

This is where Dwight now steps in tells the Magic that he wants to play out the remainder of the season.  Basically giving their hopes up.  Giving them some bullcrap line about how he thinks it's best for the team's future and for the fans.  Yeah... way to think about the fans, Dwight.  Much better to hoodwink your GM/Ownership into believing they have a shot at resigning you ... then leaving them with NOTHING in the offseason, than allowing them to get some assets for you in the next 30+ hours.

Of COURSE Dwight wants to play out the remainder of the season in Orlando.  The team is going to make the playoffs.  Might as well.  Joining the Nets right now just messes up his new team's long-term ability to be a contender.  

It's a punk move all around.  He's never going to come out and say he'll sign an extension with the Magic, because he has utterly no intention of staying with them.  But, he can sweet talk and back peddle enough that they might think they have a shot.   If the Magic don't trade him before the deadline, all of those idiots need to lose their jobs in the offseason when Dwight leaves them with nothing.  Then again, I get why they don't do it... they are probably all getting fired regardless.  Nobody wants to be the GM to trade a player like Dwight Howard.  

The people who are really going to suffer is Magic fans.  I hope they enjoy their Dwight Howard rental.  

[indeedproceed]

Otis Smith has gotta trade Dwight now. Today or tomorrow, for whatever picks and assets they can glean.

[Employee8]

Yeah, it's a part of the game nowadays.  I'm not sure how to feel about this because I loved the old days where players understood that it was simply a privilege to play for a team and to be playing basketball for a living.

Now the players are seeing eye to eye with the owners and they realize that the owners need them as much as they need them.  So is this good or bad?  Good in the sense that they finally see each other as equals but bad in that the players' egos are so unbelievably overinflated that they're overstepping their boundaries and control their franchises.  There needs to be a line drawn.  Denver drew the line with Melo and got rid of him.  Cleveland didn't with LeBron.  And it looks like Orlando isn't drawing the line with Dwight.  Centers are hard to come by.

I agree that what Dwight is doing is manipulative but I can understand it from his point of view.  He wants to be on a contender.  He's simply too good to be traded to a contender because he's going to demand 2 or 3 of their top players.  He's got the desire to win, which is more than I can say about LeBron.

[bfrombleacher]

Otis Smith has gotta trade Dwight now. Today or tomorrow, for whatever picks and assets they can glean.

Second that. Trade him so he's someone else's mess. We know what his ulterior motive is now.

[LarBrd33]

Otis Smith has gotta trade Dwight now. Today or tomorrow, for whatever picks and assets they can glean.

Does Dwight have veto power?

My money is still on him going to the Lakers for Bynum.  Not sure if he'll sign an extension there (which might be why the Lakers had interest in trading 31 year old Pau for 26 year old Rondo)... and that might be what ultimately holds it up.  Dwight wants to be the face of Brooklyn and he's currently manipulating his way there by tickling his team's dingles.

Ultimately if I'm the GM of the Magic (and Dwight doesn't have veto power), I might just call up every team in the final hour of the deadline and say... "alright you all have 10 minutes to give me your best offer for Dwight... just know that he's probably leaving you for the Nets next season"

You might as well since it's blatantly clear he's a goner.  I checked the Magic fan forum on RealGm and they are irate at Dwight.  They all see what he's doing and they are disgusted with it.

So what's a Dwight Howard rental gonna cost?  IF you're Boston you probably throw in your offer of JO, Bass, Wilcox, Dooling (all expiring) + both of our 1st rounders just for a chance to stick Dwight Howard next to Rondo, Ray, Pierce and KG for our final stand...  though I'm fairly certain someone else will be crazy enough to offer more.

[slamtheking]

Never liked Dwight.  He's a dirty player and a punk of a person.  

If you're following this "saga" closely, the one clear thing that seems to be coming out of this is that Dwight Howard wants to play for the Nets next season... and is going to be playing for the Nets next season one way or the other.

Not necessarily this season, though.  Probably doesn't want the Jersey stink on him.  Makes more sense from a marketing standpoint for him to join the team in the offseason during the whole "BROOOOOOKLYN NETS!!!" uber-hype we are all going to deal with.  New zillion dollar arena, new zillion dollar team... new zillion dollar franchise player in a major market.

So supposedly he is telling the Nets not to give up any assets for him.  In other words, don't give up Brook Lopez.  Don't give up Marshon Brooks.  Don't give up a 1st rounder.

And you can't blame him... the Nets will have the 2nd best PG in the world (Deron), capable young talent like Brooks, Lopez, Morrow... top 5 odds of landing the #1 pick and they also own the Rocket's top 14 protected pick (currently projected #16)...  The Russian and Jay-Z will have cap space to add Dwight without losing ANY of these assets... which is why Kris Humphries is probably what they are offering right now (since he doesn't fit into their long-term vision and they'll have no money left over to sign him if they sign Dwight in the offseason)

The 5th best odds of landing Anthony Davis is insane.  This draft is deep regardless.  So you can see why Dwight probably doesn't see the point in joining the 14-29 Nets right now.  Not much shot of making the playoffs this year and by playing for them down the stretch he'll just mess up their shot at landing a top 3 pick.

Some rumors even suggest Dwight has flat out spoken to the Nets and asked them not to give up assets for him.  Plausible since apparently the Magic have given him permission to speak to the teams that are interested... well... at least the 3 he says he'll sign extensions with:  Nets, Lakers, Mavs

So then, if the Nets aren't even willing to part with Brook Lopez... that narrows it down to just the Lakers and Mavs.  Mavs don't have anything interesting... so Orlando might as well just trade Dwight right now for Andrew Bynum, right?  Better to get something than nothing.

This is where Dwight now steps in tells the Magic that he wants to play out the remainder of the season.  Basically giving their hopes up.  Giving them some bullcrap line about how he thinks it's best for the team's future and for the fans.  Yeah... way to think about the fans, Dwight.  Much better to hoodwink your GM/Ownership into believing they have a shot at resigning you ... then leaving them with NOTHING in the offseason, than allowing them to get some assets for you in the next 30+ hours.

Of COURSE Dwight wants to play out the remainder of the season in Orlando.  The team is going to make the playoffs.  Might as well.  Joining the Nets right now just messes up his new team's long-term ability to be a contender.  

It's a punk move all around.  He's never going to come out and say he'll sign an extension with the Magic, because he has utterly no intention of staying with them.  But, he can sweet talk and back peddle enough that they might think they have a shot.   If the Magic don't trade him before the deadline, all of those idiots need to lose their jobs in the offseason when Dwight leaves them with nothing.  Then again, I get why they don't do it... they are probably all getting fired regardless.  Nobody wants to be the GM to trade a player like Dwight Howard.  

The people who are really going to suffer is Magic fans.  I hope they enjoy their Dwight Howard rental.  

I'm not so sure he's having those conversations with NJ since that would amount to tampering / collusion and would end up costing the Nets dearly if they're caught.  --> think of the mess that happened to Minnie over the Joe Smith fiasco as a starting point and probably double the penalty.

I find it hard to feel sorry for Orlando though.  sure, this will be the second franchise center to leave them high and dry but this franchise is one of the newer ones in the NBA and has had the "luck" to land the #1 pick 3 times -- each time with a franchise player available with that pick.  Shaq, Webber and Howard (they parlayed Webber into Penny which helped them get to the finals however if they kept webber, they may have gotten to the finals anyway and still been good enough to get there with Webber as the centerpiece, especially since he had a much longer and productive career than Penny).

[GreenFaith1819]

Well, I'm not sure if Dwight is a punk, but he does need to come clean, here.

And if ORL does trade him to LA, like rumored in some places, Otis Smith would be crazy to NOT get BOTH Pau and Bynum.

Don't accept LESS, ORL. The way that Dwight dominated Drew this season, he is worth BOTH of those guys. Plus, getting BOTH Pau and Drew would ensure that ORL would get something reliable, in lieu of possible injuries.

Don't let Mitch and Co. undersell you, ORL. This is the same team that pulled off a Brinks Job and got Pau in his prime away from MEM.

I think that Dwight is a likeable player, but he is being caught up in the hype. If he just took some time away from the hype over the next few weeks, I'd bet that his HEART would tell him what to do. He simply isn't thinking for himself.

Make a decision, Dwight. Don't become like Lebron. Make a choice then stick with it.

And make it EARLY.

[greenlion]

can you blame them? these punks are by-products of overvaluing their worth, the business which is the nba honed their egos, fed their whims to the hilt..it has evolved into one battleground atmosphere into a circus, somehow lost its credibility as competitors..only few remain as athletes to play then get paid as opposed to be paid first before they play..greed rules but sadly stupidity reigns for most since at the end of their careers they lose everything..gone are the days they play for pride and their teams, right now its all about SHOW ME THE MONEY!!!

[LarBrd33]

Well, I'm not sure if Dwight is a punk, but he does need to come clean, here.

And if ORL does trade him to LA, like rumored in some places, Otis Smith would be crazy to NOT get BOTH Pau and Bynum.

If you're the Lakers and you realize you're the only team who can offer the Magic anything substantial... you have no reason to give up both pau and bynum.   The lakers are smart enough to see who holds the cards.   The Magic have no leverage at all.  They either take Bynum or they lose Dwight for nothing.  Pau and Bynum make up 2 of the top 5 big men in the league and they are both over 7 feet tall.  I'm thinking the Lakers will be perfectly content in keeping them. 

And from a Laker perspective, there's no guarantee that Dwight will sign an extension there if all he has surrounding him is aging Kobe Bryant... which is why the Lakers will likely trade Pau for a young guard like Rondo or a package like Lowry + Scola to try to placate Dwight into sticking around and not leaving THEM for the Nets.   You can see why landing Chris Paul for Pau (in that garbage trade that would have strapped the Hornets with 80+ million in horrible long-term salary) would have been a disaster for every team who isn't the Lakers.

If at any point you hear Pau has been finally traded in the next couple days... you should be expecting to hear a "Bynum for Dwight" trade shortly afterwards.  Likewise, if you see a "Bynum for Dwight" trade in the next couple days... brace yourselves for more Rondo/Pau rumors.

[CelticG1]

Yeah, it's a part of the game nowadays.  I'm not sure how to feel about this because I loved the old days where players understood that it was simply a privilege to play for a team and to be playing basketball for a living.

Now the players are seeing eye to eye with the owners and they realize that the owners need them as much as they need them.  So is this good or bad?  Good in the sense that they finally see each other as equals but bad in that the players' egos are so unbelievably overinflated that they're overstepping their boundaries and control their franchises.  There needs to be a line drawn.  Denver drew the line with Melo and got rid of him.  Cleveland didn't with LeBron.  And it looks like Orlando isn't drawing the line with Dwight.  Centers are hard to come by.

I agree that what Dwight is doing is manipulative but I can understand it from his point of view.  He wants to be on a contender.  He's simply too good to be traded to a contender because he's going to demand 2 or 3 of their top players.  He's got the desire to win, which is more than I can say about LeBron.

You could argue that what dwight is doing now is what lebron did the whole time during his free agent year.

Plan on going to a certain team the whole time, lead your current team to believe they have a chance at resigning you only to leave.them for the team you planned to go to the whole time. Smart of Lebron to do the this as he went to a team that didn't have to give up nearly anything to get him. And a lot of people don't believe that this was something in the works the whole time

[LarBrd33]

Just because I feel like taking another potshot at this dirty egocentric Hollywood punk I want to bring up the irrelevant fact that Dwight Howard is supposedly some Hulk-Hogan-esque uber Christian, but he knocked up one of the Orlando Magic dancers out of wedlock... future "basketball wives" star Royce Reed.  I feel like the hypocrisy doesn't get enough attention.

And his superman dunk wasn't even a dunk.

There...  all done.

[slamdunk]

Otis Smith has gotta trade Dwight now. Today or tomorrow, for whatever picks and assets they can glean.

What team is going to make a huge offer for him? They're better off keeping him and making a run at a title than trading him for pennies on the dollar.

[GreenFaith1819]

Just because I feel like taking another potshot at this dirty egocentric Hollywood punk I want to bring up the irrelevant fact that Dwight Howard is supposedly some Hulk-Hogan-esque uber Christian, but he knocked up one of the Orlando Magic dancers out of wedlock... future "basketball wives" star Royce Reed.  I feel like the hypocrisy doesn't get enough attention.

And his superman dunk wasn't even a dunk.

There...  all done.

Wow, Man....all have fallen short, brother.

I'm thankful that my wife married ME, for that matter. I was a nearly complete MESS before she showed up in my life, lol..

Still a mess, too, at times.

Where is the Love, says Miss Roberta Flack.

[Chris]

Yes, he is a punk.  But I think he might have just entered Danny's radar if the Nets try to lowball the Magic for him and don't offer Lopez.

Danny would gladly give up expiring contracts, picks, and kids for a rental of Howard, as would Cuban. 

[LarBrd33]

Just because I feel like taking another potshot at this dirty egocentric Hollywood punk I want to bring up the irrelevant fact that Dwight Howard is supposedly some Hulk-Hogan-esque uber Christian, but he knocked up one of the Orlando Magic dancers out of wedlock... future "basketball wives" star Royce Reed.  I feel like the hypocrisy doesn't get enough attention.

And his superman dunk wasn't even a dunk.

There...  all done.

Wow, Man....all have fallen short, brother.

I'm thankful that my wife married ME, for that matter. I was a nearly complete MESS before she showed up in my life, lol..

Still a mess, too, at times.

Where is the Love, says Miss Roberta Flack.

He never married her.  She's just his babymommy.  She quit dancing and she's off trying to make a career as a reality television star and an author... and showcasing her new boytoys to the world. 

http://s2smagazine.com/stories/2012/02/royce-reed-dishes-her-relationships


I was kidding, regardless.  I don't care how many babymommys Dwight wants to have. 

The Superman non-dunk is unforgivable, though.  It temporarily ruined future teammate Gerald Green's career as an NBA sideshow.